Ruszwurm Cukrászda

Ruszwurm confectioner’s is a magic from the past in the present in the Buda Castle in the neighbourhood of Matthias Church in Budapest.The spectecular confectioner’s was founded by Ferenc Schwabl in 1827.

Of all Budapest’s historic pastry shops , Ruszwurm wins in the category of quality.It is not an exaggeration to call this Biedermeier-style ( Empire style ) pastry shop a cozy place.It is quite small and right on the tourist track , which means it is very busy and difficult to get a table. Long before the place was Ruszwurm, it housed a Turkish biscuit baker.

Despite its stormy history- which includes having survived the sieges of 1849 and 1944-45, being nationalized in 1951 and closing for a  few years – today’s Ruszwurm still has some of  Budapest’s best cakes and pastries.

The place is not named after its founder, but for an apprentice who came to own the shop a few generation later.

During its heyday in the 19th century it was faoured by aristocrats and government officials , and Queen Elizabeth ( Sissi to the Hungarians ) even shopped here.

Ruszwurm suffered under Communism and eventually bought by the Szamos family after the change of the system in the early 1990s and was put back to its former glory. Almost everything else has,it seems as if nothing about the décor has changed over the years.

The pastry case in front of the cherry and mahagony counter is jammed full of tantalizing options, which at this moment really do taste as great as they look.

Especially worth trying are the Ruszwurm krémes and the chocolaty Ruszwurm torta.