a.new.york.cafe.in.budapest

 you were told that new york café is a must in budapest...

so you make your way to this famous café for the sweet treat. this place has exists for more than 100 years, a café with a character. the exterior lives up to the expectation....

so you step in to the café, you look around you, it is like you are transported to some classical interior, somewhere in austria or to be precise vienna. then again you are hearing this new york jazz music playing in the background.

today is the “tell-day” where you need to make a few phone calls to your counselees informing them their performance outcome, salary increment and promotion if any. you sit down, make your order and start calling one by one, thankfully you only have four to call. likewise you have a missed call from your counselor informing you your performance outcome. you were rather surprise by the result that you still get a good banding considering you were sick for nine months last performance year. together with the news there is also a decent salary increment and a surprise bonus. you feel blessed, not over the moon but you are thankful.

your cake arrives. it  looks so pretty, like a piece of art, a masterpiece from a pastiserie chef, fresh from the kitchen.  however you are not impressed by the taste, perhaps you made the wrong choice. you don’t really like the texture or the taste. it looks beautiful, you must admit that but taste wise is rather primitive and textures more towards hard and dry. perhaps these cakes are just over rated!!!

nevertheless, you love the cappuccino and the ambience, you enjoy your time sitting in this café listening to the jazz music and let the interior design transports you to the past. you imagine how this café got its fame for the literary and artistic table societies and coffee house editorial group that met here from early 1900s.

you ask for the bill, it arrives like a book with the big imprint 'new york'.  this is where you got really confused!! you still wonder if you are sitting in new york (the name of the café) or in vienna (the interior classical grand design and the taste of the cake) or in budapest (where you are supposed to be this week)?

the next moment, you tell yourself, you are in budapest, sitting at new york café that has nothing resemble new york apart from the café name and the background music.  this place is heavily influenced by austrian like interior and you are here enjoying your cup and a sweet treat of hungarian invention that is heavily influence by austria

you step out for a reality check by going to the connected building which is the hotel lobby, so it's time to wake up and continue with your journey not in new york or vienna but right here in budapest...