As usual, Tripadvisor is my friend when on the road and sleeping over in a new and strange town. There is only so much generic hotel restaurant fair one person can take, so I jumped onto my iPad, opened up Tripadvisor and typed in Torquay into the restaurant search bar. A number of good looking restaurants fleshed out the list with a few establishments I had already visited prominently displayed on the first page.
Top of the pile was
Old Vienna… Winner of the Tripadvisors #1 restaurant for 2012, 2013 and probably 2014 based on current position, it definitely shouted out for a visit. The 350 positive reviews sold me and I emailed the restaurant on Tuesday evening to book a table. Just be aware that they are closed on Monday and Tuesday of each week. I received a reply back from Werner within a few minutes confirming my reservation.
Werner Rott is the Chef Proprietor of the restaurant and based on comments on line, he is well liked and respected in the local area.
I discovered that parking can be an issue, so if going to the restaurant, it might be better to catch a cab or walk through the lovely and lively Torquay, maybe stopping at a harbour side bar for pre-dinner drinks. This said, based on the great German beers, local ales and good looking wine list, it is probably advisable not to drive!
I walked into the restaurant and was greeted by a happy, smiling hostess who took me to my, sadly, one seater little table. I was handed my menu and told about a Paprika Goulash and Dumpling special for that evening that definitely tempted me. I asked about beers, hoping for an Austrian tipple and was told about 2 German beers that graced the bar fridge. My choices were Flensburger, a bottled light German lager and a heavier German wheat beer by the pint, that I unfortunately didn’t catch the name of. Ales were also on offer with Devon Dumpling standing out, as I had tried one on a previous Devon trip and really enjoyed it. I opted for the Flensburger and I can honestly say it was a lovely, light and very drinkable lager. I could easily have polished of a fair few of them if so inclined!
Deciding on my meal options was hard… I was stuck on starter choices between homemade sausages, duck or scallops. Main course divided me between Devon Wild Things and Classic Wiener Schnitzel. Roasted Rump of Lamb was also knocking on the door. I chose ‘Devon Wild Things on a plate – Confit Leg of Rabbit, Loin of Rabbit, seared Pigeon Breasts served on ribbons of Courgettes and Peppers with Thyme Infused Rabbit Jus’ for my main, so this then knocked out the duck as I felt it didn’t flow with my main. I was then stuck between scallops and homemade sausage… I went for ‘Sauteed sliced Venison and Wild Boar with Apple Sausage on a Creamy Sauerkraut’ because Werner is Austrian after all and I just knew it would be good. I’d also heard a comment from a customer at a nearby table stating the sausage was great, whereupon the waitress asked if he would like to buy any to take home. Nice upsell option, that!
A steaming little bun arrived at my table and its bright red countenance demanded my attention. I gently broke it open to display a light and fluffy interior. A strong fragrance of paprika wafted up… and I started salivating! , Phwar, I was looking forward to this little roll! I was immediately hit with a gorgeous paprika flavour when eating the bread and finished with a touch of aniseed flavour on my palate. My initial thoughts where paprika and fennel or caraway (even though I couldn’t see any seeds) as flavours, but upon asking the waitress, I was informed it was Smoked Paprika and Tomato. I’m guessing the smoking confused my tongue… The roll was so good, I asked for another one and was promptly served one. Great!
My starter arrived and first impression was… Wow, that’s a lot of parsley! I moved the parsley to the side of my plate and was presented with a quite appetising dish of sausage and tomato on the creamed sauerkraut. Quite honestly, the flavours lived up to the visual appeal. The venison sausage was gamey and slightly course in texture, the wild boar and apple sausage was firm and mildly sweet and the creamy sauerkraut was heaven sent. I loved how the addition of cream reduced the acidic pickling of the sauerkraut and just made it oh so yummy. A really good start to my meal however, as a starter, it could be argued that the portion size was a bit big.
Main course was up next and I suddenly understood Werner’s presentation style. I had a huge bay leaf and sprig of rosemary rakishly poised on the plate. Once again, the portion was huge! 'Rustic Home Style cooking with elements of Posh' is what we have here. There were 2 whole pigeon breasts on the plate, 1 whole rabbit leg and a whole rabbit loin as well as various bits of rabbit placed on top of the veg. The pile of veg was also fairly substantial. Having said that, it all tasted great and I finished the whole plate! The veg was gorgeous having been sautéed in lashings of butter. This would be my only negative comment about the presentation was that the butter from the veg and the jus from the meat didn’t mix well and look a tad messy on the plate. But what about the taste? Oh yeah… soooo good! In addition to this hearty plate of food, a dish of vegetables accompanied the meal. Buttery carrots, celeriac, garlic new potatoes, beetroot and beans. A veritable feast!
Dessert was a straight forward and easy choice. Whilst there were quite a few desserts I would’ve happily tucked into, I went for the ‘Apricot Dumplings covered in Toasted Sweet Buttery Breadcrumbs served with Homemade Vanilla Ice cream’. This choice was once again made because of the Austrian influence and when in Rome… ummm.. Austria… as they say.
The presentation was fun and I thought, 'Oooh, can't wait to get into that dumpling!' The large, golden, breaded dumpling sat on a bed of buttery breadcrumbs and nestled next to it was a smooth looking scoop of ice cream, vanilla seeds proudly visible.
To be honest, I found this dessert a little odd. I almost think a biscuit crumb would’ve been nicer than the breadcrumb and the dumpling itself was dense and, dare I say it, a little bland. I loved the texture of the crumb, the sweet and sour of the apricot and the creamy vanilla ice cream was gorgeous. Dumplings are an absolute favourite of mine and I personally think a lighter, maybe spiced or sweetened dumpling would've really helped this dessert.
At this point, Werner came out into the restaurant and yodeled hello to everyone. Just imagine it! Helloooo-dalee-dalooo-daleee-dalooooooo! Just awesome. He then went round the restaurant chatting to customers, sharing a glass of schnapps with a few patrons and generally just being a gracious, appreciative host. He found out I was a chef from the hostess as I had earlier discussed why I was in Torquay with her. He came over and spent some time with me, bringing the obligatory shot of schnapps and we chatted about cheffing in general and the couple of ski trips Sheila and I had been on in Austria. I then commented on the Austrian wines available on the wine list and that I had never tried any before, and almost instantly, a small glass of red and of white appeared on the table and we had a little impromptu wine tasting session. Brilliant!
I seriously cannot rate this restaurant highly enough. My personal taste of portion size being too big and dumpling a bit heavy do not in any way detract from a fantastic evening full of attentive service and great food. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone and I will definitely be back when next in Torquay.
