Juhász Gyula - Szántó András: Hotels - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1999)

The Grand Hotel Hungária

The Hotel METROPOL

No. 58 Rákóczi út, district VII As railway transportation expanded, more and more hotels were built in the vicinity of railway stations, and the millenary celebrations also stimulated investment. That was how the Hotel Metropol was founded not far from the Eastern Station in 1895. The racing course was also

nearby, so riders as well as spectators came to patronise the establishment.

Founding owner József Petanovits managed the hotel for twenty-six years. He deserved much credit in the field of training waiters, and for years he was a board member of the Trade Association of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs. It was not only his professional excellence which made him the well-liked figure that he was, but his human kindness, too, a feature so indispensable in the catering industry. Characteristic of his popularity was the fact that his figure was commemorated in cabaret songs performed in music halls at the end of the century.

The hotel, renowned for its specialities, opened a beer

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