Tag Archives for Prater

The green cottage that is no longer green

Today, I was already pretty hungry. First I thought I would go to this one vegetarian restaurant but then I thought: “No, I need some typical Austrian food that is not healthy at all but fills my stomach”. And you can find that food in Vienna pretty easily. One of the restaurants that serve you just that is “Die grüne Hütte” which translates to “Green Cottage”.

Since its renovation the Green Cottage is no longer green.

In the past the Green Cottage was really green and a cosy place not the most exclusive to put it more diplomatic but cosy. Then they build the subway and it turned from green into light brown. Today it is less cosy but still very typical Viennese. It is also pretty easy to reach. Just get off at U2 “Messe – Prater” take the “Prater” exit and you are standing right in front of it.

I did the same today because, remember, I needed some food to fill my stomach. The restaurant was almost empty when I arrived. It was already 3:00 in the afternoon. The waiter was there, maybe the boy standing next to him was his son. I don’t know. I don’t go here that often. The prices are decent still I would not come here every day. Those that were sitting at the tables were all Viennese. When tourists go to the Prater they usually go to the Schweizerhaus, which has adapted its prices accordingly. This place is not so much a place where tourists go.

During the week they serve lunch specials but since it was friday they had the usual fried fish which I don’t like. The menue itself was not very extensive. Maybe because of the time of the day, I went there.

The menue at 3:00 p.m. was limited. In the evening they have a more extensive one.

Somehow I already knew what I would take. I just had to decide whether I’d like to have the Schnitzel or the Berner Würstel. I decided for the Berner Würstel. Now, Berner Würstel just means sausages filled with cheese and rolled in bacon. They usually come with fries, tomato ketchup and mustard with chopped onions. It is very typical Viennese food – not very fancy. You just need to get some sausages, put cheese in them and then put the bacon on the outside. I like them and it is usually the food on a menue which falls into the lower price category. In most restaurants they also serve pretty large portion when it comes to this kind of food.

Berner Würstel: sausages somehow Viennese style … the kids like them, I like them too

And after I ate all this food I was pretty stuffed. Yes, I think it was the right decision to go for this instead of the vegetarian restaurant. I do like vegetarian food though but maybe next time. It is nice to have some typical Viennese once in a while. And the “Grüne Hütte” is really a good place to go. If you visit the Prater I can truly recommend it. It is off the beaten track, not very touristy.

Info: Restaurant zur Grünen Hütte (http://www.gruenehuette.at), Prater 196, 1020 Vienna; phone: +43/1/729 27 10, fax: +43/1/729 27 10 – 12; mail: office@gruenehuette.at; opening hours: Mon – Sun from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; right at U2 “Messe – Prater” exit “Prater”

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Viva Vivus Crispy Chicken

The Vivus Salettl in Prater opened almost two years ago. The concept is simple: serve typical Austrian cuisine but modern and not inn style. And so this restaurant is a simple wooden building and in summer you can sit on a wonderful terrace outside.

Getting some Austrian style crispy chicken at Vivus Salettl

I have to admit that the first time I came here I did not like it – probably I just did not order the right stuff. Since I really like Bruschetta with tomatos and basilicum I ordered that here as well. That was a mistake because the bread was not toasted and so I already had a bad start.

So the other day I thought I give it another try and I just felt like crispy chicken. Just for your information: crispy chicken is an Austrian speciality. We usually serve it really crispy with a slice of lemon and a potato lettuce salad and then it is called “Backhendl mit Vogerlsalat” – it is the small bird salad. In Vienna we have this habit of making things even smaller than they are by adding the ending “-erl” to words and so we have the “Vogerl” which is a small bird even smaller than small.

The lettuce in this case is called “small bird salad” – Vogerlsalat

Ok, that’s it – a small excursion to the Viennese language. Back to the important stuff which is the food at Vivus in Prater. It is good food. You need to have patience though as the service is not very fast. Maybe because there were just two waitresses to take care of the whole terrace. That might be the reason. But that was ok, cause I was not in a hurry. It was a wonderful afternoon and the sun was shining.

