I have heard a lot about Spoon Bistro from friends and was therefore excited when I got the chance for dinner here. The restaurant has a small dining area and some outdoor seating. Which is especially helpful in times like these. Spoon Bistro doesn’t have a menu for you to peruse but rather a set five course menu. I don’t know how often or when it changes, and then kitchen doesn’t seem to follow a plan. Instead I had the impression that the chef only follows his instincts and cooks what he likes and thinks his guest might enjoy. And here does a great job with this.
We started with bread and avocado mousse. Such a nice change from the foamed butter. The mousse had a hint of spice in the back and worked well with the sourdough bread. The bread got rave reviews from my colleague and the mousse pot looked sparkling clean when we were done with it.
bread and avocado mousse @Spoon Bistro
And then we were already on our first course. Tuna tartar with chili mayonnaise and served between two sesame miso crusts, with a bit of extra mayonnaise and salmon caviar on the side. Stylish, delicious and a generous portion. A really great start to our evening.
tuna tartar with sesame miso crust @Spoon Bistro
The one vegetarian we had with us got the same crust but thinly sliced snow peas on top. It was very refreshing and crisp, especially with the already crunchy sesame crust.
snow peas on sesame miso crust @Spoon Bistro
Next up was a vegetarian course which we all enjoyed immensely. Black and brown lentils, some fresh corn, seasoned with coriander and lovage. And in the middle fresh procini, nicely fried in butter until they just had a hint of color. A really nice dish.
lentils with porcini @Spoon Bistro
Up next was a ‘Cappuccino’, a pumpkin cream soup with ginger. It really looked like a coffee in the dark. Unfortunately, it was too ‘creamy’ for me. Not enough salt and a tad too much cream. Very rich with not enough taste of neither the pumpkin nor the ginger.
pumpkin ginger soup @Spoon Bistro
The fish course was a Massaman curry with risoni (rice shaped noodles) with two big shrimps and a piece of black cod. This was quite the spicy dish, so different from the bland soup before. The fish and the shrimps were juicy and grilled right on point. Overall though this was the most disappointing dish. There was no spark, nothing remarkable about it, and it didn’t really work with the other dishes. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but it was also nothing special.
Massaman curry with shrimps and black cod @Spoon Bistro
The vegetarian version came with two big porcini in place of the fish. The vegetables got great marks.
Massaman curry with porcini @Spoon Bistro
The last savory course was a big piece of meat. Omaha steak on a bed of cabbage with a tasty gravy. The beef was unbelievable soft. It kind of melted on your tongue and is definitely on my list of best steaks ever eaten. I could have done without the bacon which came with it, but someone else at my table loved it.
Omaha steak with cabbage @Spoon Bistro
The vegetarian version served carrots instead of the steak. That was a bit of a let down compared to the meat.
Ice cream came for desert. The Amaretti flavor was intense, the texture smooth and silk like, and just wonderful to eat. I liked especially the small chunks of walnut in it. And the fresh figs just rounded everything up nicely.
Amaretti ice cream with figs @Spoon Bistro
All in all a lovely evening. You can see that the chef really knows what he is doing, because the dishes were technically all great. It’s just that I am missing a central theme which kind of brings the menu together. The one from last night was all over the place. And while the dishes were well executed, some of them very also boring. Especially after the very interesting first course. The chef definitely knows better, so I was a bit underwhelmed. But it also means that I will be back to see what else he has got up his sleeve. Yours, Pollybert
Spoon Bistro
1010 Wien, Seilerstätte 19
Tel: +43 660 134 45 51
Tue-Sat: 18:00-23:00
https://spoonvienna.at/
