New York Café Budapest: Prices, Queue Times and How to Get a Table
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New York Café, at Erzsébet körút 9-11, is the gilded coffee house of Budapest: twisted marble columns, frescoed ceilings and crystal chandeliers in a palace that opened on 23 October 1894. It is open every day from 07:00, and the trick is timing. Come between 07:00 and 09:00 or after 22:00 and the wait at the door is short; come at 11:00 and you join the longest queue of the day.
An espresso costs 2,975 HUF (about $9) and a slice of cake around 5,000 HUF, with 15% service on top. Below: when to arrive, what to order, what the bill comes to, and how the booking system works.
New York Café at a glance
| What | Details |
|---|---|
| Where | Erzsébet körút 9-11, 1073 Budapest, District VII, in the Anantara New York Palace hotel |
| Open | Monday to Wednesday 07:00 to 24:00, Thursday to Sunday 07:00 to 01:00 |
| Breakfast | Every day 07:00 to 11:00 |
| Hot dishes | From 12:00 to 23:00, later on Thursday to Sunday nights |
| Shortest queue | 07:00 to 09:00 and 22:00 to midnight |
| Longest queue | 09:00 to 14:00 |
| Booking | Online only: dinner after 18:00, limited gallery lunch tables 12:00 to 17:00 |
| Service charge | 15%, added to the bill |
Source: hours, kitchen times and queue times from New York Café’s FAQ and table reservation pages, read on 12 October 2026.
When to go: beating the queue
Between 07:00 and 18:00 there are no bookable tables on the main floor. Guests are seated in the order they arrive, as tables free up. The café publishes its own pattern: the shortest waits are early morning, 07:00 to 09:00, and late evening, 22:00 to midnight. The longest run from 09:00 to 14:00.
The line reaches out onto the boulevard even on cold winter days, so plan a visit, not a passing coffee. A morning slot works best for breakfast and photos of a quieter room. A late evening slot, after 22:00 from Thursday to Sunday when the doors stay open until 01:00, gives you the chandeliers lit up and live piano without the midday crowd.
The main hall below the staircase is the famous view and the busiest seat in the house, with a steady flow of guests taking photos between the tables. If you would rather talk than watch, the side rooms and the gallery level are often calmer.
Insider tip: a reservation is also a queue pass. Guests with a booking follow a sign at the entrance and walk straight past the line.
Source: seating and queue times from the FAQ and table reservation pages on newyorkcafe.hu, read on 12 October 2026.
Booking a table
Reservations are taken only online, through the form on newyorkcafe.hu. The café cannot take new bookings by phone or in person.
- Dinner: tables can be booked from 18:00, and the café confirms within 24 hours. Some tables are always kept for walk-ins after 18:00, so a full booking calendar does not mean a closed door.
- Lunch in the gallery: a limited number of tables in the gallery section can be booked for lunch between 12:00 and 17:00.
- How far ahead: the system opens one month in advance, and the café suggests booking two to three weeks ahead.
- Group size: café bookings go up to 10 people. Larger groups go through the events team.
- Changes: to change a booking, write to newyorkcafe.reservation@cafeandevent.eu; to cancel, use the link in your confirmation email.
- Birthdays: add a note to the booking, or tell your waiter. Order any pastry from the menu and it arrives with a candle and a “Happy Birthday” sign. A whole New York birthday cake for 8 is always available for 22,400 HUF (about $69) without pre-ordering.
Source: table reservation and FAQ pages, and the birthday cake price from the café menu (PDF, April 2026 edition), read on 12 October 2026.
What to order at New York Café
The coffee list leans on the house showpiece, the 24-carat gold series: a cappuccino, latte macchiato, cortado and hot chocolate finished with edible gold. Every coffee also comes as decaf, oat or almond milk costs 525 HUF (about $2) extra, and each tea and coffee arrives with a small biscuit.
| Coffee and hot chocolate | Price |
|---|---|
| Espresso | 2,975 HUF (about $9) |
| American coffee | 3,850 HUF (about $12) |
| Double espresso | 4,590 HUF (about $14) |
| 24-carat gold cappuccino or latte macchiato | 4,900 HUF (about $15) |
| 24-carat gold hot chocolate with whipped cream | 4,900 HUF (about $15) |
| New York Dubai hot chocolate | 5,775 HUF (about $18) |
Cakes run from 4,900 HUF (about $15) for the cheesecake with apricot jam, the tiramisu or the vegan chocolate cake, to 5,250 HUF (about $16) for the Dobos torte, the caramel-topped Budapest classic. The raspberry and pistachio tart, 5,075 HUF (about $16), has no added lactose or gluten. If you want a cake and a coffee anyway, the Dobos or cheesecake set, with a New York hot coffee and a glass of house soda, is 10,500 HUF (about $32).
For a meal, the Hungarian classics hold their own: beef goulash soup with homemade noodles is 5,775 HUF (about $18) and chicken paprikash with nokedli and cucumber salad 9,800 HUF (about $30). The Hungarian lunch menu puts the goulash, a cottage-cheese pancake with vanilla cream and a strawberry lemonade on one ticket for 12,600 HUF (about $39). Breakfast plates such as eggs Benedict, 6,300 HUF (about $19), are served from 07:00 to 11:00; between 11:00 and 12:00 the kitchen serves desserts only.
