The Food Diaries

A stroll through Viennese cafe society

Viennese cafes are fantastically versatile places which have been around for a very long time (i.e. pre-Starbucks). It’s a place to grab a quick coffee fix or maybe settle into a booth with the daily paper; great for satisfying a sweet tooth, or to eat a more traditional Viennese lunch with a glass of beer. Oh, and they ALL feature free wifi.

For a touristy must-visit, drop by the über-traditional Demel for one of the city’s best strudel. Stick to the lovely downstairs wood-paneled coffee bar rather than the more decorated (and touristy) rooms upstairs. Cafe Diglas, is another great option, but without the stuffiness of Demel. This place is very popular and busy through-out the day. Media types prefer to settle into the booths of Cafe Englander, a lovely Modernist cafe with particularly friendly service, and also one of the best Wiener Schnitzels in town (more on this in a future post). Cafe Leopold is a great option when visiting the many museums in the Museum Quarter. Cafe Hawelka is a classic literary society hangout. Finally, when browsing through the eclectic Naschmarkt (antiques, flea market, food market and cafes all bundled together) a pit stop at the Naschmarkt Deli (great for vegetarian food) is a must. 

La Vie en Rose @ Broadway Market

Broadway Market in East London (just off London Fields) has been around since the end of the 19th century, but has more recently been colonised by the East End trendies. Still, it has a lot going for it - traditional fruit and veg stalls, freshly prepared foods (crepes, wild mushroom risottos, Polish doughnuts….), retro furniture boutiques, organic food shops, and of course, cafes galore.

We ended up at La Vie en Rose - a simple French bistro, serving traditional French fare in a friendly environment. How have I ended up at two lovely, inexpensive French restaurants run by friendly French staff in the space of two weeks (the other being the Passage Cafe)?

Albion Caff - Shoreditch, London

Brunch, coffee, lunch, late lunch, early dinner, etc. - there is always a time and a place (and something fab to order to match) at the Albion. I love to hate Terence Conran but he has a really annoyingly nice place in the ground floor space attached to the Boundary Hotel. Super British menu (cauliflower cheese, sausage and mash, fish and chips, rhubarb crumble). Fresh baked goods come out of the oven every hour (and no surcharge for a basket of bread for the table - a rare thing in London), the puffiest pies (chicken, savoury pumpkin), and ok - the best kedgeree I’ve ever had (and easily better than mine).

Oh, and the desserts are not bad at all either.

You can also sign up for a stangely useful twitter feed - let’s you know what has just come out of the oven. Particularly convenient if you live/work in the neighbourhood.

My order:

- Red and golden beet salad with goat’s cheese curd

- Kedgeree

- I couldn’t find room for our table’s shared plate of Sticky toffee pudding - but it looked divine

Cinnamon Buns @ the Nordic Bakery, Golden Square, London

A quick pit stop at a lovely Finnish cafe hidden in the backwaters between Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus. Finnish cinnamon buns fresh out of the oven, perfumed not only with cinnamon but also cardamom. You won’t be finding me making these - I would eat them all straight out of the oven!