Vienna State Opera.
Copyright: Vienna State Opera © Austrian National Tourist Office/Viennaslide

Meet Our Guest Writer Susanne Servin was born, raised and went to school in Vienna, Austria. Early in life, she indulged into one of her passions – fashion – and worked as a designer, window dresser and model in one of Vienna’s leading boutiques. Married to an American, she lived in Vienna and then Salzburg, eventually moving with her family to New York. After working for years in advertising, she became involved with organizing conventions and incentive travel for companies. Whenever she could, Ms. Servin indulged in her passion for cooking, subjecting the family to her culinary prowess. Both cooking and wine pairing come naturally to her – her father and his forefathers were in the wine-growing business and her mother’s family were great cooks – so all these pre-requisites congealed into the idea of starting her own company, specializing in food and wine tours to Austria. And so Herzerl Tours was born. But why such a unique name? "Well," said Ms. Servin, "with hundreds of companies selling Europe with names like 'Best of Europe,' 'Continental Journeys' and the 'Heart Of Europe Holidays,' they all sounded fairly similar, but nobody else has Herzerl Tours. The tours," she laughed, "done with the heart!"

oing home is always a wonderful thing. Even though I have lived for many years in New York and am now a US citizen – Vienna will always be home.

So when I recently traveled to Vienna I immediately noticed all the things about the city that I've always loved. When I got off the plane, even the famous Viennese air embraced me, evoking fond memories from the past. Where else in the world can you walk out of the baggage claim area and be greeted by your driver or friends with the venerable food Austrian tradition of Trzesniewski. Downtown Vienna T., the proverbial ”hole in the wall,” is nestled in one of the side streets of the Graben. It has been there for close to 100-years (the recipes are still a well-guarded secret), and loved by all the Viennese, and considered the originator of fast food. Delicious, small open-faced sandwiches (Brötchen) tempt you in an abundant variety – but always on the same dark rye bread, with a choice of a hardboiled egg, herring with onions, lox or salami, all finely chopped.. And if you are not arriving on an early flight you must have a ”Pfiff” of beer (0.2 liter) with it. Of course, I indulged and had at least three sandwiches to “wash down” the taste of the gruesome airline breakfast.

View from St. Stephens Cathedral. Copyright: City of Vienna Graben and Haas House © Austrian National Tourist Office/ Diejun

My waiting friends took me across the street to the NH Hotel for a bite, or what we call in Vienna, Gabelfrühstück (breakfast with a fork – a tradition going back to the days when people would stop for a small gulyas mid-morning). Even at an airport hotel you’ll find good food. I had my favorite Viennese soup, Griessnockerl Suppe – bouillon with farina dumplings – and, of course, Viennese soup – topped with fresh chopped chives. And since I never count calories on a trip to Vienna, I followed with a dessert, Kaiserschmarrn – “the Emperors pancakes” - an abbreviated description would be finger-thick pancakes torn apart, dusted with powdered sugar and served with plum compote – yum! With a glass of Grüner Veltliner (Austrian white wine) – life is good!

Albertina. Copyright: Albertina in Vienna / Museum © Austrian National Tourist Office/ Lammerhuber

The next food experience was the first night dinner. We (a group of travel professionals) were staying in the newest addition to Vienna’s luxury hotels: Sofitel Stefansdom. Later that evening we walked through a few winding streets in the Inner City and ended up in Vienna’s famous Plachutta. This veritable Viennese institution and a synonym for “Tafelspitz” - a specific cut of boiled beef served in steaming copper kettles, accompanied by creamed spinach, apple/hors radish sauce, chive sauce, and roasted julienned potatoes – rumored to be Emperor Franz Josef’s favorite meal. Plachutta (a famous Viennese restaurant family) offers its guests an authentic cuisine with an emphasis on cultivating Vienna’s culinary traditions in a contemporary form. They now have several restaurants in Vienna. So of course the meal starts with a soup (served from the copper kettle), then the Tafelspitz with all the accompaniments, paired with a great Austrian red wine, BlauFränkischer. And the dessert was truly to die for. In the Viennese dialect called “Millirahm Strudel,” the dish features a delectable warm vanilla sauce poured over it - Milchrahm means a very soft cheesy consistency.) It is wonderful, and wherever I can get my hands on it, I eat it – never minding the calories.

