VIVINA'S Café & Roastery - coffee, brunch and more — Restaurant in Budapest

This place used to be called “Irkafirka.” New ownership and a new name but the same delicious coffee as always! In my opinion, it’s among the best cappuccino in the city, and that’s saying a lot in a city with as much delicious coffee as Budapest! Also, be sure to try their homemade chai and orange hot chocolate. The owners are very friendly and welcoming. I feel like family every time I enter! There’s a lovely upstairs for quiet, cozy talking with a warm coffee in hand.

Update (Dec 2022) After three years, I finally had the opportunity to return to VIVINA and was delighted to find that it was still open. Moreover, it has expanded, both in terms of offerings (sandwiches, cakes, croissants) as well as in space (expanding into next door’s former pub). In addition, one of the owners has now started roasting all their own coffee, which they brew, and also sell under the name “Nassimocca.” It is, as always, delicious. The Peru roast is my favorite. This little shop remains a hidden gem, just off a main shopping street, in a beautiful area of the city. Make a point of stopping at VIVINA. You will be glad you did.

Update (Sept 2024) I keep coming back, every time I’m in Budapest, because this is still some of the best coffee I’ve found in the city. The owners are wonderful people. The other employees are kind and friendly. The food and coffee is always excellent. They’ve expanded their offerings. They now offer brunch, and have generous outdoor seating on a fairly quiet road, not far from the busyness of the tourist areas near the Central Market. My recommendation remains: go check it out! You will not be...

HIGHLY UNDERRATED! BRILLIANT brekkie/brunch/vegan/egg white omelette/sourdough/staff/location/pricing! This seems like a local’s spot rather than one tourists would go to - which made it all the more appealing.

After trying various cafes in Budapest particularly for coffee, most fell flat despite being “speciality”. Vivian Cafe serve legit speciality coffee from Ethiopia/Rwanda/South America. Their tiny cafe is filled with rug sacks of coffee beans from all over the world.

Don’t miss their batch brew, we ended up doubling our order - it takes a few minutes longer, as it should. If you’re a coffee snob, you’ll appreciate this cafe.

They’re super accommodating of dietary restrictions too — although an egg white omelette/scramble isn’t on the menu, they made a fantastic one for me, with grilled veggies.

The oat meal is to die for - ultimate comfort food & that dollop of espresso paste on top took us to heaven!

The owners and the chefs are incredibly nice, genuine, and go to lengths to ensure you get fed what you want.

The cafe is tucked away in a very charming neighbourhood with old buildings, specially lovely for a weekend morning cuz it makes everything slow & east rather than buzzing/noisy/busy.

I can’t praise this cafe and quality of coffee & food enough!

This is a place with fewer reviews but of highest quality. Go for it, support them &...

TL;DR: Try to avoid the busy season and busy brunch hour. The place is great and cozy, but the kitchen has trouble keeping up during busy hours. We came here in February and then in April and had two vastly different experiences. The first time was still cold outside and the city was half empty, so the place was almost empty. Everything was great with service and the food. A solid 4.5/5 (half a point off for the English breakfast that was tasty, yet a little underwhelming in meat variety and size). Their coffee is really good!

The second time was during a busy season and that's where we ran into issues. The place was packed, getting a table was still easy. But the issue was that they somehow messed up the order and brought out the drinks and just sort of forgot about the food. After 25 minutes we asked about our order and then the owner came out to apologize and told us there was an error and that our food will be out soon. After a TOTAL of around 40 minutes we got the food. The owner was very sorry and made sure we got the drinks AND dessert for FREE.

They are really trying and really value the customer, so I would come back there again and again... Just not during the...