Breakfast @ Cafe Ritter

The Groupon.at deal experience continues. I have bought a lot of good deals from that website and am using them one by one. I bought a 9Euro deal that normally costs 21euro for a breakfast for two at Cafe Ritter. The deal would have ended on November 30 so I took a friend (well, she's actually the mom-in-law of a highschool friend) one Saturday morning. We were late for breakfast so we had brunch!

Cafe Ritter is located at one of Vienna's busiest street, the Mariahilferstraße. It is a shopping street housing many famous and not-so-famous fashion names. With all the shopping that's going on, they decided to close off the street; which surprised me. I haven't visited this area for a long time though we used to live just a few minutes away. The transfer to another home proved beneficial as I don't get to spend much because I used to idle time window shopping or --- shopping there. :D

Tita S and I had the traditional breakfast consisted of Semmel (roll), butter, jam and honey, boiled eggs, black bread plus cheese and ham plate. A cup of hot or cold drink of your choice tops off the list. We both had cappucino. Like always, we had a talk about life in general; her kids, my kids, her husband and mine, her work and mine...we were taking photos in between and sharing laughs as we finish our food. Talk about multitasking.

 

 

Cafe Ritter boasts of tradition having served guests for more than a hundred years. The wall-panelled interior is very classy and is the epitome of how Vienna Coffee houses should be. Chandeliers, leathered seats and a piano at one corner adds charm to its already elegant atmosphere. I regretted that I didn't bring my daughter along. She could have played a piece or two as we and other guests savor our bread and honey. (After she has eaten, of course.)

The server was really nice. Perhaps a tinge of surprise can be seen at the corner of his eyes as he asked us our orders but that's it.  He took the gift certificate that I handed without questions, served our orders and voila! He was quick and did the rounds on other tables too.

All in all, the place is commendable except for the non-smoking area being at the farther end...you have to pass by the open-area which is for smokers, I am so particular with the smell of smoke specially in the mornings and (emphasis on) while eating...I find it annoying that even if you want to avoid the smell of cigarette, you can't because that's the first thing you smell when you open the door. Such small things are negated by good experience and food anyway.

Cafe Ritter
1060 Wien, Mariahilfer Straße 73
Tel: 01/5878238
Fax: 01/5878238
E-Mail: cafe@caferitter.at

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We were so full we didn't finish everything up. We decided to walk around the shopping district a bit to shake off the calories and somehow lose the belly fat that has been bothering us both. lol. The street was so busy with constructions, stores having sale and people going about their businesses. Despite all the hush we found a street performer just across the train station showing his skills off.

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Ruby Tuesday - Buffet King

Red walls of Buffet King, illuminated well on a lovely afternoon.

I was finally able to find the photos for this particular eat-all-you-can restaurant. Buffet restaurants have sprouted like mushrooms in Vienna the past years, most of them are Chinese-owned...if not, I'm 100% sure that the chef is Chinese as well as the crew.

Buffet King opened sometime in October last year, the kids and I have been frequent visitors because they offer Japanese cuisine, Chinese dishes and fresh seafoods, meat, veggies for grilling.


It is also of walking distance from where we live.

The dining hall itself is on the second floor, the first floor serves as a bar and is not as big as upstairs. Garbed with traditional Chinese decor of gold, the red walls surely complements them well.

Mirror by the staircase, I love the details on this particular corner. I don't know but does red have to do anything to make one eat a lot? I believe orange is the color that makes food appetizing? Oh whatever...I feel happy whenever we dine there. Especially if the food you eat is fresh and much more worth than what you paid for.

Buffet lunch costs 5,50euros for adults and 4,40 for kids. Since my kids look small they only ask for 4euros each. From 3pm to 5pm costs less too!

What the kids like best:

Little boy enjoying shrimpcrackers, this restaurant is all worth it for us, because the little boy who eats as much as I do, is free of charge!

Bani Bär Buffer King
Brünner Straße 133
1210 Vienna
+43 1 2929100

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Food Friday - Pizza: Underwater?

Pizza provenciale, thin-crust and tasty! This was what we had when we went swimming at the Wiener Stadthalle a few days back, yes swimming in the middle of winter.

