In November 2009 I visited Vienna on business. I arrived late in the afternoon and decided to have a nice dinner in the area of the hotel. I chose the Vestibül Restaurant because it was near the hotel and was recommended by the Michelin Red Guide as offering good quality and good value cooking (Bib Gourmand).
The restaurant is across the boulevard from the Parliament, in a quiet corner of the Burgtheater.
The impressive decoration inside is 19th century “fin de siecle”. I was greeted by Veronika Doppler, who kindly showed me to a smoking table near the bar.
The friendly waiter recommended the house specialty ‘Szegediner Hummerkrautfleisch’ for a starter, and I accepted. The dish arrived in the hands of the chef, Christian Domschitz, who explained that it is crunchy gabbage, lightly treated in salt and vinegar, served to accompany the lobster in its butter sauce. This was a first course, and it had in it almost half a lobster!
Photo: Nikos Moropoulos
Tender, juicy, divine! This dish is a poem to the contrast of textures and the divinity of the lobster’s fragile mortal flesh. The main course was my choice. black truffle with beef marrow, served on a “sponge” of crispy white bread. This is beyond description!
I have never before tasted such a sweet, buttery substance, that melts in your mouth without overpowering you, while at the same time the truffle infuses the liquid with all the aromas of the woods. The dish was accompanied by a fiery red wine made by Triebauer.
And now the dessert! Dark chocolate praline with campari sauce in the middle, accompanied by blood orange sorbet on the left and orange grog on the right.
The grog was mildly hot, and contrasted beautifully the cold sorbet.
The restaurant is currently listed in the Michelin Red Guide as “Bib Gourmand”.
Gastrolvios 