With vineyards throughout Italy as well as in the United States, Chile and Hungary, the Antinori family is known for its wines, not its food--except for those who have visited Cantinetta Antinori in Vienna or one of the family's three other top-rated restaurants in Zurich, Moscow or Florence. The menu here is simple, but the fare is elegant. In season, there is al fresco dining for those who want to combine gastronomic pleasure with the pleasure's of people-watching in central Vienna. Inside, the mood is more refined. The menu is not extensive, but carefully prepared and presented. Dishes are paired with Antinori wines from around the world.
A typical three-course meal consists of a simple crostini topped with chicken liver and vin santo paté. A second course might consist of gnocci with wild boar. For your main course, try rack of lamb with rosemary and sage. Finally, for dessert--if there's room after the cheese course--what could surpass a perfectly executed and simple panna cotta?
Cantinetta Antinori
Jasomirgottstraße 3-5
1010 Vienna, Austria
011 (+43) 1 53 377 22
cantinetta-antinori.com
The series of pure white archways in the dining room of Firenze Enotica are meant to evoke an Italian palazzo. The menu here is Tuscan; the wines are Italian, as well. Some date back to the 1950s. Try the midweek specials of between 2 and 4 courses. Starters include beef carpaccio. Next, try orecciette--little ear pasta--with garlic, chili and olive oil. For a main dish, consider cod fish with capers, dried tomatoes and white wine. End with a classic Italian cassata or ice cream cake.
Firenze Enotica
Ristorante Firenze Enoteca
Singerstrasse 3
A-1010 Vienna, Austria
011 (+43) 1 513 43 74
kremslehnerhotels.at
Sometimes it's less about fine dining than perfect food. Pizza, whether Italian, French, American or Japanese, to properly satisfy the craving, must come from a wood-fired oven. That's what you'll find at Il Mare. The menu is not extensive, but that doesn't seem to matter to loyal followers. The Bisteca Fiorentina is prepared in the mouth of the wood-fired oven and comes to the table with the beef rare and the cheese bubbling.
Il Mare
Zieglergasse 15
1070 Vienna, Austria
011 (+43) 676 68 749 94
pizzamari.at
