Dávid Jakabfi became the Confectioner of the Year 2026

Dávid Jakabfi received the “Confectioner of the Year 2026” award at the Professional Elite Golden Stars Gala 2026. The award was presented in Szombathely at a festive event attended by around 400 people for charity purposes. According to the organizers, the award has been highlighting professionals whose work represents tangible quality since 2008; this year, only a few in the hospitality category received a similar recognition.

The moment of receiving the award on stage also indicated that this is not a “lonely sport”: Dávid Jakabfi received the certificate together with three colleagues and his brother, who works as a store manager.

“When you are so dedicated to your profession and strive for perfection every day, it is a great pleasure to receive such a prestigious award. For me, this is confirmation that a lot of practice, experimentation and discipline do not only seem important from the inside. It feels especially good to receive this at such a high-class, festive event,” said Dávid Jakabfi, the 2026 confectioner of the year.

“It is important to emphasize that this result is an absolute team effort, and without the support of my colleagues and family, I would not be here. We do our part together in the workshop every day, from the smallest movements to the greatest workload,” said the owner of JD Confectionery and Ice Cream Parlor.

He teaches Europe with Hungarian flavors, he has reached Michelin kitchens

An important part of Dávid Jakabfi’s career is the systematization and transfer of knowledge. So far, he has summarized his approach and techniques of confectionery in three books: the first and second volumes of Patissier, and A Desszertműhely, published in both Hungarian and German. In these, he shows, among other things, how classic Hungarian pastries can be reimagined in a modern form, as a plate dessert or as a cream in a glass.

In addition to his domestic training, the expert regularly holds courses abroad in Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Transylvania and Austria, and has also taught the technological and conceptual foundations to the staff of Michelin-starred restaurants on several occasions. Local ties are also emphasized in his work: at the request of the Nagykanizsa city government, he recently made chocolates that symbolize the city.

His professional presence has also been strengthened by major domestic events in recent times. Dávid Jakabfi appeared at the SIRHA Budapest 2026 exhibition, where his presentations received significant attention. In 2025, at the Gundel Károly Award ceremony, he and his team worked for nearly 24 hours to make and decorate 700 mini desserts, one by one, by hand. The listed treats included the Eszterházy bonbon, the peach pálinka Dobostorta bonbon, the poppy seed-peach macaron and the reimagined Rigó Jancsi.

Tiramisu in a coffee cup, Dubai in the ice cream counter

The growing clientele at Dávid’s pastry shop has also brought about changes in the physical space. After the pastry shop was expanded, a new, modern 34-square-meter serving area welcomes guests this year, and with the expansion of the garden area, a total of 110 seats are available.

With the start of the spring season, the ice cream counter has also expanded: they opened with 16 types of ice cream a few days ago. The Lotus biscuit-salted caramel flavor and the Ruby Dubai ice cream flavor have appeared in the range. Realistic fruit cakes continue to be emphasized among the cakes, and as a novelty, the tiramisu glass dessert has come into focus, which in its appearance evokes a take-away coffee cup.

“We are constantly looking for new shapes and flavors with which we can surprise people, but we do not compromise on quality. For us, the coffee cup-shaped tiramisu or the 16 ice creams of the season are not ideas for themselves, but part of the same thinking: it should be an experience, but there should be content behind it. The goal after the award is not to sit back, but to continue working even more consistently,” said Dávid Jakabfi.

The patissier is especially proud that the current award ceremony was also memorable for Nagykanizsa: not only did the city receive the Confectioner of the Year award, but the “Ice Cream Maker of the Year” award was also given to a Nagykanizsa specialist, Dávid Wilhelm. He received the title as the owner of Da Crema Ice Cream Parlor, which made the city one of the talking points of the gala: it is rare that two nationally watched awards are linked to the same settlement on the same evening.