So Many Cafés, Which One Is Your Favorite?

Places where celebrities have set foot—whether birthplaces, former homes, workplaces, schools, or even spots where they just had a cup of coffee—can all become attractions, now called 'Instagram-worthy check-in spots'. That's the celebrity effect! Among these, cafés are a favorite haunt for many famous figures, because they are social venues, places where they sought creative inspiration and immersed their souls. As a result, these cafés shot to fame and became places for later generations to trace their footsteps.

Over the years, I have visited, passed by, or had coffee at many cafés during my travels. Let me introduce them to you. If you happen to be travelling to that city, you might drop by and see if you can find your true love.

New York Café sits on Elizabeth Boulevard in Budapest. Its main hall blends Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles in an eclectic, sumptuous design, with ornate carvings and gilded details. Soft white marble columns line the walls, alongside large picture windows, platinum reliefs, and crystal chandeliers that make it feel like a palace. A violin and piano often play in the music nook, lending the whole café a tranquil and elegant atmosphere. Outside the entrance, sixteen playful devil-shaped lamps add a touch of whimsy.

New York Café was the most beautiful and most popular café in Budapest in the 20th century. Part of the New York Palace, one of the city's most famous hotels, it opened during the heyday of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Legend has it that on opening day, the owner dramatically threw the front-door key into the Danube and declared the café would never close, promising poor artists various benefits and services. Since its inauguration in 1894, New York Café has been the social hub of Budapest, visited by a host of European musicians, painters, writers, poets, politicians and other luminaries. A story even circulated that during World War II, letters addressed simply to 'New York' would be delivered to this café. Today, many travelers make it a must-stop, enjoying a leisurely moment in this lavish, palace-like café—truly one of travel's best memories.

Hailed by global travel magazines as the 'World's Most Beautiful Café', Budapest's New York Café, which opened in 1894, boasts over a century of history. By World War I, it was already a cultural center of Budapest, and many renowned poets and writers were regulars.

This café is also known as 'Café of the Two Ugly Fellows'. It is rightfully considered a cultural landmark in Paris, steeped in reputation and tradition. It sits in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés quarter of the Latin Quarter on the Left Bank. In fact, the 'Deux Magots' or 'Two Ugly Fellows' refer to the two statues of Chinese men dressed in Qing dynasty attire carved into the wall. Originally, this was not a café but a silk shop run by two Chinese merchants who brought silk to Paris, and thus they became the symbol of the building. They served as a clever ploy for the café, using mysterious Oriental culture as a banner to attract writers and artists like bees to blossoms. Les Deux Magots has truly lived up to those two ugly fellows; it is a renowned writers' café on Paris's Left Bank. Even in the Place Saint-Germain, where famous cafés cluster, a top-tier one like Les Deux Magots can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Les Deux Magots has appeared in the 1973 film 'The Mother and the Whore', the 1959 film 'Le Signe du Lion', the 2014 film 'Pas Son Genre' (Not My Type) and 'Intouchables'.

Since 1933, Les Deux Magots has annually awarded the Deux Magots literary prize for outstanding French novels.

Simone de Beauvoir, the famous French existentialist writer and one of the founders of the feminist movement, frequented this place with her partner Jean-Paul Sartre. It was here that Picasso met Dora Maar and fell in love at first sight. Wilde, Ernst, Picasso, Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Saint-Exupéry, Hemingway, Umberto Eco and other luminaries of their time were all regulars. They were drawn to Les Deux Magots and, in turn, added to its global fame.

Bad Ischl is a spa town in Austria, located in the heart of the Salzkammergut region in southern Upper Austria, on the banks of the Traun River. It is famous because Emperor Franz Joseph of the Austro-Hungarian Empire chose to build his summer residence here. On August 19, 1853, Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi) held their engagement ceremony in the town. In 1854, the emperor's mother, Archduchess Sophie, gave him the Imperial Villa as a wedding gift. The villa became the imperial family's summer retreat; Franz Joseph called it 'heaven on earth'. Many scenes from the film 'Sissi' were shot here.

Emperor Franz Joseph and his wife developed an inseparable bond with this small town, spending every summer here to escape the heat and hunting in the nearby hills. From 1854 to 1914, over several decades, Bad Ischl was designated the secondary capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and rose to become the premier resort for European high society.

Konditorei Zauner is the most famous pastry shop in town.

Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Sisi often visited.

Brussels: The Swan Café

La Maison du Cygne (The Swan Café) is a place where the revolutionary mentors of the proletariat, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, once lived and worked. Located on the Grand Place in central Brussels, it stands next to the famous Town Hall.

In February 1845, Marx moved from Paris to Brussels and lived here. In April of the same year, Engels joined him. From then on, The Swan Café became a key venue where they co-founded the Communist Correspondence Committee and the German Workers' Association. During this period, Marx wrote his famous 'The Poverty of Philosophy' and 'The Communist Manifesto'. The Communist Correspondence Committee and the German Workers' Association were born here.

Casablanca: Rick's Café

Rick's Café is a Western-style restaurant modeled after the café in the 1942 film 'Casablanca'. It is located in Casablanca, Morocco.

Rick's Café was opened in 2004 by Kathy Kriger, an American diplomat in Morocco. A devoted fan of the film 'Casablanca', she decided to buy an old building at the foot of the old city and transform it into a replica of the movie set. To create a café exactly like the one in the film, Kriger spent her life savings and two years designing and decorating, personally sourcing a large collection of traditional North African decorations and objects. The result is a café that blends Western flair with Moroccan style, seamlessly fitting into both the bustling city and the ancient medina.

Thanks to the immense popularity of the film, visiting Rick's Café has become a must-do for travelers from around the world coming to Morocco. The café is not just a tourist spot; it also serves Mediterranean-inspired cuisine and usually stays open late, making it ideal for diners who love late-night meals.

Travelogue Contents: 1. Budapest [New York Café] 2. Paris [Les Deux Magots] 3. Bad Ischl [Konditorei Zauner] Travel Info Hotel Index Guide Index Flight Index Website Navigation Travel Index Cruise Index Corporate Travel Index Partnerships Affiliate Program Links Corporate Gift Cards Insurance Agency Agency Cooperation Hotel Franchise Destination & Scenic Area Cooperation More Partnerships About Ctrip Ctrip News Contact Us Careers User Agreement Privacy Policy Business License Security Center Ctrip Content Center Intellectual Property Trip.com Group Algorithm Disclosure