Eating in Austria

Desserts to die for at Demel, Salzburg

Eating in Austria was a very delightful experience, especially due to all the desserts and coffee! I did more research for this trip than for our recent trip to Stockholm, Sweden and it really paid off. Wikipedia had some information about Austrian cuisine but the place I found the most useful information was the Austrian embassy website. There I found information about Austrian specialties and recipes for popular dishes.

Of the Austrian recipes I found, I was interested in trying both Tafelspitz (boiled beef with horseradish sauce) and Frittatensuppe (sliced pancake soup). Tafelspitz had a very prominent place on most menus we saw and I tried it in two different settings: a slightly fancy place (Blaue Gans, Salzburg) and a very traditional restaurant (Ottoburg, Innsbruck). Although the presentation was very different they were both really great. The one at Ottoburg came with more vegetables in the soup and creamed spinach but the differences may just be down to the different regional preparations. Tafelspitz seems like the perfect dish on a cold, snowy Austrian night and it worked well in different kinds of restaurants.

I tried frittatensuppe at a place that I will forever think about and long to be near, Demel in Salzburg (with a location in Vienna as well). We had a late, light lunch followed by coffees and cakes at Demel when we first arrived in Salzburg. The pancake soup was delicious and I was surprised to find that the pancakes kept their shape very nicely in the soup. I think it is due to the fact the pancakes are more like crepes than what American generally think of as pancakes. My favorite part of Demel though was the "chocolate bomb," a rich dome layered with chocolate cake, creme brulee and chocolate mousse, all covered with melted chocolate with some gold leaf on top (see picture above)! This was not a dessert to have everyday but hey, it was my birthday so I decided to indulge! Eddie enjoyed his dessert as well but it didn't have nearly the show stopping quality that mine did! The food and decor (pink boudoir, Agent Provocateur-like) of Demel were great and I would love to be able to stop in for a melange on a regular basis! (I have read that the Vienna branch of Demel can get very crowded with tourists but the Salzburg branch was nice and quiet when we went.)

Austria is of course known for its coffee houses and pastries, two things we really came to appreciate! In the late afternoon we loved going to the Kaffeehaus to enjoy coffee and to sample one of the many desserts that Austria had to offer. We visited fancy Konditorei such as Demel and Cafe Sacher and indulged in rich treats and we also visited very low key cafes for a melange and coffee. In both types of places the atmosphere was always very casual and the food and drinks great. We were unimpressed with the famous Sacher torte and found it to just taste like stale chocolate cake. We were hoping that we were just served a bad piece and would probably give it another try at some point. In Vienna we sampled apfelstrudel at Cafe Diglas and loved the sweet layers of apple and pastry. Eddie's favorite part of Cafe Diglas was the promotional video they played that showcased all their different desserts and how they were made. He sat mesmerized through multiple showings of the short video!

Apfelstrudel at Cafe Diglas, Vienna

Cafe Sacher, Salzburg

However, Eddie's fondest food memory of Austria is surprisingly about pizza! When we walked by Pizza Bizi, near Stephansdom in Vienna, we were stopped in our tracks by the smell and the customers buying up the biggest pizza slices ever. We ate there twice, enjoying the thin crust pizza with lots of cheese and minimal sauce. Eddie has been missing his NY pizza slices for over a year now and Pizza Bizi came very close to filling that gap. We were sad to leave Pizza Bizi behind in Vienna but were overjoyed when we sampled the pizza in Innsbruck at Solo per te. We ordered up our huge slices again (the Austrian slices are seriously close to a quarter of the entire pie!) and stood at the outside tables admiring the Alps. I personally liked the pizza in Innsbruck better because I felt the crust was much crisper but Eddie preferred Pizza Bizi. Either way Eddie was so happy to enjoy all the delicious pizza that Austria had to offer.

Of Austrian food products the cream-filled wafers from Manner in Vienna were love at first bite for the both of us. The hazelnut filled wafers are Manner's specialty but Eddie and I both actually preferred the almond filled wafers. Honestly though we have really loved every flavor we have tried so far. Fortunately, they were very well priced (compared to UK prices) and compact enough to tote many different varieties home to London.


Our trip to Austria turned out to be one of our all time favorites thanks in part to the food. Really, you can't go wrong in a country that loves to linger over coffee and cakes in the middle of any given day. Between a vegetarian and a picky eater we had very little trouble finding any food that worked for the both of us and we are so very glad for that!