Hungarian pussy is a hit on the café scene

Café Félix

Cat people café attracts pussy lovers with its hot and cold dishes

A FourBees review

In all honesty, we muesli munchers and lettuce lickers and have no excuse to moan these days about Budapest being the last refuge in Europe for slivovica-swilling lard fans.
Quality cafés serving light lunches, healthy snacks and a mind-boggling choice of beverages appear to sprout up like mushrooms after an autumn rainfall, popping up unexpectedly all over town, sometimes in the most unexpected places.
Café Félix is one of the newest and freshest of these treasures, although who can say what will pop up overnight in the fertile, mulchy café ground of the Hungarian capital.
Café Félix can be found just off Szent István körút, on Honvéd utca, the road leading past the Ministry of Defense.
It sits opposite the student grunge of the Süss fel Nap bar, but offers quite a different ambiance. On arriving, the feline motif is immediately apparent, cats are everywhere.
The door lintel is graced with a picture of a large white pussy sunning himself and contemplating life.
Inside, more portraits of moggies adorn the walls, and a cat-like style and grace is repeated in the interior decorating.
The walls are painted with egg-yolk yellow to produce a cheerful atmosphere.
The back wall is ochre with woodwork painted navy blue and I had vague déjà-vu concerning the colour scheme, since it would appear that many café owners in Budapest shop at the same hardware store, or have their shades all mixed by the same man.
The overall effect is very pleasant, a warm light streams in through the large windows and as we sat on the high balcony above the bar, we could enjoy the spring aromas through an open window.
The menu arrived and I was heartily relieved to see that vegetables get top billing.
A selection of about eight tempting dishes is available from mozzarella and tomato salad (Ft420) to avocado cream (Ft580) to the chef’s salad (Ft480).
Once again, I felt my Italian lineage tugging at my belt as my stomach began to yodel songs about ice cream and the Bay of Naples, demanding that I go straight for the Insalata Siciliana without further delay.
This I did, and I was not disappointed.
A large plate of lettuce, tomato and cucumber laden with a generous topping of tinned tuna fish made a perfect light and nutritious lunch. It arrived with olive oil and red wine vinegar to add at leisure and a choice of toast - both white corrugated bread and dark rye slices.
My lunch-time companion sampled the mixed salad with cheese (Ft480) which included lettuce, tomatoes, sweet and tender tinned baby carrots and chunks of cheese, topped with a choice of dressing, in this case yogurt.
Carnivores need not get their ravenous selves in a tizzy either as there are some delicious sounding taste treats to tempt the jaded palate.
Roquefort and turkey salad (Ft480) could perk up a Tuesday lunch time, as could anchovy cream with vegetables (Ft380), parma ham with melon (Ft890), smoked salmon and horseradish (Ft980) or even the humble frankfurter sausage (Ft380), a perennial favorite of this parish.
For those who just fancy a nibble, perhaps before taking in a show at the Vígszínház on Szent István körút opposite or a film at the Szindbád mozi, Café Félix is the ideal venue.
There is a list of sandwiches (Ft250), extra sandwiches with more filling (Ft280), Hungarian-style warm sandwiches (Ft250), toast (Ft420) and a lip-smacking dessert section that will plug any hole in convivial surroundings.
The light coming through the white marked windows throws shadow patterns onto the ceiling and the ambiance is chic Parisian left bank.
Café Félix is the sort of place where young ladies can sit happily on their own, leaf through one of the magazines or newspapers - both in Hungarian and English - and enjoy a cappuccino with a tiramisu (Ft350) or profiteroles (Ft240) or, if they are feeling very virtuous after a lunch of vitamin-packed salad, both.
The sophisticated feline, Gallic atmosphere is continued with the coffee machine, cakes in cabinets and elegant waiting staff, although they are a tad too helpful and cheerful to be really Parisian.
A range of high-quality Hungarian wines adorn the walls and a spring wine list can be found at the back of the menu.
A light lunch of salad, washed down with a glass of Chardonnay followed by profiteroles and coffee makes a delightful break from the office grindstone or starts the evening off on a sophisticated yet relaxed note.
Feline style and grace arrives in Budapest, the city of dog-lovers.

Café Félix
Budapest – District V (Lipótváros)
Honvéd utca 29
Getting there: Tram 2 or 4 & 6 to Jászai Mari tér
Tel: (36 1) 269 1899
Open: Mon-Sat 10am-10pm, Sun closed.

THE STING
Décor 8/10
Cuisine 7/10
Service 8/10
Wine List 7/10
Buzz 7/10
The Bees' Knees 7/10