Vienna

For the last few days, I've been in Vienna. It's come to be a very special place for me and my boyfriend. We go twice a year because he has work there, luckily in the warmer months of April and July. Vienna breathes music. You can hear it in the walls of the stunning buildings, as the wind whistles through the trees that have seen it all, and even through the food. I imagine the schnitzel to be the cello, the potatoes are the piano, and the Gemüse to be the violin, all coming together on the plate to play their requiem, proudly and boldly.

This trip was just as magical, albeit short. As the hotel where we stayed was outside of the centre, during the day I would wander the neighbourhood. It was so calm. 

One day I went to the Schönbrunn Palace, the ornate summer home of the Hapsburg's. I had already visited the palace on a previous trip, so I just walked around the grounds, with the intent to go to the zoo (even though, in principle, I completely oppose the concept of a zoo). But I got side-tracked on my way by the Palmenhaus, a greenhouse built in 1881/82, and still functioning.  This huge glass building is surrounded by intensely manicured lawns, and totally worth being side-tracked for.

 As I walked through the heavy doors, I could feel all my senses being aroused; kicked into high gear. Floral scents floating above the heavy smell of moist earth, the talkative birds competing with not-so-subtle recordings of crickets and frogs, the eye-full's of vibrant, exotic flowers... everything culminating to bring out my inner, adventurous child. And that child wanted to explore this Amazonian world! So I did just that.

Covering all the paths, I played "Where's Waldo" to find even the tiniest, unknown plant or flower. At some point I noticed questioningly why there were no bugs to be found in this paradise. I got my answer quickly as I turned a corner and came face to face with a very thug-like spider. He looked like he would mug me I came too close. I could practically see him rolling up the sleeves on his eight arms, preparing for a fight. Needless to say, I quickly and quietly extricated myself from his environment. 

As I continued my exploratory adventure, I played with my camera, taking portraits of the all too willing subjects... Palmenhaus

For dinner we went to one of the best restaurants I have been to in a long time. Definitely high on the "top ten" list. Freyenstein is located outside of the city centre, but 100% worth the trek. A "Gourmet Gasthaus", as they call themselves, Freyenstein has one menu (which changes weekly I think), no à la carte, so no choice as to what you will eat. But fear not, the chef will choose wisely! We also had the added twist of not speaking German, so we really had the bare minimum of an idea as to what we were about to eat. But everything was amazing. Completely, utterly, positively mind-blowing!

We started with an amuse-bouche duo (every course was two plates) of lemon cream with caviar and creamy, cheesy, herby stuff wrapped in roast beef with pickled peppers. It was a perfect way to start a perfect meal. 

Next we had a Czech dumpling in a mushroom sauce and a savoury mango-watercress soup. I think the soup was one of my favourite parts of the meal. It had so many levels and a deep richness. 

Risotto with peas and mint and a stuffed courgette (I think it was yellow patty pan squash) with a tomato and pepper puree, walnut oil, and tiny edible flowers, which I found to be quite bitter. Almost every dish had some sort of edible flower on it, an ode to summer. 

Battered sardine with pickled radish and another vegetable that I know the name of but couldn't place. Don't you hate it when that happens? I think it was parsnip. And next to it is a fish ball (fresh water fish) with flower petals and some kind of sauce. I wasn't crazy about this course, as I'm not crazy about either type of fish.

Corn-fed chicken breast with fried potatoes and sautéed cabbage next to roasted veal with celery puree and parsnips. Mmmh, my mouth is watering. The meat was so well cooked. Everything on the plate was shining its brightest.

Finally, the dessert. A sort of home-made warm marzipan on top of a stewed apricot, then whipped yoghurt with fresh raspberries, and a berry soup with fresh mixed berries. 

The next day, unfortunately we had to leave Vienna. But not before a quick trip to the Naschmarkt. This market is the most popular in Vienna, and has a array of restaurants and vendors. We stopped for a drink before exploring all the food stalls. To see my Naschmarkt album... click here

Hopefully I can go back to Vienna next April, and continue exploring this magical city!