Vienna Restaurants – Three big feeds

On our recent two-month trip to Europe, we visited 3 Vienna Restaurants that are as good as any in the whole of Europe that we have ever eaten at. They were three very different establishments with different specialities, all offering excellent Viennese food and service. Our belief is that you would be crazy to miss them! If you only have one day in Vienna definitely eat at one of these restaurants.

 Figlmuller Vienna Restaurant.

The Biggest Schnitzel in Vienna.

Figlmuller is a Vienna Restaurant mainstay. It has been trading in Vienna, Austria for over 100 years and it is easy to see why. It is the home of a world famous Schnitzel. The best schnitzel in Vienna for sure. Any good Vienna guide will mention the schnotzel Figlmuller opened its doors in 1905 and according to everyone who has visited, they have been cooking the best-pan-fried schnitzels ever since. The 250-gram pork schnitzel is the house speciality and it is safe to say don’t eat lunch if you are heading there for dinner!

Our girls nearly fell off their chairs when they saw the size of them, luckily we had a great waiter and he advised that they should only have one to share between them. All the adults on the table had one to themselves and I really thought I would struggle to get through mine. The schnitzel is pan-fried with a special type of breadcrumbs made especially for Figlmullers and it is easily the size of your dinner plate, so it is definitely not for the faint-hearted! This schnitzel is best accompanied by the homemade potato salad and washed down with Figlmullers own wine.

Booking.com

Figlmuller has their own winery located just outside Vienna and no beer is served at Figlmuller so we think trying a drop of their wine is a great idea. We all had a glass on the table and were really impressed with it.  Here in Australia, we top our schnitzels with all types of sauces and toppings. At Figlmuller it is just the plain schnitzel served with a slice of lemon, so please don’t expect something like home…but it is fantastic with or without the lemon.  We suggest to avoid severe disappointment, bookings are essential if you want a table. Don’t just show up and expect there to be a table, this is no ordinary schnitzel house. So not just the best schnitzel in Vienna but the biggest as well.

Figlmuller Vienna website

Vienna Restaurants – XXL Restaurant Wein.

Xxl restaurant Leopoldauer Alm is located out in the suburbs of Vienna but it is easily reached from Aderklaaer Straube U station. This restaurant builds its reputation on the size of its meals and the name says everything! We ordered a shared meal designed to feed 4 adults which were 14 euro’s a person and it was called ‘the pitchfork of horror’. For me, it was less ‘the pitchfork of horror’ and more like ‘WOW…are we going to be able to eat all of this?’ The meal comes out on a huge skewer that looks like a pitchfork and it is really well presented. The ‘pitchfork of horror’ contains schnitzel, sausage, ribs, steak and also comes with plenty of sides including chips, wedges, salad, dips and sauces. Our group of four adults and two kids could not eat it all. The size was just truly amazing and it was fantastic value for money. Even after all that food, our girls were extremely keen to try the desserts.

XXL restaurant Leopoldauer Alm deserts where again a hit with Willow and Marley, as is any dessert with our two girls but one that is almost the size of your head is definitely a BIG winner! They can smell ice cream from a mile away! We also found with this restaurant there was a smoking section. Because we hadn’t booked and had come all the way to eat there we ended up in the smoking section. I must admit that everyone around us didn’t smoke while we ate and I do think it was because of the girls. So when you are making your reservation please just check with whoever is taking your booking. So again…to avoid disappointment bookings are essential at XXL restaurant Wien. Not the biggest schnitzel in Vienna but certainly plenty of schnitzels.

XXL-Leopold Auer Alm website

Vienna Restaurants – Schweizerhaus

Schweizerhaus is a Prater restaurant in Vienna. Prater is a large theme park in Vienna and Schweizerhaus is a perfect spot for a meal before unleashing the kids on the rides and attractions of The Prater. Schweizerhaus is a very relaxing Viennese Restaurant/Beer Garden. At Schweizerhaus you have the options to eat indoors or outside in the Prater Biergarten. We ate one night with friends outside in the Wien Biergarten.

It was quite a cool night but we were kept warm by patio heaters that were located around the eating area. We also did not book for this night and we were very lucky to get a table. I really think that the waiter took pity on us for having two stark raving mad and hungry children with us. He allowed us to sit at a table that was booked for much later on but with the promise that we would not hang around for long after dinner. Schweizerhaus specialises in Austrian/ German cuisine and both Mark and I are huge fans of this food. We were absolutely not disappointed with our food.

We shared the pork knuckle (all 1.8kg of it) and enjoyed every bite! You would have to travel far and wide to find a better pork knuckle than this. My wife loves pork knuckle and she has eaten them all around Europe including Munich where they are at their best and this one wins hands down. It was exactly what we wanted and it was cooked to perfection…amazing perfection! Actually so perfect we booked a table for our last night in Vienna. This time, we ate upstairs indoors and was just as happy with our meals as on the first night. The service was great and it was fast.

The girls loved watching the waiters carry massive trays of litre steins on them or a whole tables meals on them. They must do some serious workouts as those trays looked so heavy. We had been wandering the city for most of the day and we did not have to wait long for our dinner. I loved the fast service as it gave the girls very little time to start complaining before they had food in front of them! Schweizerhaus has a good range of beer available.

They had Budvar from The Czech Republic on tap and I also had a bottle of Paulaner from Munich, Germany. The kids had spetzi which if you have never had it, it is made by Paulaner of Munich. It is an orange/cola combination soft drink and although it sounds strange it is really nice. It is pretty rare that we eat at the same place twice in a city we stay as there are normally so many places to eat and so many different types to enjoy. On a funny side note, I ordered a serve of chips for the kids and got delivered a plate of potato chips/crisps! It was pretty funny as in Australia if you order chips you get hot chips/fries.

It was not a problem though my girls love crisps as Marley calls them. Again we cannot stress enough to avoid disappointment you must book! You can call but if you are visiting Prater and happen to walk past there is a small office as you walk in and you can make your booking there. Have the pork knuckle…YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!!

Schweizerhaus website

Vienna has many great options for accommodation when it comes to where to stay in Vienna. There are options suiting everyone for hostel beds to 5-star suites. I am sure you will find something that suits. If you would like some ideas on what to see in Vienna here is our top tips on 5 things not to miss in Vienna

Once again as for Viennese food, you can’t go wrong with these 3 choices and they are highly recommended by Wyld Family Travel

Here are two more stories about Vienna by Wyld Family Travel. We hope you enjoy further reading about the Austrian capital. Click the image to be taken to the article

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