AUSTRIA - Best of Europe 2014 - page 111

Ice Cream!: Zanoni & Zanoni is a very Italian gelateria run by an Italian family.
They're mobbed by happy Viennese hungry for their huge €2 cones to go. Or, to relax and
watch the thriving people scene, lick your gelato in their fun outdoor area (daily 7:00-24:00,
2blocksupRotenturmstrassefromcathedralatLugeck7,tel.[phone]).There'sanother
location behind the Kunsthistorisches Museum, facing the Ring (at Burgring 1, U-2 or U-3:
Volkstheater/Museumsplatz).
Near Am Hof Square
(See “Restaurants in Central Vienna” map, here .)
The square called Am Hof (U-3: Herrengasse) is surrounded by a maze of atmospheric me-
dieval lanes; the following eateries are all within a block of the square.
Zum Schwarzen Kameel Wine Bar (“The Black Camel”) is filled with a professional
local crowd enjoying small plates from the same kitchen as their fancy restaurant, but at a
better price. This is the place for horseradish and thin-sliced ham ( Beinschinken mit Kren,
€10/plate, Achtung —the horseradish is hot ). Stand, grab a stool, find a table on the street, or
sit anywhere you can—it's customary to share tables in the wine-bar section. Fine Austri-
an wines are sold by the Achtel (eighth-liter glass) and listed on the board. They also have
a buffet of tiny €1-2 sandwiches. Prices are the same inside or at their street-side outdoor
tables (Mon-Sat 8:30-24:00, closed Sun, Bognergasse 5, tel. [phone]).
For a splurge, the adjacent Zum Schwarzen Kameel Restaurant (same hours, phone,
and address as the wine bar) is a tiny, elegant alternative. The dark-wood, 12-table, Art
Nouveau restaurant serves fine gourmet Viennese cuisine (€36 three-course lunch, €80 four-
course dinner, plus pricey wine.
Restaurant Ofenloch serves good, old-fashioned Viennese cuisine with formal service,
both indoors and out. This 300-year-old eatery, with great traditional ambience, is dressy
(with white tablecloths) but intimate and woodsy (€14 lunch specials; €15-19 main
courses—meat, fish, and vegetarian; Mon-Sat 11:00-22:30, closed Sun, Kurrentgasse 8, tel.
01/533-8844).
Brezel-Gwölb, a Tolkienesque wine cellar with outdoor dining on a quiet square, serves
forgettable food in an unforgettable atmosphere. It's ideal for a romantic late-night glass of
wine (daily 11:30-23:30; leave Am Hof on Drahtgasse, then take first left to Ledererhof 9;
tel. [phone]).
Beisl zum Scherer, around the corner, is untouristy and serves traditional plates for
€8-20. Sitting outside, you'll face a stern Holocaust memorial. Inside comes with a soothing
woody atmosphere and intriguing decor. It's named for a pre-World War I satirical newspa-
perthatwaspublishedhere.LetfriendlySakisexplainthedailyspecials—whichdon'tshow
up on the English menu (Mon-Sat 11:30-22:00, closed Sun, Judenplatz 7, tel. [phone]).