Cafe Gundel

I always imagined Hungarian food to be on par with the likes of German and Bavarian, that is, the bigger the better, or giant knuckles with a steak knife stabbed in the centre. So I was a little surprised when I skimmed the menu and saw items like 'slimmers delight', 'small veal knuckle' and a selection of soups and appetisers.

Realising I won't have to be removed from the restaurant on a stretcher, i happily ordered the matzo dumpling soup and small veal knuckle. My companion went all out and ordered the gypsy platter for one, which has an assortment of grilled and battered meats, chips and salad. Whilst we were patiently waiting for our feed, the waitress walked past with what appeared to be a giant fried pancake. Naturally we jumped on the bandwagon and promptly ordered our own.

Turns out it is a Langos, a Hungarian flatbread. This sensation was light, fluffy as a cloud and tasted like sin. I am no fan of bread, but could very easily have eaten 3 of these myself. The sour cream and garlic was phenomenal paired with this bread and I am still pining over it till this day.

Matzo dumplings were GINORMOUS tender sinkers in a bowl of chicken broth. The balls looked heavy but tasted otherwise and was another winning appetiser. My main of 'small' veal knuckle was falling off the bone but remained far too big and defeated me within 3 mouthfuls. Gypsy platter looked a little dry on arrival but proteins were cooked well and saved by the salad and pickles.

With a large demographic of Jewish residents, some restaurants in the area are now Kosher. Not quite sure Cafe Gundel conforms as there were no signs to indicate as much. We were also surprised the head waitress/manager looked Chinese, but she definitely knew her food and restaurant well. In all honesty, I was fairly intimidated by her persona as she didn't crack a single smile all night, however I feel it boils down to her no nonsense approach and perhaps stress from the obviously new staff that she was training.

I love this place when I have a craving for goulash and nockerl. Its my favorite Hungarian place in Sydney and if your looking for big tasty Hungarian this is the place to go.

Our two dishes of the night were Veal Knuckle and Veal Goulash. Our friend was right; the dishes were massive! We got two slowly roasted – but not crispy – veal knuckles atop sautéed red cabbage and onion potatoes. The knuckles were very soft and juicy. The Goulash on the other hand, was served with nockerl (Hungarian noodles) and cucumber salad.

An anniversary dinner of the best roast duck available (and i have tried lots ) the fish was great . The staff and Cathy are very attentive to your needs and made it a very enjoyable evening

Rose Bay North meets 21 of Double Bay. This is a popular restaurant for the local European Kultur maven.
On the plus side, the service is friendly, attentive and welcoming. Cathy (maitre d) makes patrons feel like they are at home from the minute they enter the restaurant.
The formula here is unabashedly 21 of Double Bay. Cathy worked there for years.

But on the downside, there is an unnecessary geographical price gouging premium for questionable reason.

We ate a tasty Langosh ($6.50), thankfully shared in a main sized and enjoyable Schnitzel plate - came with 2 large Schnitzels,($29); ordered a side of red cabbage around $7which was a bit exy for the size and ate a wedge of disappointingly bland apple and rhubarb cake. Dreher Beer cost $9. All up, a meal for 2 filling but rather pricey for what we got.

Would we return? Likely - for the service. For the food, given the price and the taste, the jury is out.