Central

Most of Budapest's classic coffee houses are either dead and gone or have become expensive tourist traps-Central is walking on a tightrope, but they do have some fine cakes and rather pleasant Viennese coffee and in the morning to early afternoon you can still spot the locals indulging in their drinks and reading the paper. It also passes the all essential Esterházy test- the classic cake is nutty and fluffy and all around awesome. The evening pianist can veer to rather camp editions of Mariah Carey evergreens, but now and then he'll also play some Quimby to conjure up that good old Central European angst to complement your melange.