In our Routes section we published a post about the best places for rétes in Budapest. But how do you actually order it without getting confused by the fillings?
You’re unlikely to see rétes almával (“rétes with apple”) on a menu. Much more common is the adjective form derived from the filling. Here are the most popular ones:
almás rétes — apple rétes; meggyes rétes — sour cherry rétes; túrós rétes — cottage cheese rétes; mákos rétes — poppy seed rétes; káposztás rétes — cabbage rétes; tökös rétes — pumpkin rétes; diós rétes — walnut rétes
Notice the suffix -s. It’s what turns the noun into an adjective:
alma → almás; meggy → meggyes; túró → túrós; mák → mákos; dió → diós
The same pattern shows up across the menu:
tejes kávé — coffee with milk (literally “milky coffee”); gombás leves — mushroom soup; húsos palacsinta — meat-filled pancakes; sajtos pogácsa — cheese pogácsa
✍️ The suffix -s: turning nouns into adjectives
One of the most useful word-building tools in Hungarian is the suffix -s (with vowel harmony variants: -os / -as / -es / -ös).
It creates an adjective meaning “having something”, “associated with something”, “possessing something”:
eső → esős — rain → rainy; esős idő — rainy weather
kép → képes — képes szótár — illustrated dictionary
vaj → vajas — vajas kenyér — buttered bread
divat → divatos — divatos ruha — fashionable clothing
⚡️ Key rule
When adding -s, the connecting vowel and any stem changes follow the same pattern as plural formation:
barátság → barátságok → barátságos — friendship → friendly
meggy → meggyek → meggyes — sour cherry → sour cherry (adj.)
víz → vizek → vizes — water → wet, watery
szerelem → szerelmek → szerelmes — love → in love
⚡️ Try it yourself
Form adjectives from these words:
cukor; tej; hús; só; tejföl; siker; veszély
Answers
cukros — sugary, sweet; tejes — milky; húsos — meaty; sós — salty; tejfölös — with sour cream; sikeres — successful; veszélyes — dangerous
Practice: a real menu
Here’s an actual menu from one of Budapest’s best rétes shops. Dozens of varieties — seasonal, classic, and unexpected combinations.
Filling vocabulary (nominative):
| Hungarian | English |
|---|---|
| alma | apple |
| meggy | sour cherry |
| túró | cottage cheese |
| mák | poppy seed |
| káposzta | cabbage |
| tök / sütőtök | pumpkin |
| dió | walnut |
| eper | strawberry |
| körte | pear |
| szilva | plum |
| málna | raspberry |
| áfonya | blueberry |
| mangó | mango |
| szeder | blackberry |
| sárgabarack | apricot |
| tejberizs | rice pudding |
| csoki | chocolate |
