Hajdina Étterem

Hajdina Restaurant in Apátistvánfalva makes a compelling case for a detour to the land of Vend. Taking its name from a local pantry staple – buckwheat – this is a family-run spot where everyone pitches in. The former scout camp has shed almost all signs of its past and now houses the Apát Hotel. Set in a zephyrous centuries-old forest, select rooms gaze out over the valley to the village and its church. The restaurant has been tastefully transformed and now gives top billing to local ingredients and dishes, catering to a loyal following from nearby Slovenia and Austria. With a relatively small team, they manage to keep prices friendly while maintaining freshness and lively, satisfying flavours. The wine list is modest but well curated, and most bottles are available by the glass. Food and wine pairings are also offered, at inviting prices. The goat’s cheese roulade is in fact a creamy cheese-filled pastry roll, served on a zingy fresh green apple salad with a scattering of crisp buckwheat – an ingredient that appears in a number of dishes. For fried fare fans, the pork cheek is the real deal: meltingly tender beneath its golden crumb coating, paired with a pumpkin seed oil-dressed potato salad that nods to neighbouring Őrség. Dessert was a white chocolate tart – slightly odd-looking, with a pastry butterfly perched on top, which conceals a scoop of nettle ice cream beneath, a rare indulgence. Hajdina is a fine example of heartfelt, unpretentious rural hospitality – with a far better kitchen than you might expect at first glance.