Carolyn Bánfalvi is a freelance journalist based in Budapest. In addition to a bachelor’s degree in journalism from New York University, she holds a degree in professional cooking and baking. In 2002 she was awarded the International Foodservice Editorial Council’s scholarship for food writing. She has been published in a variety of newspapers and magazines, including The Wall Street Journal Europe, The Wall Street Journal, Gastronomica, and The Washington Post. She contributed to the first edition of a Bradt guide to Hungary (2005) and the 2006 update of Frommer’s Budapest and the Best of Hungary.

George Konkoly-Thege was born in Hungary. His photographs have appeared in many publications, including Cosmopolitan, Horizon (the in-flight magazine for Hungarian airline Mal?v), and Playboy. [Edit review] [Delete review]

Despite its vast repertoire, variety, and recipes bursting with flavor, Hungarian cuisine is one of the most underappreciated and unknown European cuisines. There are few Hungarian restaurants outside the country so those who are interested in discovering Hungarian cuisine (and any food lover should be!) must go to Hungary to sample everything firsthand, prepared with real Hungarian ingredients–now by a new generation of talented chefs and winemakers. Despite the fact that last year more foreign tourists visited the city than ever before (36.6 million), there are still no guidebooks written in English focusing on Budapest restaurants and Hungarian food. Carolyn Bánfalvi has written the first culinary guide to Budapest, Food Wine Budapest. This book is a practical guide that contains the vocabulary you’ll need (one obstacle to discovering Hungarian food and wine is the difficult Magyar language); dozens of restaurant, café, and shop reviews; and... [More...] [Edit review] [Delete review]

"Food Wine Budapest: A Terroir Guide, by Carolyn Banfalvi, concentrates on gastronomic pleasures. It is, quite simply, the best guide available today to the culinary renaissance of the city and region in the post-communist era. Banfalvi profiles some of the best restaurants and wine bars in Budapest, but also includes cafes, pastry shops, specialty food shops and markets, as well as the traditions behind their offerings. Helpfully, she includes extensive translations for the names of wines, foods and cooking methods as well. This is the first book in a new series called Terroir Guides, which promises to explore cities or regions, focusing on the way local influences are reflected in food and wine. The Budapest guide sets a high standard for those that follow." —Laszlo Buhasz, The Globe and Mail

"Getting to the heart of regional cuisine can be a tall order, but The Terroir Guides ably examine the interplay between markets, local food... [More...] [Edit review] [Delete review]