Langos Will Fry You in a Good Hungarian Way

Lauren Bloomberg

A handful of Budapest

Everything is better fried. Case in point ... cheese. Sure, it's one of the most amazing foods, well, ever. Now dip it in a little batter and fry it -- voilà! A crisp crust yielding to oozing, molten curds. Brilliant.

Now, for a little pop quiz: What's better than fried cheese?

Fried bread that's been rubbed in garlic and topped with cheese, of course.

If you've never had the Hungarian fried bread langos (laan gosh), then you really should get on that. A cross between a carnival zeppole and pizza, it reaches its most delicious, and heart-attack-causing, point with the addition of sour cream. Though the best versions are hoarded by our buddies in Hungary, where it makes a regular appearance at fast-food restaurants and breakfast tables, some excellent specimens have been spotted at street fairs in London.

Here in the Big Apple, you can find langos at both the East Village Korzo Haus and its Brooklyn brother Korzo in the South Slope. Both serve decent, though sour-cream-less, ones, topped with chunks of garlic and edam. A handful of rye-pickled mushrooms are thrown on the side for good measure.

Also, the burgers at Korzo and Korzo Haus come wrapped in the fried bread. Amazing. So, to amend the earlier statement: What's better than a hamburger, wrapped in fried bread that's been rubbed in garlic and topped with melted cheese?

Your guess is as good as ours.

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