What really stood out for me in Vienna were the coffeehouses. The relaxed atmosphere combined with the delicious desserts and coffee made them the perfect pit-stop for us during our long hours of walking around the city. During our 2 days in Vienna, we visited 3 coffeehouses and one of them was the famous Sacher Hotel coffeehouse - home of the original sachertorte. The famous sachertorte was created back in 1832 by Franz Sacher. It consists of a chocolate sponge cake cut into three layers, between which apricot jam is spread on all sides of the cake. The whole cake is then iced with a velvet-like chocolate and served with a side of whipped cream. The place was packed with a line out the door. We waited patiently for our table and the cake was as delicious (and beautiful) as described by others. It was a pricey piece of cake though, but really worth the money!
The food in Vienna was nothing spectacular (typical sausage & goulash) and Jeremy didn’t think the beer was that great either. However, during our 2 days there, we got the chance to visit 3 Viennese markets. We visited Naschmarkt - Vienna’s largest and best known market. Naschmarkt is huge (it stretches out for almost a mile in length!) and filled with stands selling a huge variety of fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, spices, breads and cheeses. There are also stands selling clothes and accessories; and a variety of eateries ranging from high end seafood restaurants to hot-dog stands.
This is one of my favorite photos! Typical European market, specially with that guy!
In Prague, unlike Vienna, we did not see any open markets or many coffeehouses. However, we did find many pubs serving good Bohemian food and good cheap beer. Those of you who like beer (Kurt) should come to Prague. Beer is pretty much the cheapest drink on the menu. You can get a pint of beer for less than $2 but you’ll have to pay almost $3 for a bottle of water or soda.
On our first night in Prague we ate at a restaurant near our apartment. We both ordered the traditional dish - Cmunda po kaplicku. It is basically ham and cabbage (could be Bohemian (sour) or Moravian (sweet)) wrapped inside a potato pancake. Although I was a bit skeptical at first, I was amazed at how well the flavors complemented each other. It was at this restaurant that we also had our first taste of Czech garlic soup. I’ve never heard of garlic soup before, but it was very tasty so the both of us ended up ordering it again in our second night in Prague.
On our second night, Jeremy decided to splurge and order the Bohemian meat platter - duck, turkey, pork, sausage, both sweet and sour cabbage and a variety of dumplings (for less than $10!) The Bohemian meat platter, the garlic soup, and 2 pints of dark beer made that meal Jeremy’s favorite one of our whole trip!
