Monday 4 March 2013

...Salzburg



What can I say about Salzburg at Christmas... It’s beautiful, romantic and full of festive cheer. Oh, and Gluhwein. I can see the attraction of Salzburg all year round but having witnessed it in the snow, I can’t imagine enjoying myself more in the summer. There’s something fantastical about the snow capped mountains and wrapping up to avoid the -5 temperatures.

I could list the countless attractions to go see but Salzburg is so small you’ll stumble across them them by yourself.  My main highlights were the fortress and the zoo.  I do like a good zoo and now I really like a zoo in the snow.  Lions frolicking in a snowy paddock and rhinos with horns white and frozen, add a slightly bizarre twist to your animal viewing pleasure. 
The bus stop by the zoo.
View from the Fortress
 looking away from Salzburg
View from the woods by the
Museum of Modern Art

Where to stay:

We stayed in the Hotel Stein. We chose the Stein because our other options were fully booked.  Not a great endorsement to start with but I would recommend it.  Firstly, it’s on the wrong side of the river. That means it’s slightly cheaper but it’s right by the bridge that takes you to the old town so you’re still in the thick of it. We wanted to stay in hotel Am Dom but we were glad of our location in the Stein, as we felt that we had the best of both worlds. The room was clean and reasonably large despite being one of their cheaper rooms. There was ‘interesting’ fertility inspired  artwork in the room and elsewhere in the hotel.  The hotel had a Gothic chic feel to it. Dark colours, reds and dimly lit. It may not be to everyone's taste but it was different and I quite liked it.

The reason why i’d recommend the hotel though is the rooftop bar.  Here is where you can have a drink in the evening or have your breakfast in the morning.  And the breakfast was amazing.  One of the best I've had. Not only is the food good but the view is to die for.  Honestly, many hotels in Salzburg would pay a lot of money  and charge for it too, to have the panoramas the Hotel Stein offers.  You can stare down the river, towards the mountains or up at the fortress.  Stunning. The breakfast is as you’d expect, fruits, cereals, yogurts, scrambled eggs, speck, salamis, cheese, breads, cakes and tea and coffee an endless selection but tasty too. The quality of the ingredients was very good.  It was no wonder that the breakfast service was very popular with guests.

Where to eat:

The first thing I will mention is that smoking is a very popular habit in Austria, so popular that they haven’t banned it from restaurants.  Secondly, if like us, you enjoy going for a drink pre and or post dinner, you’ll struggle to find a pub.  It seems that the Austrians enjoy eating and drinking so much, they don’t see the need to separate them at all. So if you find a place you like for dinner, stay there.  You won't find somewhere else to go for a drink that isn't another restaurant.

The culinary highlight was undoubtedly Gasthaus Zwettler's Stiftskeller.  Seemingly well thought of by the locals too, the atmosphere here was fantastic, really lively, fun and friendly.  The food is typically Austrian, lots of meat. The house wine was very good and well priced.  The beer was 
A stein and a half pint at Stiftkellers
wonderful. The food is simple yet full of flavour, and I really would recommend the consume with potato. Consume seems very popular in Salzburg and was delicious everywhere I had it.

As you’ll soon discover from reading this Blog, my partner and I do like Italian food. So our trip to Salzburg was not complete without a trip to a little Italian restaurant called Pasta e Vino. This small restaurant is located nowhere special but don’t let that put you off. We sat by the meat counter which was no big deal as you could study the array of cured meats and smell the aromas coming from the kitchen.  They have a variety of pastas, and I imagine the ingredients change on a daily basis to create the meat, vegetable and fish pastas they advertise.  We shared an antipasti, which was huge,  Very fresh ingredients and extremely tasty.  Although I wasn't keen on the caper berries which seem to be a staple in Salzburg. The meat pasta was expertly cooked and rich. It was just pasta and a meat sauce but iI could have licked my plate clean.  The vegetable option was equally good.  The clean plates were testament to that. Again the house wine was more that suitable for the job.  No need to spend the extra euros on a bottle here! I should add that it is no surprise to find a good Italian restaurant in Austria, as in Salzburg there seemed to be a lot of Italians!

Now, the culinary experiences were not all brilliant.  Having scoured TripAdvisor I had my hit list and on that list was Gasthaus Wildermann. Good beer (as you would expect) and lovely food.  I had reindeer stew which was faultless.  The red cabbage that came with it was immense.  The flavour was unbelievable. Again, the consume was highly recommendable. I had one with a slice of beef strudel in it. Minced beef wrapped in pastry and it was odd to look at but worked so well as a starter. My partner had the same but with sliced pancake in it.  The texture to this was not to my liking but I can see why some people would like it. I have to confess, I can’t remember what the other main course we had was.  I can only assume that the reason for this is the reason I would be tentative about recommending Wildermann’s.  The atmosphere.  We didn't have to wait long for our, which was a god thing because we couldn't wait to leave.  The restaurant consists of a bar at one end of a room where the tables are round the edges leaving a large space in the middle.  The tables are large and you tend to have to share them with other diners.  Not hugely problematic but it seemed to stifle the hubbub. No one was talking or talking with any great volume. Although, i must confess when we’d found the place the night before, it seemed busier and slightly more vocal but there was something uncomfortable about it.  Perhaps it was to so with the sour faced waitress.  She and the male counterpart seemed hugely unimpressed with life. I know the Austrian language can seem quite stern but the faces we were shown did not show a hint of welcome to us.

If you do go to Wildermann’s you may well have a different experience to us but frankly I doubt it.  The only reason you should go here, is that perhaps it offers a real insight to Austrian life and you’ll see what I mean by that if you go to Salzburg and observe the demographic.

Now, who likes cake?  If you love cake then you’ll love Cafe Tomaselli’s.  Check the reviews on TripAdvisor and you’ll see a few people claiming that it lives off it’s reputation.  That may be so, but here’s a few pointers to ensure you have a good experience.  Don’t be afraid to wait for the right table.  And you will, as it gets very busy.  The right table is not in the main room. On the right there is another smaller room with wood paneled walls.  It is quieter in here and more comfortable. Order cake.  You’ll have your drinks order taken first, the tea is good, the coffee decidedly average.  The Prosecco eminently drinkable and by far my favourite way to lubricate before and during cake time. You pay for the cake separately.  I’m not sure why but you do.  A tray is brought to you so you can choose whatever takes your fancy.  We shared an apple strudel one day and a chocolate cake the other. Both were exceptional. Please do try Tomaselli’s it really does add a richness to your trip to Salzburg.  The history to the place really compliments your walk around the old town, as you imagine the streets in an era long gone but is hinted at by the number of people dressed in traditional styles. 
Christmas markets (taken from a horse and carriage).

Having gone at Christmas, I feel I must mention the Christmas markets. I imagine in years gone by there was real variety and wonder. Today, not so much. Many of the stalls were selling remarkably similar items. Mainly tree decorations, hats and tat.  But that’s not to say you shouldn't go there because you should.  people seem to come here to meet and be merry.  Hot drinks like Gluhwein and hot white Russians give everyone a happy glow. And some of the decorations are worth buying. But there’s also the food.  There are numerous stalls selling Haunsburgers (sp)  and sausages and deep fried dough with various toppings, sweet or savory. The smells were delightful and everyone seemed happy. The Austrians really do like their food and drink and I really like their food and drink!  

A quick mention on the Mozart balls.  There are good Mozart balls and there are bad Mozart balls.  Don’t buy the cheap ones.  They’re not so nice.

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