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Discovering Austrian cuisine in Berlin
Think of Berlin for food and it's Turkish pizza, a kebab or maybe currywurst? Delve deeper into the many neighbourhoods and you'll find much more. We love Berlin and each time we return we try to seek out new districts and new places to discover off the tourist trail.
We visited Wohlfahrt's Wirtshaus, a family-run Austrian restaurant in the Wilmersdorf district of (west) Berlin for dinner. In fact, it's Styrian cuisine, so a specific area of Austria which we knew nothing of, and it's in a residential area away from all the hipsters.
We ventured into the restaurant, doing our best to feel like a local, and could see that it is a place which attracts a lot of regulars, local families, couples and friends. In fact, it looks a bit like someone's living room, a large one but not ours though as it's tidy!
We were seated under paintings on the wall which were reminiscent of Egon Schiele and I was facing what looked like a portrait of Boris Blank from the Swiss band Yello! There are abstract posters on the walls elsewhere and subdued light making it cosy, casual and welcoming.
Menu
All the meat, cheese and even the bottled water comes from Austria though the beer comes from the Hofbräuhaus Traunstein brewery which is near the German-Austrian border.
While we waited for our food some sliced bread arrived.
But not just one type of bread, instead three varieties, with a cheese and dill spread.
To drink we had the pilsner (a good clean crisp one) and the unfiltered Zwickau beer, a light cloudy wheaty beer with lemon and lime taste and our favourite of the two.
Starters
For the starters, you can pick 3, 4 or 5 to share. We opted for 3: Austrian mountain bacon with a perfectly ripe pear; a Styrian wurst salad with chopped garlic sausage, tomatoes and fresh salad leaves in a vinaigrette with paprika and red onions; Baked asparagus, mixed leaf salad, rocket dip and cress.
This is the first time I think that we've had breaded asparagus - it looked like small pieces of breaded Camembert and being in Germany, where they love asparagus, this was good quality and fresh.
Mains
Brett'l Jasse - a mound of meat specialities, cheese and tangy vegetables. 5 types of meat in fact: Corinthian salami, Austrian smoked ham, Parma-style ham from Austria, garlic sausage and ox tongue with bacon fat. Then there were 2 types of creamy Austrian cheese. Silverskin pickled onions, crisp gherkin, chopped fresh horseradish and chopped radish. There was nothing unusual or complicated this, it was just good quality cheese, meat and veg - and heaps of it!
I had the pumpkin-seeded chicken panade. A 'panade' is a bit like schnitzel coated in breadcrumbs but it's got more texture and flavour thanks to the addition of pumpkin seeds. On the side was cranberry jam, a lemon slice, and a herby potato and cucumber salad with sesame seed oil. This was another massive portion, and of course being in Germany/Austria the potatoes were perfect!
Desserts
It's hard to believe that we still had room in our bellies but yes, we soldiered on, with a couple of apricot dumplings served with berry coulis and vanilla ice cream, and a pumpkin croquant pancake with chutney of pears and pistachio and ice cream, or in other words, a soft pancake with crunch, though I'd have preferred the pancake without the nuts as I think pancakes are more suited to being soft/textureless.
Both puddings were still devoured none the less!
Verdict
Our experience of Austrian food is minimal so it was great to taste something a bit different. Sure, we all know about schnitzel in Britain but panade? It was new to us, and the coating was tastier than any schnitzel I remember eating! Although they suggested 3,4 or 5 starters we struggled with just 3 - the portions are very generous so you won't leave here hungry! The atmosphere is how we like it, not too quiet or loud, with the temperature just right for relaxed informal dining.
Toilets were clean and well-maintained.
There are quite a few budget hotels near Wohlfahrt's Wirtshaus, including a Park Inn on the same street, so if you find yourself in the area you don't need to travel far for a great meal. If not, but like us you love seeking out Berlin from a local's perspective and want to try something not in the guidebooks then give Wohlfahrt's Wirtshaus a go.
+ Cosy neighbourhood restaurant
+ Styrian specialities, which may be hard to find outside Austria
+ The panade was delicious!
+ Transport / hotels nearby
- Not sure that the pancake requires nuts
Location:
Wohlfahrt's Wirtshaus
Emser Straße 24
10719 Berlin
Contact
Telephone: +49 30 23395723
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.wohlfahrts.de
Opening Hours:
Tuesday to Sunday: 17:00 to 23:30
Monday: closed
Public transport
Nearest U-bahn: U Hohenzollernplatz (Berlin) for lines U2 and U3.
U Uhlandstr. (Berlin) is slightly further away for the U1.
The nearest S-Bahn is Savignyplatz (Berlin).
Buses: 248, N3
Disclaimer: we were kindly invited to have a complimentary meal to help promote the restaurant to tourists but Fred has seen the pics and salivated at the thought of all that delicious meat so he knows that this is a truthful review.
