Daniel's Debrecen Guidebook - Half baked
The Swiss Army Knife of the city
This category contains only one spot which I like a lot because I couldn't really place it under any other particular label. The Nagyerdei Víztorony is a great spot for everybody so make sure to check it out!
Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes by foot, ~15 minutes by Bus #10/10Y, 22/22Y
When I started writing this guide I immediately knew that Víztorony - or Watertower - will be one of the first spots I would add. The problem is that I can't really find a category for this place so I decided to add it to a separate category which name says it all. But still, I want to go over why Víztorony is so versatile.
If you don't want to read it all, here's a brief summary:
- great for families
- great for an afternoon coffee
- unique building with a panorama lookout on top of it
- during the summer there's tourist services: bike rental, casual wallclimbing on the first floor
- great indie/alter/rock concerts on Fridays and/or Saturdays
- not expensive at all
And now here are my thoughts about the place:
First of all it is located in the greenest part of the city. If you visit Víztorony during the day you can't miss out the parks around it: the one it's located in next to the Stadium and also the city's main park which is 5 minutes away by foot and called Békás-tó (or Frog(gy?)-pond but seriously how cute is that!). The quiet, lush green Nagyerdő area is perfect for an afternoon stroll.
On weekdays during the day there aren't too many people so it's a perfect place for a coffee or a tea. You can sit down with a friend, a book or with a laptop to do some work in the garden or inside. Also they are one of the few places in the city that use whole bean coffee from the local Black Sheep roastery (of course you will find them at the coffee section of my list later).
The building itself offers a lot of entertainment.
Firstly, it is quite a unique building: it is a functioning watertower which provides water for the Clinics nearby. And there is a bar in it. And hall downstairs which functions as a gallery but also as a concert venue on weekends.
Also downstairs there is a tourist point: you can get info here, buy merchandise, get tickets for some of the services the building provides, rent bikes or ricksahws and so on.
It has a large garden (during the summer there's an outdoor scene and a street food truck in it).
If you start climbing the tower there's a terrace where you can sit down with your drinks or even try wallclimbing (also during the summer) if you feel like it. Or you can continue climbing to the top of the building to the lookout. The sight isn't that exciting (you can see the Clinics, the outside pools, the Stadium nearby and of course the endless Great Forrest and the centre in the distance) but since there is a complimentary coffee/tea/soda included in the ~$4 ticket it's not really worth skipping it.
On Friday and/or Saturday nights there are usually concerts held in the hall, mostly alternative rock music. I can hardly remember when was the last time I went to see a live gig to a different venue: the lineup is usually a perfect match to my music taste.
I could go on and on but I guess you get it. It's not the best place of the city but it has a lot of faces: one probably for every need. So the place itself and it's neighbourhood should definitely be seen in my opinion.
The only negative thing about the place that comes to my mind is that the bar staff can be if not rude but at least phlegmatic sometimes (they are usually students from the Uni). Over the years I got accustomed to this and to me this isn't that bad since they are familiar faces but still.
15 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
Nagyerdei Víztorony
7 Pallagi útTravel time from the flat: ~20 minutes by foot, ~15 minutes by Bus #10/10Y, 22/22Y
When I started writing this guide I immediately knew that Víztorony - or Watertower - will be one of the first spots I would add. The problem is that I can't really find a category for this place so I decided to add it to a separate category which name says it all. But still, I want to go over why Víztorony is so versatile.
If you don't want to read it all, here's a brief summary:
- great for families
- great for an afternoon coffee
- unique building with a panorama lookout on top of it
- during the summer there's tourist services: bike rental, casual wallclimbing on the first floor
- great indie/alter/rock concerts on Fridays and/or Saturdays
- not expensive at all
And now here are my thoughts about the place:
First of all it is located in the greenest part of the city. If you visit Víztorony during the day you can't miss out the parks around it: the one it's located in next to the Stadium and also the city's main park which is 5 minutes away by foot and called Békás-tó (or Frog(gy?)-pond but seriously how cute is that!). The quiet, lush green Nagyerdő area is perfect for an afternoon stroll.
On weekdays during the day there aren't too many people so it's a perfect place for a coffee or a tea. You can sit down with a friend, a book or with a laptop to do some work in the garden or inside. Also they are one of the few places in the city that use whole bean coffee from the local Black Sheep roastery (of course you will find them at the coffee section of my list later).
The building itself offers a lot of entertainment.
Firstly, it is quite a unique building: it is a functioning watertower which provides water for the Clinics nearby. And there is a bar in it. And hall downstairs which functions as a gallery but also as a concert venue on weekends.
Also downstairs there is a tourist point: you can get info here, buy merchandise, get tickets for some of the services the building provides, rent bikes or ricksahws and so on.
It has a large garden (during the summer there's an outdoor scene and a street food truck in it).
If you start climbing the tower there's a terrace where you can sit down with your drinks or even try wallclimbing (also during the summer) if you feel like it. Or you can continue climbing to the top of the building to the lookout. The sight isn't that exciting (you can see the Clinics, the outside pools, the Stadium nearby and of course the endless Great Forrest and the centre in the distance) but since there is a complimentary coffee/tea/soda included in the ~$4 ticket it's not really worth skipping it.
On Friday and/or Saturday nights there are usually concerts held in the hall, mostly alternative rock music. I can hardly remember when was the last time I went to see a live gig to a different venue: the lineup is usually a perfect match to my music taste.
I could go on and on but I guess you get it. It's not the best place of the city but it has a lot of faces: one probably for every need. So the place itself and it's neighbourhood should definitely be seen in my opinion.
