Budapest is apparently the food capital of Central Europe, and with tasty dishes like veal stew it is easy to see why. Something else they are famous for is palinka, a traditional fruit brandy that is very flavorful and strong.

I only know this because our last night in Budapest we were taken to dinner by friends of friends, who live there. As a sort of appertif (pre-meal drink) our friends recommended we each drink palinka, and we did — one apricot and one plum. Even though the drink was very strong, neither of us tasted any alcohol. Here are some photos of the event.

Before (with an apricot in one glass and a plum in mine):

During:

After (that’s me describing how my nose is burning):