Sneakeater Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Osterreicher im MAK This is Vienna's hottest restaurant. Everyplace else I went on this late-August vacation was empty. This place was jumping. It was started by Vienna's other star chef -- Helmut Osterreicher of Steirerech im Stadpark -- at about the same time Christian Petz left Meinl am Grab to start the FUCKING CLOSED FOR VACATION Restaurant Coburg. But the two star chefs took interestingly divergent paths. Whereas Petz started a super-luxe restaurant, Osterreicher took over the commissary of the fantastic MAK museum,* offering his food at popular prices in a casual setting. This is more than just a museum cafe, of course (it's open till early the next morning, way after the museum has closed, for one thing). But it isn't a completely separate free-standing restaurant like The Modern in New York, either. While it has its own dedicated outside entrance, you can also access it through the museum shop. I went for dinner (well after museum closing). There's a dining room and a sizeable bar room. Reservations for the dining room are a must. But I can tell you, since they lost my dining room reservation (made by my supposedly infallible hotel at the last minute), that walking into the bar room is doable (although it got fuller and fuller as the night wore on). The menu (like Danube's!) is divided into "traditional" and "modern" sections. I had a "traditional" appetizer and a "modern" main dish (although in my case -- and this is atypical of the menu -- I couldn't really see what made the main dish so "modern"). The appetizer was what turned out to be a sort of goulash of calf's heart. Very good. The main dish were veal cheeks in a savory fruit (cranberry maybe?) sauce, also very good. Despite the popular prices, there are no problems with either ingredients or execution here. I've heard some say that portion sizes suffer because of it -- but to me that just meant that this was the rare meal I had in Central Europe where I didn't come out feeling a little sick from overeating. Service, though, was laughably bad. Not surly, just inept and overstrained. (One way they keep prices down, apparently, is to have practically no staff.) To pick out a Bruniesque detail, when my waitress realized she had got my appetizer order wrong and initially delivered me the wrong appetizer, the "fuck" she emitted was both good-humored and genuinely regretful. But she still got my order wrong, and she still said "fuck" (that last part doesn't bother me, but I could see how it would bother others). I have to admit that I was very slightly disappointed by Osterreicher im MAK -- but only because my expectations were sky-high. This is extremely good and interesting food in a very pleasant setting -- and at decent prices to boot. Anyone visiting Vienna will want to go here. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ * MAK is the museum of applied arts. As you'd expect in Austria -- the country that has taken applied arts more seriously than perhaps even England -- its collections are fantastic. What I think happened here is that by the 1980s, the institution had become tired. So in a move that parallels what happened to BAM in my hometown of Brooklyn, they engaged a dynamic director, and he transformed the museum. Each exhibit (either chronological or topical) is designed by a different artist or arts/architecture collective. While some work better than others, the entire museumgoing experience is enhanced exponentially. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Loos American Bar One of the few publicly accessible interiors designed by the Secessionist* architect Adolf Loos is this century-old cocktail lounge. It's actually fairly tiny, but Loos's canny use of mirrors makes it feel spacious. Loos isn't Jungenstil as you think of it. His work is very stripped down, which makes it strikingly contemporary. My immediate thought upon walking in was that all the New York cocktail lounges aping a turn-of-the-century look are going for the wrong style. This place screamed sophistication. Loos's beautiful, austere design isn't friendly, perhaps -- but the extremely personable bar staff made up for it. Central European cocktail culture obviously lags behind ours. These cocktails -- mostly classics -- were well-made (YES they use jiggers) but unexciting. Worth it for the room and the pleasant staff. _______________________________________________________________________________ * NOTE TO NEW YORK READERS: I know. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rail Paul Posted August 28, 2008 Author Share Posted August 28, 2008 Loos also designed the delightful Cafe Museum Bar on Karlsplatz. It's a fine place to sit down and have a slice of cake and coffee, or a cold beer. The large windows allow an abundance of sunlight in the afternoon. Cafe Museum This site also lists other Loos buildings extant Galinsky Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 My immediate thought upon walking in was that all the New York cocktail lounges aping a turn-of-the-century look are going for the wrong style. Apparently I am not the only person to have this thought. