Davy Byrne's moved house in 2024, and the new corner on Sorhaz utca turns out to suit it: two compact floors, a long bar to lean on and a single large screen that drops down when the football starts.
The address is Sorhaz utca 4, in District V, a few steps from the Danube and the shopping run of Vaci utca. The relocation gave the pub a cosier shape than its old premises, and management uses it well, leaving plenty of room around the bar counter where Guinness, Heineken and Hop House 13 stand guard above a basket of Tayto crisps. LiberoGuide notes the move and the warm, two-floor result, with the main screen tuned to sport and two other televisions kept running.
This is an Irish-owned and run room, and the detail shows in what it chooses to broadcast. The pub screens all the major GAA, rugby, Premier League and Glasgow Celtic fixtures, the schedule of an actual Irish house rather than a generic sports bar working through every league at once. The crowd follows accordingly, a mix of Dublin expats, visiting fans and locals who have learned this is where the black stuff is poured properly.
Atmosphere sits between pub and gastro pub. A poppy, post-punk soundtrack runs under the conversation, the saloon tables fill on match days, and the kitchen sends out enough hearty plates to keep the room from emptying at half time. Anyone working through the best sports bars in Budapest who wants a proper pint with their game tends to end up here.
What to order: the Guinness is the reason to come, widely rated the best pour in the city, so start there. To eat, the all-day Irish breakfast runs Friday to Sunday and is the standout, with hearty mains in the 4,300 to 5,000 forint range covering the rest of the week. For a lighter round, the Hop House 13 on tap is the dependable lager choice.
Who it is for: Irish and British fans tracking GAA, rugby or Celtic, couples and small groups after a warm room rather than a screen-packed barn, and anyone who rates a single well-tuned feed over a wall of them. It is a weaker fit for a fan who needs ten matches on at once. For wall-to-wall American screens nearby, Champs Sport Pub sits a short walk into District VII.
Best time to go: weekdays open at noon and weekends at ten in the morning, so a Saturday rugby fixture with a full Irish breakfast in front of you is the ideal use of the room. Monday quiz night from half seven draws a regular crowd, and live music takes over on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings. Our guide to the best bars for watching the game sets the wider scene, and the Budapest city guide covers what surrounds it.
What carries Davy Byrne's is consistency. The pub trades on the fundamentals an Irish house is judged by: a clean pint, a screen showing the right match, a plate of proper food and staff who remember a face. The 2024 move could have unsettled all of that, and instead the smaller room has tightened it, gathering the regulars closer to the bar and the screen. On a wet afternoon with Celtic on and a creamy Guinness settling, it is hard to find a more reassuring corner in central Budapest. The two floors give the room flexibility, a quieter level for the meal and a busier one around the bar when the match tips into the evening. It is the kind of pub that rewards a return visit, and most who find it make one.
Sources
Davy Byrne's official site · LiberoGuide: 10 best football bars in Budapest · Davy Byrne's on Facebook