The only negative thing about the place that comes to my mind is that the bar staff can be if not rude but at least phlegmatic sometimes (they are usually students from the Uni). Over the years I got accustomed to this and to me this isn't that bad since they are familiar faces but still.
Food scene
Govinda Vegetarian Restaurant
2 Magyari u.Művészbejáró étterem
8 Kossuth u.The city's first vegan restaurant which recently moved into the city center. A lovely interior, daily menus, wide bistro selection, delicious cakes, great coffee, smiling staff - the place has everything! And it' s easily accessible since the restaurant moved into the centre
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
www.kispadlizsan.hu
Kis Padlizsán vegán bisztró
1 Simonffy u.The city's first vegan restaurant which recently moved into the city center. A lovely interior, daily menus, wide bistro selection, delicious cakes, great coffee, smiling staff - the place has everything! And it' s easily accessible since the restaurant moved into the centre
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
www.kispadlizsan.hu
An authentic Korean restaurant that was established to cater to the Korean students of the University of Debrecen. The campus has a lot of canteens but this place trumps all of them.
My recommendation: give the vegetarian Japchae a try!
Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes by foot, ~ 15 minutes via Bus #10/10Y/22Y from Sportkollégium stop
www.zing.hu
Zing Restaurant
98 Nagyerdei krt.An authentic Korean restaurant that was established to cater to the Korean students of the University of Debrecen. The campus has a lot of canteens but this place trumps all of them.
My recommendation: give the vegetarian Japchae a try!
Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes by foot, ~ 15 minutes via Bus #10/10Y/22Y from Sportkollégium stop
www.zing.hu
Kashmir Indian Restaurant
2 Thaly Kálmán u.The city's only fine-dining restaurant with an ever-changing menu that focuses on local dishes made from locally sourced ingredients.
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
www.ikonrestaurant.hu
12 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
IKON Restaurant,Lounge
23 Piac u.The city's only fine-dining restaurant with an ever-changing menu that focuses on local dishes made from locally sourced ingredients.
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
www.ikonrestaurant.hu
As the name suggests, Wok to Box specialises in Asian take-away food offering an almost endless list of combination of their dishes. Of course you can sit down which is a great idea during the summer since their terrace is situated on Simonffy street, Debrecen's liveliest place.
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
woktobox.hu
Wok to Box
1/A Simonffy u.As the name suggests, Wok to Box specialises in Asian take-away food offering an almost endless list of combination of their dishes. Of course you can sit down which is a great idea during the summer since their terrace is situated on Simonffy street, Debrecen's liveliest place.
Travel time from the flat: ~ 15 minutes via Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
woktobox.hu
Coffee
Until a few years ago there weren't many good coffee shops in the city but luckily more and more awesome places are appearing.
The one's that I have chosen for this list are of course great to get your daily dose of caffeine but they also provide more than that: a great atmosphere, wide selection of coffees, teas and other drinks, professional staff and tasty cakes. Look no further if you want to find a suitable place for a chat, some reading or some slow moments!
You might have encountered a bag of whole bean coffee form Black Sheep in my kitchen and there is a reason for that: they are probably my favourite place to grab a cup of coffee and - as far as I know - the only place in the city which has specialty filter coffees in their selection. Also they have the best cakes in town.
My recommendation: ask for a slice of salted caramel cake and accompany it with a cup of french press. Or try the cascara!
Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes via Tram #2
6 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
Black Sheep Microroastery & Coffee
23 Csapó u.You might have encountered a bag of whole bean coffee form Black Sheep in my kitchen and there is a reason for that: they are probably my favourite place to grab a cup of coffee and - as far as I know - the only place in the city which has specialty filter coffees in their selection. Also they have the best cakes in town.
My recommendation: ask for a slice of salted caramel cake and accompany it with a cup of french press. Or try the cascara!
Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes via Tram #2
Another great coffe shop with a great selection of gluten free and paleo deserts.
My tip: you can never go wrong with the single origin espresso!
Travel time from the flat: ~15 minutes via Tram #2
Menta coffee
17 Piac u.Another great coffe shop with a great selection of gluten free and paleo deserts.
My tip: you can never go wrong with the single origin espresso!
Travel time from the flat: ~15 minutes via Tram #2
An indie Starbucks that opened way before any of the Starbucks joints in the city. Good coffee, friendly staff, delicious cakes, crazy hot drinks.
Travel time from the flat: ~15 minutes via Tram #2
7 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
Volt egyszer
16 Piac u.An indie Starbucks that opened way before any of the Starbucks joints in the city. Good coffee, friendly staff, delicious cakes, crazy hot drinks.
Travel time from the flat: ~15 minutes via Tram #2
PepePanini
2 Egyetem térNightlife
Malter
16 Baross Gábor u.Travel time from the flat: ~30 minutes by Bus #15/15Y form Békessy Béla stop
Incognito
11 Eötvös u.Travel time from the flat: ~20 minutes by Tram #2 from Görgey utca stop
Culture
Modem Centre for Modern and Contemporary Arts
1 Baltazár Dezső térB24 Galéria
24 Batthyány u.Sesztina Gallery
3 Hal közSightseeing
Debreceni Egyetem
1 Egyetem térReformed Great Church of Debrecen
4-6 Kossuth térSt. Anne's Cathedral, Debrecen
15 Szent Anna u.Consejos para la ciudad
Facilidad para moverse por la casa
Hop out of your car and hop into a tram!
Forget your car: traffic can get pretty frustrating especially during peak hours.
Instead grab a pass for the city’s public transportation a pair of comfy shoes. You can find the ticket prices and the sales offices on www.dkv.hu.
Chances are that Tram #2 will be the only line you will be using during your stay.