The indoor pool of the Stadthalle is open whole-year through with a few holiday exceptions. The arena includes the indoor pool, an ice skating rink and different-sized concert halls. It is located at the 15th district, a few minutes walk from the U6 trainline station Burggasse.

The kids and I often visit the hall for ice skating during winter, this was the first time we went swimming there, an it wasn't even summertime. It was all good anyway since the water is of course, warm.

The restaurant was closed then and we were told that the one near the Sauna area is opened so we went down and to my surprise, the restaurant was built with an underwater view of the pool.

The pizza took a little more time to cook than we expected but it was worth the wait. Cooked in traditional oven, the edges got a little toasted crunch to hubby's delight.

We had salami, diavolo and provenciale, I'd say thumbs up for the salami and diavolo but not as much for the provinciale...or maybe its just that I tried it the least.

Embarassing at is may, I wasn't able to take much photos of the food because we all dug in and took bites of the pizza like an angry mob---swimming does make you tired.

Some more photos.

Little boy enjoying the water...he has no fear whatsoever.

Underwater view.

Clean water, adult's pool.

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Lasang Pinoy Sundays - Rice

Filipinos eat rice at every meal, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. As a staple food, most pinoys won't go through the day without rice...This could be the reason why Japanese food is very likeable to us, especially when packed in a bite size maki complete with rice, viand and more!

(Son1 with his california maki)

One afternoon, son1 suddenly bursted out, "Mommy, gusto ko sushi!" (Mommy, I want sushi!). This boy is a little picky with food, but he does have an appetite like mine if he likes whats served. Since I had no fresh fish that time, I decided to bring them to our favorite Japanese restaurant that is very near our place, Kyoto Sunrise.

The restaurant is located at the mall where they could also play and which from time to time has fun gimmicks for kids. We can go there via tram, 2 stops or we can also walk (more or less 20 minutes). We also like the restaurant staff, they at first thought of us as Chinese (especially coz little boy greets them 'ni hao') with a little doubt on me since only the kids have chinita/chinito looks. hehe.

Son2 surprisingly liked the appetizer, instead of daikon (radish), they served toge (bean sprouts) with a sour dressing. And he ate 5 pieces of the california maki from his kuya. =D I would love to eat them too as much as he did, the avocado, mayonaise and shrimp goes well with the taste of treated japanese rice and nori....

Daughter ordered lachs sushi (salmon), hers and my favorite! We could it salmon sushi, or just sashimi for a whole day! Theirs are really fresh, I couldn't resist taking a few even if I ordered a bento.

I asked for the Bulgogi bento, it was served with a cup of rice, an appetizer, 2 sushi, 3 maki, and lychees...the beef strips were tender and tasty, I liked the marinade they use for it.

Since hubby was at work, I ordered yakisoba for takeout...no rice for him...=P

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Kyoto Sunrise

Shopping Center Nord

Ignaz Köck Strasse 1. A-1210

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Kono Mania

Last week, was when I first saw Pizza Cones over at KainPinoy, not knowing that it has been in Vienna since January. According to the chef (who comes from Bangladesh), Kono Mania has been operating at the Millenium foodcourt since January and so he thought it must have been a long time since I visited the place.

Not exactly, in fact I often go there with the kids, I wonder too why I haven't noticed the place...then coming from the 2 entrances of the foodcourt, it is at the farther end of the circle. At the right side of Kono Mania is a running sushi restaurant which the kids and I love...on the left, one would see KFC, Burger King and noodle houses. No wonder the customers seem to settle at the other restaurants before ending up at Kono.

Kono Mania offers various pizza toppings as well as sweet fillings. You can choose from ham, salami, tuna, spinach and ricota except perhaps for pineapples. Unfortunately, I forgot to check the sweet list.

Daughter asked for the Schinken (ham) cone Pizza, we waited for it about 5 minutes more...she was satisfied as well as the little boy who took bites off it and would always say hmmmm...yummy every single chomp! The cheese melted so well and the cone was crispy.

The cone costs 2,70 euros.