To drink I ordered something very Viennese – it is called a Himbeerkracherl. You recognize the “-erl” at the end of the word. Again things smaller than small. Because it is a beverage for kids that is why. They just get small things. The taste is raspberry and it is very traditional and carbonated.

Himbeerkracherl (carbonated raspberry soda) – more for kids but I love the raspberry taste

I thought it was the perfect match to the crispy chicken. And so I enjoyed my big portion of crispy chicken while I watched the people at the Prater pass by with their bikes and inline skates. It was lots of food and it justified the price which is not low. No, this is not a cheap restaurant but you get something for your money – that’s for sure.

In summer they have a BBQ disco every Monday evening – meaning they have BBQ and a DJ invited so that you have some music excitement as well. Then they serve grilled steak (Rib-Eye or Porterhouse) and bratwurst and stuff like that. If you like to get breakfast you can come here as well. I never tried that one because I am not eating breakfast. But they serve it until 1:00 p.m. so you might even take that one as lunch.

Info: Vivus Salettl (http://www.vivus.cc), Prater Hauptallee 1, 1020 Vienna; phone: +43/(0)699/144 14 040; mail: salettl@vivus.cc; opening hours: Mon to Sun 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.; you can pay with credit card at least Visa; you can reach the restaurant by getting off at Praterstern and then heading towards Prater and there is the Prater Hauptallee which is not the amusement park part of the Prater but the park and there is a very long straight street and there you find that restaurant on the left side pretty much at the beginning. There is a mini golf close by.

The Prater – Amusement Park for Young and Old

The Prater is the central amusement park and recreation area in Vienna. And so I thought that Saturday early Spring is the perfect chance to explore the park for the first time this year.

The amusement park is particularly popular among the youth.

And yes, there is this famous music piece which is translated into “The trees are blooming at the Prater again” (“Im Prater blühen wieder die Bäume”) but that is already a quite old music piece. Well, maybe because the Prater is truly old. But of course, who cares about the old if you should be living in the present and looking into the future. So, the Prater  (http://www.prater.at) today is a big recreational area for the Viennese – very much like the Central Park for New York. There is the park itself with picnic spots, playgrounds and a long street (4 kms long) where you can go for a work out and there is the part which is called Wurstelprater (Sausage Prater) where you find all the attractions even including a big disco (supposedly the biggest in Austria but I did not really check it – the Prater Dome (http://www.praterdome.at).

So it is here that the old and the current is fusing. This because just a few meters from the Prater Dome at the entrance of the Prater there is the Giant Ferris Wheel. It was erected in 1897 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Emperor Francis Joseph I.

The Giant Ferris Wheel at the Prater is a main Viennese attration.

Today it is part of the entrance area to the Prater – some call it kitsch some like it. And so the Prater becomes a mosaic of the traditional and what people try to make of it.

The Prater Tower: with 117 Meters the highest attraction at the Prater

There is the 117 meter high tower on the one side and there is the little horse carousel where people keep discussing whether it is fair to the horses to keep them running in circles the whole day long right opposite of it.

The 1st Vienna Pony Caroussell from 1887

Hence, I would say it is up to the visitor to decide for him- or herself. For me I do not like the new entrance area as it looks like a cheap Disneyland but I cannot decide on the horse issue as there are always two opposing opinions. I only know that the Prater is definitely worth visiting when you are in Vienna. In the end, there is the true Vienna reflected with its many contradictions.

The Viennese Prater is open all year long but be aware that there is not much happening in the amusement park in Winter. Everything is closed and no attractions are open. So you might come from Spring til Fall. As for the Giant Ferris Wheel that one is open throughout the year with the exception of much of January.

Info: Prater website with all the attractions and restaurants http://www.prater.at – the Giant Ferris Wheel http://www.wienerriesenrad.com – prices start at 4 Euros for kids and 9 Euros for adults for one ride. You can also rent a whole cabin for your private party. There is space for a maximum of 12 passengers. You can buy the tickets online as well. Opening hours from end of April until beginning of September 9:00 a.m until 11:45 p.m.; the Prater Dome (http://www.praterdome.at) is open Thur, Fri, Sat, & before national holidays from 10:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m.