The first thing that strikes you about Café Toucan is the space. It is light, airy, and relaxing, so conducive to thought and chat. You might think that the last thing this city needs is another coffee shop, especially near one near Corvin Negyed, a part of the city which must have close to a dozen such establishments with more opening every day. But Café Toucan is a little different. It has soul.
Open barely more than a month on the ground floor of an office building at Üllői út 25, you’d be forgiven for not knowing it was there. If you’re not working in the building, attending the Corvinus Preparatory School, or walking by it on your way to the Museum of Applied Arts, then it’s unlikely you’ll have seen it. But if you’re in the area, it’s worth taking the time to find it.
Ádám has been a barista for years. Róbert used to sell medical equipment. Both share a passion for coffee. So these enterprising 30-year-olds decided to do what many of us only ever talk about – they decided to work the dream. With his years in the trade, Ádám already had a fair idea of what great coffee tasted like so the pair teamed up with Le Piantagioni Del Caffé, an Italian coffee company with estates in Guatemala, Peru, India, El Salvador, Brazil, and Ethiopia. Each month, you can choose from two of their 100% Arabica coffees and educate your coffee palate.
The lads make the healthy-looking sandwiches and rolls but get their cakes and cookies from the local Classic Farm Bakery. The selection of goodies also caters for those on paleo or gluten-free diets and team up nicely with the hand-pressed red, yellow, and green juices they make themselves.
The airy space is furnished using old pallets that the lads put together. I took a fair few photos as I had little trouble imagining doing something similar. I was particularly taken with the wall planters.
They’re shaping up for the summer and will have an outdoor terrace in one of the building’s inner courtyards. This should open next week, assuming the weather cooperates.
They’re also open to ideas for using the café as a performance space. Drop by and see what you think. Free wifi, plenty of light-filled space, excellent coffee, and great snacks at a reasonable price – simplicity at its best.
Open Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm and the occasional Saturday.
0 responses
Style on the cheap………what wrong with that for a business starting up, wooden pallets must be getting in short supply in Budapest! As it sounds like it is in with a chance of succeeding…………it would be intersting to see how ‘style on the cheap’ wears as the cafe gets older……. I suppose that it would be cheap to update.
Good wall lights for high ceilings.