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rail Paul Posted February 23, 2010 Author Share Posted February 23, 2010 The Klimt filled Secession Museum (up thread) has created much excitement in Vienna by inviting a sex club to take up residence VIENNA (AP) -- In the name of art, an Austrian landmark is encouraging visitors to confront their sexual inhibitions by having them walk through a swingers club to reach one of Gustav Klimt's masterpieces. The Secession -- a world-renowned venue for contemporary art in downtown Vienna -- has temporarily incorporated a sex club named ''Element6'' as part of a project by Swiss artist Christoph Buechel. Swingers and their mattresses Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Anthony Bonner Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 This thread reminds me of how great the MAK is and how I need to get back to Central Europe. Probably 2011. But the MAK is great. Sneak is spot on re: the resto there though. Actually my first post on mouthfuls was where to find schnapps in Vienna. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Behemoth Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Well, if you do make a trip, I know a great place to buy schnapps in Innsbruck... In Vienna, we had a great meal at Zum Schwarzen Kameel. We ate at the restaurant, though the bar out front looked really cool as well. Hotel recommendation: Hotel Altstadt. Wonderful staff, spiffy rooms, amazing breakfast even by German standards. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Anthony Bonner Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Well, if you do make a trip, I know a great place to buy schnapps in Innsbruck... In Vienna, we had a great meal at Zum Schwarzen Kameel. We ate at the restaurant, though the bar out front looked really cool as well. Hotel recommendation: Hotel Altstadt. Wonderful staff, spiffy rooms, amazing breakfast even by German standards. ooh looks nice. I stayed here http://www.hollmann-beletage.at/ and I thought it was pretty nice and low key, but it looks like they've expanded. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 The Klimt filled Secession Museum (up thread) has created much excitement in Vienna by inviting a sex club to take up residence VIENNA (AP) -- In the name of art, an Austrian landmark is encouraging visitors to confront their sexual inhibitions by having them walk through a swingers club to reach one of Gustav Klimt's masterpieces. The Secession -- a world-renowned venue for contemporary art in downtown Vienna -- has temporarily incorporated a sex club named ''Element6'' as part of a project by Swiss artist Christoph Buechel. Swingers and their mattresses I'm going to repeat that great exchange from Back to School. Nouveau-riche Rodney Dangerfileld and his slutty social-climbing wife are giving a party. PARTY GUEST: Your wife was just showing me her Klimpt. RODNEY DANGERFIELD: My wife shows everybody her Klimpt. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
fantasty Posted April 19, 2010 Share Posted April 19, 2010 Taking a train from Vienna to Prague, is there any place worth stopping to explore for a day or so? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rail Paul Posted April 19, 2010 Author Share Posted April 19, 2010 Taking a train from Vienna to Prague, is there any place worth stopping to explore for a day or so? We took the direct train from Vienna to Brno to Prague, which was extremely scenic. Very rustic in some places, industrial in the other. I had initially hoped to take an indirect way, with a train northeast to Ceske Budvar (?), tour the several breweries, and rejoin the train for the ride north to Prague. Several old Hapsburg castles, etc. Marienbad etc is along that route, too. But the schedule didn't work out for me. I'll look around for the Czech trip notes and see what else there might be. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
fantasty Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 Thanks, RP! Any current hotel recs for Vienna? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Behemoth Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 We stayed here quite recently. Highly recommend. It's right around the corner from the Museum Quartier, and a short walk to the Naschmarkt and downtown. I should also mention, they serve free tea and cake in the afternoon. Hotel recommendation: Hotel Altstadt. Wonderful staff, spiffy rooms, amazing breakfast even by German standards. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
fantasty Posted April 23, 2010 Share Posted April 23, 2010 Thanks, Beh! Unfortunately they're totally booked for the time frame I need, otherwise it would have been perfect. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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