Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Travel Bite: Naschmarkt, Vienna


Vienna is a vibrant, sophisticated city with many historical sights, from the world-renowned Vienna Opera House (pictured above) and the Hofburg Imperial Palace, to a myriad of art museums and cafes famous for pastries like the linzer torte. When I visited there a few years ago, one of my favorite places was the city's most popular market and a Viennese institution.



The long, outdoor Naschmarkt was built over the Wien River in the 16th century. It started out as a place that mostly sold milk bottles, and produce was introduced in the late 1700s. Today it has about 120 stands and restaurants with fruits, vegetables, breads, meats, cheeses, olive oils, and a lot of international offerings. It was right across the street from my hotel, which meant that I had to ogle and sample my way through it twice a day when venturing out to catch a cable car or for a walk to the city center. You can see a few action shots of the market here since I didn't seem to take any.



I quickly realized that no olive goes unloved in Vienna.



My new BFF was this BOF (Big Oliven Fladen).



Then I met my newer BFFs, these BOFs.



These photogenic peppers posed in bright regalia when I said, “cheese.”



Not to be outdone, the squashes posed too, dressed in their finest almond hats.



I was admiring them for so long, I got pretty chummy with the chumus (hummus). Click to enlarge and see the flavors.



This exotic dragon fruit was not from these parts.



But the holier-than-thou Emmenthaler was.



I couldn't tell if this was really jackfruit or Emmenthaler with seeds.



Cheese-stuffed grape leaves were new to me. Wilkommen! Pleased to eat you!


Were the grape leaves and cheese-stuffed eggplant separated at birth? Come to momma!



Proof that when you leave the Naschmarkt, you'll be stuffed to the gills. Auf wiedersehen!


For a charming blog with original photos from Vienna, visit Merisi's Vienna for Beginners.


Related Links:

Travel Bite: Great Market Hall, Budapest

Travel Bite: Spice Bazaar, Istanbul

Travel Bite: Borough Market, London

14 comments:

  1. Really fun view of Vienna and so different (less romantic I guess) from merisis'
    Cheese-stuffed grape leaves!
    Eeek!
    This alone could get me there...just to see them of course
    merci
    carolg

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  2. I love Vienna and the Naschmarkt rocks. we spend last New Year"s eve there with friends. Love the photos.

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  3. Paris: I imagine you've seen plenty of delicacies in Paris that rival those grape leaves!

    Lora: You probably have your own colorful pics of the market!

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  4. Love these pics! Now I am craving a BOF and a cheese-stuffed pattypan :) And I never would have guessed a market in Vienne would have so many varieties of hummus - yum!

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  5. Gorgeous pics, I'd love to visit Vienna! Great market, I'm loving the abundance of cheese!

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  6. I very much warm to the increasing anthropomorphization of the foods in each successive picture! There's a children's book in there somewhere.

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  7. You have to read Art Buchwald's piece on Vienna; every time I read it I laugh, he talks about the cafés in Vienna and all that shlag. Did you try the shlag? anyway, laugh outloud reading you with the vegetable commentary...too funny. can't believe the hummus!

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  8. Becky: Glad you liked the anthropomorphization! I tried to build the story line. : )

    Joumana: I didn't even know what schlag was until I just looked it up. I don't think I had any whipped cream when I was there.

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  9. OMG... you are just too funny!!! Haven't made it to Vienna yet but when I do will definitely have to visit this market... have to see the olive bread!!

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  10. Talk about charming! I always leave your blog with a big smile on my face!

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  11. I have spent a bit of time in Vienna too. sadly I did not get to the market. I was so fascinated by some of the tile roofs that I barley had time to turn my gaze downward! GREG

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  12. Well now I want to go to Vienna!

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  13. Lovely travel photos. The stuffed to the gills was perfect.

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  14. Somehow I chanced over this blog post of yours, and even though I am sure I have seen it before, I feel really bad about not haven left a message! Please pardon me and accept my heartfelt thank you, a year later.

    Wishing you a wonderful New Year,
    Merisi

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