Vienna is a gem.
Not overrun by tourists. Stunning architecture. Excellent climate. And some of the best food you'll find in the world.
Whenever I go back, I always find myself at the same haunts while trying to discover some new ones.
On my first day, I had to get my cravings out of the way and headed from the plane to Cafe Sacher for a sugar rush with their famous torte.
That night I pounded a litre of pilsner, frittaten soup (my MUST go to in Austria) and goulash from my favorite brewery, Salm Brau. Frittaten soup is all about the crepe. The broth needs to have a distinct umami flavour, but the crepe needs to be sliced in strips thin enough to it's manageable to handle and can soak up all the delicious broth. It also needs to stand on its on and my favourite variety has a little scallion in it.
But the reason I get on a plane, this time and every time, is to dine at 2*, and World's 50 Best mainstay, Steirereck. If there's any restaurant in the world I obsess over, this is it. The experience, from start to finish, is other-worldly with the front-of-house and kitchen married (figuratively and literally) in perfect harmony.
I tagged on an extra day in Vienna to have two dinners, one a la carte and one from the tasting menu and neither disappointed.
You may see Steirereck pop up in this year's The Single Table awards (hint), so I won't go in to full detail now. But this was the first time I dined and also enjoyed the cheese cart. I know, you're looking at me like I'm insane to have missed out on it before. But I always found the tasting menu so delightful and the pre-dessert course so inventive that I skipped the cheese.
Of the 12 courses I enjoyed throughout my two meals, I wanted to highlight "Sunflower," the best opening course I've ever had to a meal. This stunner features steamed, crispy and glazed sunflower. Sweet potato grilled and confited in brown butter. Mushrooms, sunflower seed miso, curry yoghurt, yellow bean sauce and sunflower stem heart ragout with carrot, fennel and tomatoes.
This is a genius dish. You get crunch, sweetness, acid, coolness from the youghurt, but subtle curry spice notes. Little morsels taste almost like a savoury beignet. Well done Heinz! Absolute perfection.
My other go-to in Vienna is Tian, a 1* vegetarian restaurant that continues to push its menu forward and focus on what's in season.
I will admit, I was dragging for this meal and I think it showed. Sometimes I can turn on the charm and be engaging and sometimes I'm just dead tired. But even though I was hardly hungry, I managed to devour the eight course tasting menu and perked up at each dish. The meal was satisfying and not overwhelming and pacing was appreciated as they kept it moving along without feeling rushed.
A standout was this chanterelle and potato dish with verjus. The extra bottle of broth so warming and delicious. My only complaint is you can't drink out of that wooden bowl with the wide brim!
Finally, there's 3* Amador which felt both experimental but approachable. The room, and feel free to ask about the history of it, is gorgeous.
I am very appreciative they e-mailed my menu with dietary substitutions, which should be second nature to restaurants, but often time is pulling teeth.
The standout is the signature of pigeon with purple curry, mango and coconut (available as a supplement). But dare I say, and this seems to be a debate here, the dish is over sauced. I would have preferred a table side drizzle and if you wanted to leave more cause for me to pour over later, do that. Too much of a good thing.
This was a solid meal and does land on my world's best list. Was it "memorable?" I have a hard time coming up with everything I ate without consulting the menu, so probably not.
As I alluded to earlier, something was "off" for me in Vienna. There were times I didn't have an appetite or just dragged. I barely went out at night and spent a lot of the day in bed. I had anxiety about being able to enjoy full meals which sucks when the reason you got on the plane was to have these meals. So it was a snowball of stress.
It wasn't jet lag. I didn't have COVID because I carry rapid tests when I travel. So I'll have to chalk it up to "who knows." Luckily, this went away by the next stop.
Vienna required a COVID certificate or negative test to dine in restaurants which made me feel safe and comfortable. Mask wearing was pretty much confined to public transport and in some cases walking in and out of buildings.