Going for dinner usually means I use whatever means available to get from A to B. Rarely does it mean that I actually walk. This time though I walked all the way due to an accident somewhere along the tram line and my ingrained punctuality. It took me almost 50 minutes from the time I had left my home to arrive at Gasthaus Freyenstein and I am so glad that it was well worth it!
Since we were the first guests (6pm on the dot, it being a holiday after all and the next day was a working day) it gave me ample time to take pictures of the dining room. We sat in the corner of the second room (there are three and a garden for summer) which was inviting and warm in its golden color. After perusing the menu all three of us decided on the set menu, a five-course meal that includes an amuse gueule and petit fours.
dining room @Gasthaus Freyenstein
We started with the amuse gueule, a tiny croque monsier with salami on a peanut sauce and trout caviar on chives sour cream. Absolutely delicious to start with already, Cat even wanted to have the grilled sandwich in regular size. My interest was more than piqued, there seemed to be a lot happening in this kitchen.
croque monsieur with salami and trout caviar @Gasthaus Freyenstein
Next up was a risotto with porcini and arugula as well as smoked salmon on cauliflower mousse. The risotto had just enough bite to be perfect and the salmon melted almost in the mouth.
porcini risotto and smoked salmon @Gasthaus Freyenstein
By now we also needed something to drink beside the starter beer, so we settled on the house wine (a Grüner Veltliner) which the waiter called “trinkanimierend” (sounds boring in English as easy to drink, especially since the German word is absolutely fantastic here).
From the risotto we moved on to the soup course which consisted of black pudding on top of paprika spiced cabbage and carrot soup with ginger and roasted pine nuts. The soup was perfectly seasoned and just to die for while the cabbage was too much of all. Couldn’t really put my finger to it but a bit on the salty side and also too smokey from too much paprika. That was the only dish so far that I was not happy about.
black pudding and carrot soup @Gasthaus Freyenstein
There was a bit of break now while we enjoyed out wine and noticed that the restaurant had filled up to full capacity. Astonishingly most people didn’t have a reservation, so despite the set menu it is still very much a neighbourhood restaurant. We then got two different types of fish, one roasted carp on red beet lentils with horse-radish and the other was poached char with Jerusalem artichoke and Swiss chard. Both dishes again excelled though I preferred the poached char. The other combination was not so intriguing even though it looked better colorwise.
crunchy carp and poached char @Gasthaus Freyenstein
Lastly we arrived at the main dish which was served as one, seared duck breast with curd gnocchi and a squash-olive combination. I even got an extra piece since my friend doesn’t like the taste of it.
duck breast with curd gnocchi @Gasthaus Freyenstein
By then I felt quite relaxed and absolutely well fed. Such a tasty meal with only a small glitch. The decision for either desert or cheese was easy to make and of course I went for desert. Cat went for cheese so we had both dishes on the table. The desert was a trio of french toast filled with plum jam (or rather Powidl), chocolate mousse and sour cream ice cream with cranberries. The cheese course was a variety of raw milk cheese from goat to blue cheese and an apricot chutney. I loved my desert variation and also tried the blue cheese which was the perfect ending for this outstanding meal. To top it all off a trio of petit fours were served, all of them fabulous!
desert variations @Gasthaus Freyenstein
cheese variations @Gasthaus Freyenstein
petit fours @Gasthaus Freyenstein
The service was quick, very friendly and mastered the art of refilling wine without being notified about it first. I also loved that there was always water on table. Those two young men really made us comfortable there. Because we ended up not leaving at 9pm as planned to head home and watch TV but rather enjoying another glass of wine at a later hour. Which speaks of course for the present company as well. Definitely a place that will see me again soon. You don’t need a reason to go out for an excellent meal! Yours, Pollybert
Gasthaus Freyenstein
1180 Wien, Thimigasse 11
Tel: +43 664 4390837
E-Mail: freyenstein@hotmail.com
Tue-Sat: 18-24:00
https://www.freyenstein.at/
