Ruin bars (Szimpla Kert)

Szimpla Kert

Crumbling courtyard houses turned into sprawling bars

⚠ Watch for pickpockets at night

Tickets

No entry fee; pay for drinks

Address

Szimpla Kert is at Kazinczy utca 14, District VII; more ruin bars cluster along Kazinczy, Akácfa and the Gozsdu passage

In the 2000s the decaying apartment blocks of the old Jewish Quarter, slated for demolition, started turning into bars one courtyard at a time, and Szimpla Kert was the first. Peeling walls, mismatched chairs, sofas made from cut-down bathtubs, bicycles hanging from the ceiling and an old Trabant car: it's like a junkyard moved indoors. There are rooms upon rooms, some with live music, some just for a quiet beer. Go in daylight to look at the clutter without the crowd; after 10pm the courtyard is wall-to-wall.