Hungarian Esterházy torte at Muffin Taffin in Budva

In mid-November, Muffin Taffin in Budva sets out Esterházy torte, a Hungarian cake whose pale layers and dark lattice still follow the finish long used in Budapest pastry shops.

How the lattice cake appeared

The cake takes its name from the Esterházy family, a princely house of Hungary. By the late nineteenth century it was a familiar piece of Austro-Hungarian confectionery: thin almond meringue, buttercream, and a chocolate web across a light top.

The method is patient. Bakers spread almond dacquoise, bake the sheets until just set, then stack them with buttercream. Warm chocolate is piped in parallel lines, and a knife pulled across those lines turns them into the feathered lattice.

Muffin Taffin serves this among its cakes in Budva. Guests place orders for a whole round or for slices, and the same counter handles sales in Montenegro through the cooler weeks.

Anyone who wants the Hungarian cake, not a new invention, can ask for Esterházy by name. The almond layers, the buttercream, and the chocolate pattern stay in place.