Remiz

Hey guys,

[Warning:  Yes, this is the longest post I've written in a while, possibly in the whole blog.  Yes, it's about food. Just accept it]
So, today I decided to treat myself to a nice dinner out!  I've been wanting to go to Remiz (man, it's hard to type that instead of "remix" . . . silly muscle memory) pretty much since I got here.  I think I included this picture in like my first or second post:

So today I finally pulled the trigger.  This was an *excellent* decision

So Remiz is located near where the trams all spend the night, which is in fact what the word "remiz" means.  This garage is, presumably for cost-saving reasons, located pretty far out of the city.  One of my guidebooks described the restaurant as "one of the city's finest!  If only it were more centrally located".  However Central Pest's loss is my gain, as the place is only an 8 minute walk from my house (in fact, I go jogging by it every other day)

The whole menu looked absolutely fantastic--it's described as "Modern Hungarian" cuisine, which is basically an attempt to take traditional Hungarian foods (stews, hearty meat dishes, etc.) and make them a bit more refined.  And believe me, Remiz looks like it does exactly that:
http://www.remiz.hu/remiz/remiz_etlap_en.html

I was also lucky enough to come in the spring/summer, while their grill is running.  From what I could gather, since the grill is outside they only have it going during the warmer months.  It's a pretty cool setup:

In fact, after my dinner I went out and chatted a bit with the chef.  The restaurant was pretty slow (Sunday late afternoon) so I didn't feel too bad.  Plus he was a super nice guy!

Anyways, right, the food.  First came the salad:

Now it doesn't look too exceptional, but let me tell you . . . Hungarians are not big on the whole vegetable thing.  I haven't actually seen a proper salad that I didn't make for myself in weeks.  So to get some nice arugula, fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, and a balsamico reduction was pretty special

Also, you know what was hiding under there?  Caper berries!  Man, I guess I never thought about it until I couldn't get them, but I really do miss capers as an ingredient (and yes, I've asked around--both Alessandro, my Italian friend, and Attila, my Hungarian friend, say that they're really uncommon in Hungary)

Anyways, that was of course just the appetizer.  While everything on the menu looked fantastic, I went for the selection platter from the "Lava Rocks" section (i.e. the grill, but you gotta admit it sounds cooler their way)

So, the sampler platter came with the following:  "BBQ" sauce (more on that later), chicken breast, spare ribs (for which they are apparently well known) foie gras, and a salad.  Oh, and by the way, cost about $20.  Dining outside of the center of the city is awesome.  I'll break it down:

The sauce was very interesting.  I put the word "BBQ" in quotation marks because, as an American, I feel like I have to take an authoritative stand on what is and isn't BBQ.  It was actually sour-cream-based (or, more probably creme fraiche), and when I went out and talked with the chef he confirmed it's sour cream/creme fraiche, ketchup, dijon, and a bunch of spices (I didn't ask and he didn't tell).  So it wasn't a traditionally barbecue sauce, but it definitely worked--the sourness was really nice to cut the meatiness, and the spices whatever they were paired very well with the smokiness from the grill

I actually ended up using the sauce with the chicken, although on the menu it's paired with the ribs.  I guess I'm just more of a fan of sauce with chicken, and have always subscribed to the "dry rub is king" theory for ribs.  The chicken didn't actually need the sauce, I didn't think.  They butterflied the breast and must have barely had it on there, cuz it was still moist and flavorful.  And ribs definitely didn't need it, they were flavorful and delicious all on their own.  I later saw another diner eating them entirely with knife and fork . . . I don't care.  I'm American, dammit, and we eat ribs with our hands ;)

As for the foie gras?  Delicious.  I've never had it on the grill, which took away some of the creamy texture you get when you just sear it, but the smokiness of the grill was a really nice cut to the richness.  I didn't indulge, for obvious reasons, but this was the kind of foie gras I wanted to pick up and take a giant mouthful of.  That's pretty cool

Anyways, one final note.  The perceptive among you may have realized that I got a salad for an appetizer when I had already ordered an entree that came with one.  Curious both in the sense that I like to try as much of a variety of things as possible and that I'm a poor intern who doesn't have money to waste on redundant appetizers

So, what happened was, after I'd ordered, the server asked if I wanted an appetizer.  I said he could simply bring the salad out first, meaning the salad that came with my entree.  He thought I was ordering a new one.  When the entree came with the salad on it, I had a little moment of "Ooooooooh"

Sure enough, the bill came with the salad added on.  However, when I explained this to the cashier (in Hungary, the cashier is separate from the server), expecting maybe to get a bit of a discount, he said, "not a problem at all, I'll take that off" and left before I could even say, "wait that's not necess--oh, well ok"

Don't worry, I made up for it in the tip (25% of the bill before he comped the salad)

Moral of the story?  Definitely heading back there

Noah out