You feel as if time has stood still inside Gasthaus Steindl, it appears unchanged since at least the ’70s. Not that I have ever been here before, but the restaurant remains the same from the look of it. Already from the outside you can see the neon lights, but don’t be afraid. The kitchen team is new as are the owners. Which is a good thing, because who doesn’t love Viennese food in an original setting?
Gasthaus Steindl @Vienna
It was nice to see that the restaurant was packed when we arrived, not so great though when something went wrong with the reservation. Despite needing a table for eight, we got one for four. But even before it was discovered that the error lay with the restaurant, we were assured that they will manage somehow. We all squeezed together and were ready for a delicious evening.
main dining room @Gasthaus Steindl
There were not many takers for the starters, but I had decided on a vegetarian dish as main course and therefore wanted something more substantial to begin my meal. The original Viennese ‘hamburgers’ will remind you more of a meat loaf. This difference is that each individual hamburger is covered in bread crumbs and fried golden. At Gasthaus Steindl this is done to perfection.
Viennese ‘hamburger’ @Gasthaus Steindl
The hamburger arrived with sharp mustard, fresh horse radish, and a delicious roll. The roll was crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. The same was true for the hamburger, these two were in perfect harmony. A fantastic snack, as a starter easily a bit much. So beware of what you order next.
Cauliflower was my main dish with lots of bread crumbs, minced egg, and capers and well as some kind of sauce. Definitely not only mayonnaise, but mixed with something. But also not a chive sauce as I have seen it. The cauliflower had a great texture with still some bite left. The capers, minced egg, and the sauce worked well together. I did miss the buttered bread crumbs, roasted to golden perfection, as my grandmother had made it though. More color and more butter would have transported this dish into the stratosphere. It was delicious, but this could be perfect.
cauliflower with egg and capers @Gasthaus Steindl
Another Viennese specialty is ‘Reisfleisch‘, which is basically goulash with rice but cooked in the same pot. The original way to serve it is with extra gravy and parmesan on top. Gasthaus Steindl really does this dish justice although there was no consent about it at our table. Some liked the soupy consistency, others didn’t. In the end it is up to you, how you prefer your rice. The way it was cooked, was the correct way. It definitely looked delicious though.
Reisfleisch @Gasthaus Steindl
The most typical Viennese food, the Wiener Schnitzel, is of course also available and found a taker. It had a great color, was not too thinly cut, and arrived with the standard potato and lamb lettuce salad.
Wiener Schnitzel, Gasthaus Steindl
The meat was perfect, nicely seasoned, and not as bland as usual when it comes to veal. I normally prefer pork to veal due to its taste, but I really enjoyed the veal in this case. The potato salad though had an intense yellow color, usually a sign that it comes from ready-made from a vendor. I am not sure what happened here, but the potato salad appeared to be home-made. I couldn’t detect any hint of preservatives in the salad. Despite the color it had a really nice taste.
As much as I liked the savory dishes, the desserts were a let down. We ordered the three available cakes to share between us and got the Steindl tarte, a plum crumble cake, and some kind of chocolate ganache cake with raspberries. Weirdly enough, the Steindl tarte, which looked like a slice of chocolate cookie, received the highest noted of these three. Still not overwhelmingly good, but good enough. The chocolate cake was too intense and quite boring, while the plum crumble cake had wet consistency. The crumble was not crumbly at all and overall we were most disappointed about this one.
Steindl tarte @Gasthaus Steindl
chocolate cake @Gasthaus Steindl
plum crumble cake @Gasthaus Steindl
If you are in the mood for some really good Viennese food, look no further than Gasthaus Steindl. I loved the dishes, which came out of this kitchen. They reminded me so much of my grandmother’s cooking, the highest praise when it comes to home-cooked meals. The restaurant itself has a really pleasant atmosphere with the service doing its utmost to make everyone feel welcome. No wonder this place is popular and was packed on a Saturday evening. Definitely a restaurant to come back to. Yours, Pollybert
Gasthaus Steindl
1090 Wien, Kinderspitalgasse 12
Tel: +43 1 4056671
Email: office@dassteindl.at
Wed-Sun: 17:00-23:00
https://dassteindl.at/
