The meaning of the kiosk - historic moments ahead!

The word kiosk is completely foreign to most people. The meaning of kiosk in Hungarian is a catering establishment, but its translation is more precisely a booth, pavilion-like restaurant, or sometimes a confectionery, mainly built for summer use, with a garden area.
The word is erroneously believed to be of Turkish origin, given its etymology. The word itself is derived from the Persian word kuszk, which was introduced into the Hungarian language through Turkish mediation in the early 1800s. Subsequently, throughout the 19th century, numerous kiosks were established in Budapest.

A famous meeting point in the city was the Várkert Kiosk. Built from 1875 to 1882 to the design of Miklós Ybl, the building was created as a closure of the gardens of the Royal Palace of Buda. When it was built, however, its primary function was not to provide entertainment, but to house the pump house that supplied water to the castle.
From 1905 onwards, it was a favourite hangout for many people in Budapest, even between the two world wars and for a short time after the Second World War. By the 1980s, it no longer offered the quality of the building or the standard of the old days, so it was closed and did not open its doors for a long time.

In 1872, the construction of the Kiosk on Erzsébet Square began, according to the plans of Alajos Hauszmann, on the site of the present-day Ferris wheel. The lower floor of the ornate neo-Renaissance building was used as a restaurant and the upper floor as a dance hall. In its original form, it operated until 1907, when László Vágó and József Vágó converted it into the National Salon.

One of the most famous kiosks was the Hangli, a popular meeting point of the Danube Corridor on Vigadó Square. It was named after Márk Hangl, an Austrian restaurateur who came to Budapest as a young man and was helped by Ferenc Deák himself to set up a kiosk on the banks of the Danube.
Guests could spend their time under the shade of the shady canopy around the octagonal pavilion in the middle of the square. The unit was a real oasis in the rapidly urbanising Budapest.

The place was a place of entertainment for many of the capital's nobility: ministers, generals on horseback, political representatives, literary greats, influential officials, actors and actresses, and the city's celebrities and well-known people were all happy to visit the unit. "Anyone who wants to see the outside of Budapest's social life must necessarily visit the kiosk in front of the Redoute, or as it is more commonly called, the 'Hangli'. This kiosk is a great speciality in the capital", wrote Kálmán Mikszáth, who summed up the essence of the place in a very succinct way.

So life was always lively on the banks of the Danube and it is no different now: the KIOSK unit on 15 March Square offers a lively and urbane atmosphere typical of the old days, every day for the public looking for relaxation!