By Silvia Artaza from gastronomistas

We thought we’d fly to the Austrian capital to discover those routes that take us beyond the city’s glittering imperial and classical legacy, beyond St. Stephen’s Cathedral, and the giant ferris wheel in the Prater park. And to be sure, we found streets, neighbourhoods, and very modern projects un which all sorts of interestingly hip restaurants have sprung up, many of them quite wunderbar.

Naschmarkt and Freihausviertel

We began our tour in the Naschmarkt, the city’s best-known food market, which has become a meeting spot for all sorts of people. It’s the place to buy fruit and vegetables, but also to sample exotic cooking from all over the world, as more and more eating places are to be found amongst the market’s 120 stalls. Particularly noteworthy are Neni, with dishes from Israel and the Orient, and the “ecological” cuisine of Tewa. But the best approach is to walk around the market with your nose on the alert for the aromas that most strike your fancy. There are even more places to eat on the streets near the market, such as the spectacular On Market, specialising in Asian food, or the Café Amacord, for Viennese treats in a setting heavy with local atmosphere.

Leaving Naschmarkt, we headed for Schleifmühlgasse to find a street that is also famous for small, exquisite Indie restaurants with very tempting fare behind the show windows. One such is Babette's, a shop selling cookbooks, spices, and other items where hot food is also served, and then there’s Coté Sud with its tasty French dishes. More temptations await you on other streets of the Freihausviertel son interesantes en la ruta.

Karmelitermarkt

Like Naschmarkt, another market taking on a whole new life is Karmelitermarkt, on the other side of the Danube in District 2 (Leopoldstadt). Check out Schöne Perle, with its home-cooking interpretation of traditional Viennese cuisine, and the organic, seasonal fare offered at Zimmer 37, There are many more surprises for you on the lively, nearby streets of Praterstraβe and Leopoldsgasse.

MuseumsQuartier

Another spot worth a visit it MuseumsQuartier (MQ), a cultural enclave with numerous museums and exhibitions of a wide variety of artistic disciplines, and also brimming with the most inviting cafes and restaurants. In the courtyard, mulled wine is served these days at the Christmas market, to the music of a DJ, and in the summers you can even rent hammock space there for serious chilling. Glacis Beisl, though almost hidden in the rear part of MQ, is usually fully booked by people anxious to partake of its local and international dishes at very affordable prices in a pleasant atmosphere. If you can get a table, this is a great place to eat after a morning visiting museums.

Spittelberg

Jus behind MuseumsQuartieris the charmingly Bohemian Spittelberg, consisting of a few cobbled streets enclosed by Burgasse, Breite Gasse, Sigmundsgasse and Mariahilter. Here you’ll find a wide choice of dining options, amongst then Amerlingbeisl with its lovely courtyard, Das Möbel with its original furniture, and all for sale, Die Burgermacher for delicious hamburgers and also vegetarian dishes and a fresh “special of the day”, and Trattoria da Paolo & Anna a small Italian restaurant with chequered tablecloths and delicious food.

And if you come at Christmas time…

At Spittelberg you’ll find one of the city’s best Christmas markets, specialising in handcrafted items. Another busy and festive Christmas market is that of Rathausplatz, with 150 stalls selling decorations, gifts, and sweets treats of every variety. You should try the hot wine (Glünwein) and the Viennese pasty –you can’t leave Vienna without sampling the Apfelstrudel, and here you’ll find it at its very best.

Makes you want to go, right? Do it! Check out our prices here!

Eating in the street is all the rage. It is becoming more popular by the day and Restaurant Day, which emerged in Finland but is celebrated in various cities around the world, contributed to it in large measure. The event takes place every three months and is a magnificent expression of urban culture, as its origins lie in volunteering and citizens’ own initiative. Any person, or group of people, can open their own pop-up restaurant, an expression fast gaining currency – you choose a spot, set up your stall, impress, sell and dismantle it, all in a single day. It could be in a park, on a street corner, in a courtyard or even an apartment or office. What is the goal? To promote a culinary experience and, above all, to have a good time in community… and all for a modest price. One’s imagination is the limit!

Any individual or group of friends can come together for a few hours to prepare and offer one, two, three… five or up to ten different dishes. Sweet or savoury, whatever catches one’s fancy or, to be sure, whatever you can do best. The better the product you make, the more portions you sell and the more business you do. And, apart from the pleasure involved in the culinary experience, it goes without saying that nobody wants to lose money. You can even make money!

Restaurant Day is a veritable gastronomic experience for those who set up their own pop-up restaurant and also, apparently, for the thousands of potential customers who, in a matter of minutes, can savour dishes from the five continents. It is common to find youngsters selling Mexican dishes alongside another group making sushi, and a nearby family preparing a scrumptious paella, accompanied by various potato omelettes.

The driving force behind Restaurant Day is the Finn, Timo Santala, who decided to launch this initiative after a trip to Thailand, where street food is a common practice. It is also a way of cutting down on the bureaucratic red tape involved in opening a restaurant. The first Restaurant Day, or Ravintolapäivä, was held on 21 May 2011. Just 45 pop-up restaurants took part, distributed between thirteen towns in Finland. The second time around, the number registering for the event rose to 200. The last edition, held on 16 May 2015, saw the participation of nearly 2,500 restaurants in 34 countries. From Finland to Italy, Portugal, France, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Britain, Poland, Hungary, Russia, Belgium and the Netherlands. The fact is that people are taking a greater interest in the venture day by day, and becoming more open to preparing and tackling new cuisines and new flavours – restaurants serving foreign cuisines are always the most readily accepted everywhere!

In short, Restaurant Day is a great way for making people aware that they are the real citizens and owners of the towns they inhabit. The thinking behind this growing movement is that it is up to them to make the towns they live in a much better place. Despite attempts by administrations, particularly in Finland, to control the level of street-food hygiene and to levy taxes on the initiative, they were forced to back down due to the popularity of the event. Thus, the organisers have managed to maintain the civic spirit of the original proposal. It is therefore a great opportunity for anyone wishing to fulfil their dream of opening a restaurant, even if just for one day!

There is now even an app which enables you to find the nearest spot for a pop-up restaurant linked to theRavintolapäivä. The next stagings of this event are scheduled for 16 August and 21 November 2015, and Budapest will be one of the cities with greater participation of Europe. 

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Text and images by Marc Carol and Jordi Casino (Barcelonahelsinki)

Looking for somewhere to go on a long weekend? Have you got a few days off and you want to make the most of them? Gran Canaria is a destination that has it all if you want to get away, any time of year!

With an enormous quantity of products and dishes, plus lots of differents markets and fairs, the Balearics are a perfect destination for lovers of gastronomy tourism, and not just in summer.