The Concise Egghead Guide to Budapest
The Concise Egghead Guide to Budapest

Summary/Abstract: Cafes do not really exist in the old sense. There were about 600 at the turn of the century. At the end of the forties most of them were closed or converted to espressos. Café New York (VII. Erzsébet körút 9-11.) in landmark New York palace (an insurance company headquarters) originally opened in 1894. That’s where modem Hungarian literature wéis actually born. After WWH it was reopened as a sportsware department store. Then it was reborn again as a café. A writer, when asked by a waiter what he wanted to have, answered: “A pair of tennis shoes...” The place is quite deserted nowadays, especially since the departure of the editorial offices of a dozen dailies and weeklies from the building.

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