Linoleum and leatherette

Bambi Eszpresszó

Hipsters in black turtlenecks sit next to domino-playing uncles who haven't changed their socks since 1961. The décor remains the same too.

A FourBees review

The very popular Bambi Eszpresszó on Budapest's Frankel Leó út should really be protected as a national monument and listed building as it has one of the few interiors of old style coffee bar culture dating back to the early sixties, that remain untouched by the clammy fingers of time.
A fairy tale ceramic city adorns the walls of the main café room where the atmosphere is all beige. The mosaic floor has geometric box shapes in yellow, green and brown on the aging linoleum, but nobody notices as they're all having too good a time.
Old men play dominoes on a Sunday afternoon, sitting on red leatherette seats. Groups of grannies enjoy cake and gossip, students while away the hours with a few low-price beers and labourers come in for refreshment between bouts of digging. Everyone, it seems, can find their place at the Bambi.
On the semi-pedestrian street the doors are flung open on warm days and the fuggy, stale Sophie ciggie atmosphere spills out onto the pavement. The doors’ geometric design is also worth noting, as they were created when the enthusiasm for pop-art shapes and angles was at its height.
The Bambi serves ‘warm sandwiches’ (meleg szendvicsek) curling up at the edges, omelettes, cakes and coffee, but really, to keep in the style of the establishment you should try the lukewarm ‘Soviet’ champagne on offer for only 480 forints a bottle, or the sometimes difficult to find Kadarka red wine, which comes complete with a non-resealable metal bottle cap, a genuine and historical bargain at 27 forints a decilitre.

Bambi Eszpresszó
Budapest – District II
Frankel Leó út 2/4
Getting there: Tram No. 4, 6 to Margit híd, budai hídfô
Tel: (+36 1) 212-3171
Open Mon—Fri 7am—9pm, Sat—Sun 9am—8pm

THE STING
Décor 9/10
Cuisine 5/10
Service 6/10
Wine List 4/10
Ambience 9/10
The Bees' Knees 9/10

Behind the musty red velvet curtains:

Bambi, Márka and Traubisoda - bubbling success stories
The Bambi soft drink was first made in Budapest in 1947 and for years the two-and-a-half decilitre bottle sealed with a clasp was the only soft drink available.
Created from synthetic basic ingredients, with ‘orange flavouring’ and gently carbonated, it was the ‘children’s favourite’ but disappeared soon after the Kőbányai Likőrgyár began producing Coca Cola under licence in 1968.
Traubi was created by the Austrian Mose Lenz and the recipe and ingredients arrived in Hungary in 1971. The uniquely stylish green ribbed bottle and refreshing Badacsony Saszla grape (traube in German) blended with magnesium-rich water taste ensured its lasting success. In 1992, Traubi Hungaria Rt. bought the bottling plant in Balatonvilágos and the company successfully rides the wave of nostalgia keeping the iconic design of the bottle. In 2001, the company resurrected another soft drink family with a great history.
The Márka brand first appeared in 1973 in sour cherry, raspberry, grape and orange flavours.