What’s something unique about contemporary Budapest? Ruin bars! These unusual drinking joints situated originally inside the neglected pre-war buildings of the old Jewish Quarter have taken Budapest by storm. Since their peak in the early 2000s, many ruin bars have morphed into soulless cash cows. But not all: Szimpla Kert, the mother of all ruin bars, is well-worth visiting despite being a major tourist attraction today. For more locals, try these bars.
If you have spent five minutes researching Budapest, you must have come across Szimpla Kert, the city's iconic ruin bar. Likely you are also familiar with the ruin bar (romkocsma) concept: makeshift bars that appeared in the early 2000s inside the Jewish Quarter's dilapidated buildings that were slated for demolition. Known for their inclusive atmosphere, low prices, and idiosyncratic interiors layered with second-hand furnishings, ruin bars quickly became a unique feature in Budapest's nightlife.
Szimpla Kert, which is known as the mother of all Budapest ruin bars, is no longer the offbeat bar of its infancy – you will likely have to navigate through camera-wielding tourists to approach the bar. But the place has retained its native spirit and prices also remained reasonable. Unlike some other ruin bars that cashed in on their popularity, Szimpla continues to foster the local community, for example by hosting a farmers' market every Sunday morning between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. As a subtle reminder of the neighborhood's past, a still functional mikveh (Jewish ritual bath) hides right next to Szimpla at 16 Kazinczy utca.