Along with their cone pizzas, pasta is also served. I had the Pomodoro e mozarella, served in hefty portion, I barely finished it...the tomato sauce and mozarella combi was really good and blended well with the rightly cooked pasta. This serving costs 5,90 euros.

Son1 had spaghetti bolognese and though I ordered the junior size, he had the same amount as mine...it was too much for him to finish. He said its so good and was really happy about it. Son1 asked me to taste it, and I obliged, I tasted carrots along with the meat and rich sauce.

The junior size costs 4,60 euros.

Despite the good food, and cozy little dining area, I still wonder why Kono Mania remains a hole-in-the-wall.

Kono Mania
Millenium City foodcourt
Handelskai 94-96 1200 Vienna

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Pasta from where IT originally is

We arrived at around 2pm somewhere in Lignano, Italy on Saturday...the trip was almost 8 hours coming from Vienna. But thanks to the bus driver, he took us directly to the villa where we are staying instead of the agency where we need to get the keys first.

Tired from travelling, we sought the nearest restaurant open at that time...since it was siesta hour most of them were closed.

Il Dollaro was the nearest one we saw and was I glad too that it was as the food tastes good, the ambiance friendly, and the staff were eloquent both in German and English, they were a big help too...(in helping us find our supposed destination).

We took turns giving our orders, the kids chose pizza while all 5 adults (mil, bil and his wife, hubby and I) went for pasta.
While waiting for our orders I took the opp for photoshooting hehe. (Also smelling the aroma of olive oil and all those good stuff! lol)


We sat at the veranda and the breeze added comfort to the smell of good cooking...

Then came food, served in hefty portions...My little boy was running around and I had to follow him so I didnt have much time to really choose what to eat, but when I saw this particular dish I know I would love it!

Tagliatelle e Salmone

Of course, bits of salmon - fresh from italian waters served with white sauce over tagliatelle. They serve parmesan generously so I had my pasta sprinkled with lots of it! (Little boy liked it well too!)

Spaghetti Pomodoro


MiL had a simple dish and she simply said "hmmmm...good" which I do not take much as an A-rating considering her very good cooking skills...the parmesan was actually given to her ;-) and she also had lots of it over her tomato sauced spaghetti.

Carbonara

Hubby, my helpful but could be critical food critic chose Carbonara, at first bite he said "Tikman mo, masarap!" I did and I knew what he meant, the taste of authentic carbonara from butter, egg yolks and pork fat and no cream!

Pizza Prosciutto

Prosciutto (ham) is one of the kids' favorite pizza topping, so my two bigger kids shared a whole (it was also a big serving). Still, they weren't able to finish it that hubby and I had a little slice too...and yum, one bite and I can tell the crust is really something! I could eat it even without the toppings! lol. No wonder he had such a big smile after eating!

So where to get the best pasta and pizza? Of course I'd suggest, where they originally are from, anywhere in Italy...

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Burger King 1st District

At a glimpse of this photo, you might think that this is a Burger King branch somewhere in Manila...everyone has that familiar, welcomely smile! Yes, they are Pinoys too!

This Burger King Branch is located at Annagasse 3, 1st district, the heart of Vienna. Though this certain area of Vienna is full of tourists, the street where BK is located is not crowded. Since the crew are mostly Pinoys, it is always pleasant to visit once in a while, I feel as though I am one step closer to home.

Sadat Pela, one of the manager, who has been working with them for almost 3 years sums up how the Pinoys work into one word: Supppeerrr!!!

Well, that's no surprise, considering the hospitable and cheery nature of us pinoys, add to that the dedication and willingness to work, right?

Though I do not bring the kids often since they like japfoods and homecooking...they always finish a whole meal. They like the burgers here better than the others. Charlie likes the onion rings too and Alex always has a banana split-shake.

As for me, I prefer their Long Chicken with cheese. This is really a big serving, enough for me (even without the fries and drinks).

The chicken is soft to bite and the cheese adds a certain kick to it too...considering that it is not the usual round burger, its not messy to eat.

Here is what's left of it in a while.














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Oh! Check out the interiors too. One will easily recognize that this was an old building once integrated with modern architecture. I was surprised to see the intricate details on the ceiling and pillars...

So don't forget to drop by once you happen to find yourself in Vienna.

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