Kocsis Irma: A tour of our Locals. (A very quick one) - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1993)

Totó Bisztró - Platán Sörkert Totó Bistro - Plane-Tree Beer-Garden

IV. Árpád út 84

In the Újpest district, on Árpád út, a whole complex of drinking places with all kinds of food and drink, its own private tap-room; a great labyrinth of a place.

“Ragyás”

“Pocky”

IV Széchenyi tér 4

Properly called Pub No. 4712 of Széchenyi tér. It is housed in a single-story building and, if the weather’s fine, ninety percent of the customers sit and sip on the sidewalk. It is one of those rare places where you can see people playing dominoes. Its back door opens onto a timber-and-coal yard. Discarded soot-blackened baskets lie among the forsaken piles of coal and pyramids of coke. The coalmen sit playing dominoes in the “Pocky”.

Öcsi Borozó Öcsi Wine-Tavern

V. Vigyázó Ferenc utca 4

A cellar with a steep flight of stairs in Vigyázó Ferenc utca. If I am not mistaken, this is the only street that can boast of a street name-sign that has survived several bouts of rechristening and still bears the inscription of Count. The barely legible sign: Gróf Vigyázó Ferenc utca, is to be found beneath the street-number in the doorway opposite the Öcsi.

Recently, the Öcsi has undergone a process of change. Dia, the wonderful, solidly built waitress with the great sense of humour doesn’t work here any more.

The other waitress tells me she now works in the Terv café. The Öcsi is bathed in purple now, disco lights blaze. 1 liked it better when it was simpler.

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