Home is more than a place where we spend a fixed amount of our time. It’s not just the design and interior of the house or flat that matters, but also what surrounds it—the area, the greenness of the grass, the neighbors. Ideally, you should feel at home when you turn the corner, especially when familiar faces smile and the smell of bread or barbecue hits you. It’s good to come home like this—check out the breadpit in Zugló and you’ll understand what I’m talking about.
I’ve long been saying that the city center isn’t everything. It’s exciting to see how the suburbs and the agglomeration are populating, how design studios, specialty cafés, or great bistros are making a place for themselves in the neighborhood and the hearts of the locals. Good stories are on the rise whether it’s the panoramic streets of Pilis, the secluded alleys of Szentendre, or the friendly atmosphere of Wekerle Estate. This is no coincidence, as people moving out of the area want to have high-quality places to eat nearby, rather than having to go to a downtown bakery for a decent loaf of bread.
Zugló is an interesting district. It is both in the heart of the city and a suburb. You quickly come to love the abundance of greenery, the rural tranquillity, and the fact that you can get anywhere relatively quickly. From a gastronomic point of view, it’s been growing in recent years—as residents, two brothers had a similar idea in mind. Mátyás and Attila Ónodi Szabó decided to start a business at the end of a difficult time in their family. They had always loved sourdough bread (while working in advertising and writing tenders), so one of them trained as a baker before it became fashionable. The hobby quickly took off and they discovered a property for rent on Szugló Street while walking around. They were captivated by the building and the idea took hold: they didn’t want to go big, they just wanted a bakery with a cozy atmosphere. Despite the fact that new housing estates are constantly being built in this area, it was still a long time coming. The boys took matters into their own hands, and after renovation and refurbishment, the breadpit opened in 2021.
The name is a pun: a reference to the bread and the standard they aim to achieve. The building and the logo are easy to make out in the shade of the trees, although it took me a while to realize that the logo is a loaf of bread basking in the spotlight. You can enter the shop from the stairs, but also from the terrace, as there is a lovely garden behind the bakery. It’s humorous and serious at the same time, and you get the feeling that everything is made with love. Anna Katalin Lority’s tapestry, the counter in the window, the polygonal washbasin—this is a place where you come for baked goods but stay for the atmosphere. As you enter, you are greeted by familiar faces, such as the regular-turned-manager, Vera Basa, who often pops up at the counter, knowing by heart which customers like what, when they come, and what kind of coffee they enjoy. It’s this personality that makes breadpit so important because it has a clear community-building force.
However, the products are not to be ignored—we could mention the ever-changing “bread of the day” (e.g. cheddar-jalapeño and walnut-blueberry), or the popular pistachio and cocoa rolls. As the team has grown, so has the selection of delicacies: first exciting sandwiches populated the fridge, but now you can also order seasonal cruffins, sweet and savory croissants, or even fruit and goat cheese rhombi. The pastry counter is also very diverse, with lemon and poppy seed bread, free-from brownies, not to mention the fruit pies and quiche creations. Part of their signature casualness is that they’re always taking feedback, hence the daily soup, deli shelf, and of course, great coffee from Casino Mocca. And so the garden came to life, with tables, chairs, birdsong, and the cooling shade of the trees that almost begged for some event to take place.
After a few experiments, the barbecue was lit and tacos, quesadillas, and sausages were thrown on the coals. Sometimes they organize ping pong competitions and other times they entertain the crowd with live music, but I think if, say, they wanted to bake chimney cakes on the open fire, that wouldn’t be a problem, either. There are plenty of ideas and possibilities, even though they are struggling with the lack of staff and inflation like everyone else. But they try to contribute to the community wherever they can: the long opening hours, for example, are another reason to stop by. And people keep coming from across town if they have to, to unwind after a long week, a long day, easing up. There’s always some event, something going on; whatever hasn’t happened yet, will—as they work with an outside creative chef, the idea of themed wines & dines is taking shape.
In short, if you feel like you need someone or something to save the day, here’s the place to go instead of the movies—who knows, it might just put a twist in your story that will set you off on a new path.
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