Hungarian cuisine: if you are familiar with it, that usually means you live in Hungary, or have Hungarian heritage. With the exception of international staples like paprikás or gulyás (goulash) it’s not widely known abroad. You can put this down to health trends (Hungarian can be lard-heavy) and the relatively small emigrant populations, who — if we can generalize — tend to assimilate into their adopted culture.

That’s a long-winded introduction to get the welcome news that the Hungarian team came home from one of the most prestigious fine-dining competitions in the world having won third place. The Bocuse d’Or is named for French legend Paul Bocuse, who did a lot to solidify France’s reputation as having the international cuisine to beat in terms of fine dining.

This year’s competition, held in Lyon, France, was participated in by twenty-four countries, with the Hungarian team headed by coach Tamás Széll and a team comprised largely of chefs from Széll’s Michelin star restaurant, Budapest-based Stand. It’s important to note that of all the Michelin-star restaurants in Budapest, Stand’s menu is closest to traditional Hungarian cuisine, and even features gulyás.

While perennial favorites Denmark and Norway took the top two places — Scandinavian cuisine has been having quite an extended moment — Hungary topped recent winner USA, not to mention strong teams from Japan and Mexico.

It’s worth noting that in a relatively short time, Hungarian cuisine and the local dining scene have risen from the imagination-killing Socialist regime that saw recipes and innovation pounded down to its industrial basics. Hungary now has many destination restaurants, and teams like Széll’s to represent Hungarian cuisine on an international platform. It may have won bronze, but it certainly has come the farthest, the fastest.

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