When it comes to Austria, I hadn’t really known what was traditional and what was not. I’ve been to Germany a handful of times, which feels similar in vibes, so was excited to try some more traditional food when visiting Austria. When we landed, we went to Grätzlheuriger, which has Austrian and Slovak food. The inside of the restaurant is very cozy and quant, which feels traditional, without being flashy. The staff were very kind to us English speakers and gave us English menus, that also had a picture side, which was very helpful as some of the translations were a bit perplexing to me!
Zwiebelrostbraten
Dann and I first got the same main, due to it being recommended to us! The Zwiebelrostbraten is like a thinner beef steak, potatoes, crispy onions and a pickle, all drowning in tons of gravy. This was described as the “English Roast of Austria”, but I am not a huge fan of a roast, so was curious on if I’d like it. The beef itself was cooked really well, though they do not ask for how well you liked it cooked due to how thin it is. The gravy, unlike British gravy, was very, very flavorful. I loved dipping the crispy onions and potatoes in it, getting up all of that delicious gravy. The pickle was not a sour pickle and instead was a sweet one, which I find a little odd still, but it feels very European. Both Dann and I very much enjoyed out main dish at Grätzlheuriger.
Slovakian Cheese Dumplings
On the English menu, there was Slovakian Cheese Dumplings. I assumed these were going to be like perogies, but they were instead more like a mac n cheese. They were a sort of soft, dough-like “noodle” which was very toothsome, covered in a cream and cheese sauce, with bacon chunks on top and a bunch of spring onions. Dann and I split this with some of our friends around the table and everyone very much enjoyed it! It was a very creamy, delicious dish that had the perfect amount of salt to it. The waiter had said the dish was very pretty, and brought serving spoons as we were sharing, which was a nice touch.
I really enjoyed eating at Grätzlheuriger, which felt very quant. It is worth noting the venue is cash only, but they did allow us to leave after we ate and go to an ATM when we figured that out, as we let them know before sitting down when seeing the sign. The service and food were both fantastic.