The room is the star here, and the kitchen plays its part well: order the classics, take your time and let the setting do the rest.
Source: dishes and prices from the New York Café menu (PDF, April 2026 edition) and kitchen hours from the FAQ, read on 12 October 2026.
What a visit costs
Menu prices include VAT, and a 15% service charge is added to the total. These are the numbers to plan with:
| Per person | Menu prices | With the 15% service charge |
|---|---|---|
| Espresso and a slice of Dobos torte | 8,225 HUF (about $25) | 9,460 HUF (about $29) |
| Gold cappuccino and a cheesecake | 9,800 HUF (about $30) | 11,270 HUF (about $34) |
| Hungarian lunch menu | 12,600 HUF (about $39) | 14,490 HUF (about $44) |
The euro prices printed on the menu are a guide only, and the bill is issued in forints.
Source: prices and service charge from the New York Café menu (PDF, April 2026 edition), read on 12 October 2026. Totals rounded to the nearest 10 HUF.
Prices are in HUF, which is what you pay at the table. Converted at 1 USD = 327 HUF, the ECB rate on 12 October 2026. Rates move, so treat the converted figures as indicative.
Live music in the café
Live piano plays from 08:00 to 23:00 Monday to Wednesday and from 08:00 to 00:30 Thursday to Sunday. Between 10:00 and 21:00 a Roma band takes over for 15 minutes every hour while the pianist rests.
The pianist keeps a tip box on the piano, and the band has its own.
Source: music times from the New York Café FAQ, read on 12 October 2026.
House rules worth knowing
- Dress: there is no formal dress code, but many guests arrive dressed up and the house asks you to avoid flip-flops and tank tops.
- One bill per table: the café does not split the bill. Ask in advance if you need a VAT invoice.
- Ordering nothing: guests who sit down and order nothing from the menu are charged 1,225 HUF (about $4).
- Payment: cash, Visa, Amex, Maestro, Mastercard, UnionPay and SZÉP card.
- Dogs: only certified assistance dogs are allowed inside.
- Luggage: a small suitcase can stay by your table; staff will show you where to leave large bags.
- Wheelchair access: tell the hostess at the door and the team will help you in.
- Parking: there is no free parking. The hotel’s covered car park is entered from Osváth utca, and there are paid spaces on the surrounding streets.
Source: house rules from the New York Café FAQ and the guest notice in the menu (PDF, April 2026 edition), read on 12 October 2026.
Getting there
New York Café sits on the Grand Boulevard, a few minutes’ walk from Blaha Lujza tér on the M2 metro line, and trams 4 and 6 run along the boulevard outside. It pairs well with an evening in the ruin bars of the Jewish Quarter a few streets away.
Source: address from newyorkcafe.hu, read on 12 October 2026.
A short history of New York Café
The New York Palace, built in an eclectic Italian Renaissance style, opened on 23 October 1894, and its café soon became the city’s best-loved coffee house. The leading newspapers were edited upstairs in the gallery, and writers worked at its tables. After the Second World War the café fell into disrepair and served for a time as a sporting goods shop. It reopened in 1954 as the Hungária, and only in 2006 was it restored to its original decoration.
The house’s favorite story is the key. Legend says the writer Ferenc Molnár threw the café’s key into the Danube so that it could never close. Molnár was 16 in 1894, so the café’s own history page places the throw at the 1927 reopening instead, and in 2014, for the 120th anniversary, the management threw the keys into the Danube once more. Today the café belongs to the Eventrend Group, the Hungarian catering group that also runs Gundel.
Source: history from New York Café’s About us and key legend pages, read on 12 October 2026.
Is New York Café worth it?
Yes, once, and planned. New York Café is for anyone who wants to sit inside one of the grandest rooms in Budapest with a coffee, a cake and live music, and it delivers that every day of the week. The trade-off is the queue and the price: an espresso is 2,975 HUF (about $9) before the 15% service charge, well above what a neighborhood espresso bar asks. Arrive at 07:00 or after 22:00, or book dinner or a gallery lunch, and you skip most of the wait.
For more grand rooms and specialty coffee, see our guide to the best cafés in Budapest; for cakes on Vörösmarty tér, the Gerbeaud guide; and for more places to eat, the food and restaurants hub.
Good to know
How long is the queue at New York Café?
It depends on the hour. The café itself says waits are usually shortest from 07:00 to 09:00 and from 22:00 to midnight, and longest from 09:00 to 14:00. Guests with a reservation follow a sign at the entrance and do not queue.
Can you book a table at New York Café?
Yes, online only. Dinner tables after 18:00 and a limited number of gallery lunch tables between 12:00 and 17:00 can be booked up to a month ahead, for groups of up to 10. Other daytime seating is first come, first served.
How much is a coffee at New York Café?
An espresso is 2,975 HUF (about $9), an American coffee 3,850 HUF (about $12) and the 24-carat gold cappuccino 4,900 HUF (about $15). A 15% service charge is added to the total.
Is there a dress code at New York Café?
There is no formal dress code. The house asks guests to dress for the spirit of the place and to avoid flip-flops and tank tops.
Can you split the bill at New York Café?
No. Because of the number of guests the café makes one bill per table, so settle who pays before you sit down. Cash, the main bank cards and SZÉP cards are accepted.
Book it, skip the counter
Prices checked 2026-10-12. Booking through these links supports the site at no extra cost to you. How this works.