Random Splendor (on Báthory utca)

Stunning murals and statuary on the corner of Vadász u. and Báthory utca.

Báthory utca runs from Kossuth Lajos (Parliament) Square to Bajcsy-Zsilininszky ut, and building after building yields stunning architectural treats.

Báthory utca is named after Stephen Báthory, Prince of Transylvania and King of Poland during the 16th century. As well as managing to stabilise the region by playing the Holy Roman and Ottoman empires off each other, he was also famed for his religious tolerance, issuing decrees that condemned any kind of religious violence and offering protection to Polish Jews.

Tormented-looking titans flank a doorway on Hold u.

From Classical murals, statuary and rose walls through ornate balconies and doorways to more rundown, pockmarked plaster... take a stroll along Báthory and revel in some of District V's random splendor.

Pockmarked but the grandeur still peeks through...

19th-century lions (and some more contemporary security systems) guard this balcony.

Nine Budapest bars with dazzling decor pt2: Apacuka - the sculpture park in a bar

Sculpture by Gergo Kovách, dominates Apacuka's main room

Apacuka (Nagymezo utca 54-56) is a bit like stepping into a hand of cards from the surreal boardgame Dixit. A geometric steel staircase; gigantic wine-bottle containing, micro-cosmically, more wine bottles; a huge statue of a bugle-playing cartoon lady, surrounded by a flock of geese. The sculptures are faux-naive, their child-like simplicity also suggesting hidden depths. The scale is off-kilter, but joyous rather than discomforting. In the street window, there's a sequin-covered mannequin - but she doesn't beckon or pose like a shop-window dummy, instead she looks like a confident bad-ass: you can join her club, if you're bold enough.

Adding an 18th century portraiture twist in the bar area

The bar and restaurant has a polish that sets it apart from the shabby-chic haunted-forest decor of Instant, just down the road. The overall design is by Balázs Csepregi, and the twirling lampshades, backlit glass scenes, and huge wall-spanning 17th-century portrait mark this place as a high class eaterie.

Winner of Best Beer Garden at Terasz Budapest 2016 awards

But then the sculpture installations - by Gergo Kovách and Norbert Kotormán - add an eccentric, beguiling twist. They also extend to the award-winning terrace where a giant pair of sunglasses and an abstract nude (by the same two sculptors) surround the tables in a peaceful courtyard that won the 2016 Best Beer Garden at the Terasz Budapest award; no easy task in this city.

The subtle innovation continues onto the menu (by chef Gabór Bacsa) which takes Hungarian and Mediterranean dishes and gives them a slight twist: like having black salsify and brick pasta as the vegetarian starter, or red snapper (instead of the standard pike perch or salmon) as the fish option for a main.

Clever but not over-fussy food and a beautiful sculpture garden vibe that continues indoors for these winter months.