Budapest’s Ruin Bars Revealed

Wondering how these bizarre drinking holes lodged inside tumble-down buildings came to be? Many visitors to beautiful Budapest are curious about the heritage of its ruin bars – and it’s a pretty fascinating story to boot.

Like many cities in Europe, Budapest was hit hard in WWII and suffered invasions from both the Nazis and the Soviet Union. This was especially true in the Jewish Quarter (also sometimes called Erzsébetváros) which was left in a pretty awful state for decades after the war ended.

In the early 2000s, some savvy locals decided to turn a few of Budapest’s abandoned buildings into super chilled out underground bars featuring cheap-as-chips drinks and décor mostly made up of unwanted furniture and kooky bric-a-brac.

Fast forward to today and these lowkey pubs are actually some of Budapest’s best nightlife spots. It helps that even a pint of good local craft ale in one of these rough-around-the-edges venues tends to come in at around 1200 HUF (£3). Not fussy? Standard draught lager is typically just 400 HUF (£1) per pint.

The biggest – and often regarded as the best – ruin bar in Budapest has to be Szimpla Kert. It’s famous for being one of the first ruin pubs in the city and for its eclectic set up which’ll see you wandering through eight or so different rooms, each with its own bar and theme.

You’ll find Szimpla Kert tucked away in a huge warehouse in the Jewish Quarter and it’s easy to stroll straight past unless you keep your eyes peeled for its vintage-style street sign. Like most ruin bars, it’s pretty unassuming until you walk through the doors and into what essentially feels like a cave covered in all sorts of crazy junk. It all centres around a covered central courtyard littered with tables and chairs, plus a cool 1950s-era Trabant car that’s been turned into an intimate seating area (we reckon it’s the best spot to sit in the building).

If crumbling walls and cars turned into makeshift sofas sounds a bit too ghetto for your tastes, Mazel Tov is a much better match. It’s a relative newbie to the Budapest ruin bar scene and definitely one of the city’s more upmarket options.

Mazel Tov is an Instagrammers dream thanks to its wood panelled walls, shabby-chic furnishings, strings of fairy lights and gorgeous greenery which hangs dramatically down from its high ceilings. Its gorgeous aesthetic does mean its menu comes with a slightly higher price tag than other Budapest ruin bars; however, it still won’t break the bank.

This ruin bar inside the much-loved Grandio party hostel is one of our top picks for a more chilled out evening or cheap pre-drink session before you hit up livelier locations like Instant (see below).

Spread out across the hostel’s courtyard, the ruin pub is a real mishmash of roughly painted seating, strung up lanterns, bizarre art pieces and even the occasional hammock. Did we mention the lush vegetation? This has to be one of the leafiest bars you’ll ever visit; the entire space is dotted with trees which gives it serious jungle vibes and adds to its air of abandonment.

Like Szimpla Kert, Instant is one of those places you have to visit at least once – particularly if you’re keen to have a big night out or have booked a stag do in Budapest.

Saying this ruin bar is huge would be an understatement; Instant takes up an entire apartment building, with each individual floor offering a different genre of music. There’s additionally no fewer than 18 bars – including a more relaxed one on the roof – where you can grab a drink and then head straight into the crowd on your preferred dancefloor. In true ruin bar style, Instant’s furniture looks like it’s been retrieved from a dumpster, but don’t let that put you off.

Okay, so this one is more of a pub garden than your classic ruin bar, but it’s still a great spot for a drink and a natter. It’s essentially just some mismatched tables and chairs set up on the grass in City Park – Budapest’s largest green space that’s only a short bus ride away from the Jewish Quarter.

Kertem – meaning “my garden” in the local lingo) – does have a permanent bar area beneath a wooden pagoda, plus there’s sometimes a food truck dishing out greasy yet oh-so-delicious burgers. It’s a real sanctuary among the trees and an ideal place for a few drinks on a hot day (note that it’s only open in the summer).