It’s true: eating out in Vienna is at the higher end of the scale, and many places offer weekday lunch specials or deals to “soften” the hit to the wallet. But flip-side, there are many bistros, taverns, and restaurants which provide examples of Viennese cuisine and hospitality. I’m highlighting two I’ve visited over the last two days:
• Rudi’s Beisl, as recommended by the Herknerin herself; my visit on 18 June.
• Kaffee Alt Wien, as recommended by Falstaff; my visit on 19 June.
Rudi’s Beisl
Located in the 5th district (Margareten) at Wiedner Hauptstrasse 88. I took bus 13A to stop Johann-Strauss-Gasse, but there’s also trams 1, 62, or Badener Bahn to stop Laurenzgasse.
Blue and white interior, for a “light” and breezy” atmosphere.
Towards my spot in the corner.
Outside on the street there’s a board listing this week’s specials, which complements the information on their website. It’s Tuesday (Dienstag), and I had their grilled pork with mushrooms over rice (Champignonschnitzel mit Reis).
Warm day? A half-litre shandy to quaff.
Their grilled pork with mushrooms over rice (Champignonschnitzel mit Reis) was delicious. I could’ve had another plate, but I (barely) have any limits or measure of self-control. No coffee or dessert, I had to get going.
Kaffee Alt Wien
Located in the 1st district (Innenstadt) at Bäckerstrasse 9. Nearest stations: U1/U4 Schwedenplatz; or U1/U3 Stephansplatz.
“Come on in, we have food & drink.” The chalk board at left lists this week’s lunch specials, found also on their website. The board at right lists other savoury and sweet dishes on offer.
Front, left; towards the bar.
More room and tables at back.
Front, right; towards my spot in the corner. I could simply grab a newspaper (which I did), and spent another 30 minutes reading post-meal. No English-language papers that I could see, however.
This week’s lunch specials on their website: at least one meat-option and at least one vegetarian-option every day. For Wednesday (Mittwoch), I chose “Faschierte Laibchen” with no soup or salad to leave “enough space”.
Their in-house “lemonades”, including this rhubarb-raspberry-vanilla with carbonated mineral water.
“Faschierte Laibchen mit Erdäpfelpüree”: fried mounds of ground-meat with gravy and creamy mashed potatoes. And yes, this is very Austrian, and I could’ve had another plate.
But they’re also known for their “Apfelstrudel mit Schlagobers”. The phyllo pastry simply holds things together, but the real star is the apple chunks: fresh, tart, and a hint of cinnamon. The whipped cream adds creamy sweet lightness to the entire dessert. Y. U. M.
I made all images above with an iPhone15 on 18 and 19 Jun 2024. I received no support from any external organization. This post composed with Jetpack for iOS appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com.
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