Monument of Prince Eugene of Savoy. Copyright: Monument of Prince Eugene of Savoy at Vienna’s Heroes Square © Österreich Werbung/Diejun

Years ago the famous Viennese Patisserie Demel opened a locale in New York City in the Plaza Hotel’s lower lobby. We transplanted Viennese “clucked with joy” and visited as often as possible – and I was especially delighted that I could get Milchrahm Strudel there – and of course a “Grosser Brauner” – a Viennese variety of coffee. Unfortunately there were not enough Austrian food addicts to keep Demel going, and, to my great sorrow, had to close its doors.

2012 is the 150th Anniversary of Gustav Klimt, one of Austria’s most famous painters. He painted the iconic “The Kiss” and his works were originally displayed in the Secession building. Copyright: Secession am Getreidemarkt Arch.: J. M.Olbricht Wien-1 © Österreich Werbung/Mayer

And then came Sunday. After attending mass in St. Stephens Cathedral, I battled my way through an unexpected snow-squall along Kärntner Strasse (once the most elegant street in Vienna); I went to meet a friend for lunch in the other Plachutta. This is the latest addition to the Plachutta restaurants called Gasthaus zur Opera (which translates 'the pub next to the opera' – and it is only a few steps from the Vienna State Opera). Here I simply had to indulge in a plate of Wiener Schnitzel, always observant of how good the meat and the breading is in an establishment like this. There is great competition in Vienna as to which restaurant makes the best Wiener Schnitzel. The Schnitzel is paired with a mixed salad (potato salad, lambs ear lettuce, green beans and red beets) and never, never served with rice.

A brief note about another Viennese restaurant, Restaurant Herlitschka – not so in the eye of the “schickimicki” (in-crowd) but loved by locals who appreciate authenic Viennese cuisine – situated a few streets behind the Hotel Imperial. It has been called an “Old-Vienna Pub.” Guests enjoy well-prepared, typical Viennese food, fine Austrian wines and good service. This time I indulged in another of my childhood favorites, “Ebackene Kalbsleber“ (often translated as baked veal liver cotelet – something that you rarely find in restaurants in the US) with potato salad and a glass of Grüner Veltliner (an Austrian white).

The famous Viennese “Sachertorte” cake. Copyright: Sachertorte © Österreich Werbung/Eisenhut & Mayer

And I cannot end without sharing the most amazing dinner I had during this Vienna trip at the haute-cuisine restaurant Vestibuel at the Vienna Burg Theater. Attached to the theater, this was once the carriage vestibule of the emperor's court theater. Today, the Marmorsaal dining room with marble Corinthian columns, coffered arcades, and candlelight is an orgy of marble; a restaurant where history meets culinary refinement with an excellent non-traditional Viennese cuisine. I started with the Austrian pendant to Prosecco, called Quinquin (after the nick-name of Prince Esterhazy and from his cellars) – delicious!! The chef, Mr. Domschitz came to greet us and took us into his kitchen and then treated us to his signature hors d’oeuvres: “Hummerkrautfleisch’ - a traditional dish with a spicy cabbage dish and lobster (usually with pork). The main course was also great – I chose a veal gulyas a la Domschitz. But the dessert trumped everything in creativity: apple strudel in a glass – how divine. It featured layers of the ingredients such as whipped cream with cinnamon at the bottom, then a layer of apples with raisins and a rum filling, topped with butter-roasted breadcrumbs and powder sugar – yes, simply divine. This was accompanied with a Spät Auslese – a slightly sweet white wine with a tart after-bite.

I have to tell you – I didn’t gain any weight on this trip, but came away again with the knowledge that the Viennese cuisine – may it be traditional or re-imagined – is always superb and worth a trip to my grand city.

For further information, go to www.herzerltours.com or www.austria.info/us

Related Articles:
Vienna: The City That Endures; Innsbruck, Austria; Mozart in Salzburg; Czech Republic; Augsburg, Germany; Bavaria