On Vienna’s Amundsenstraße, better known as Höhenstraße, three so-called “ice ponds” were built in the 19th century. These, nomen est omen, were intended to supply ice to the city’s cold stores. Two of them have long since dried up, but the third still exists. The idyllic location in the Vienna Woods was already used by an inn in the 1920s. What was once conceived as simply a refreshment stop for hikers has been the Klee am Hanslteich for over 10 years. And it no longer has much in common with the original inn.
The location of “Klee am Hanslteich”
The “Klee” is located on the edge of Vienna’s 17th district. It’s actually in the Vienna Woods, but still within easy walking distance. Provided you are good on foot, otherwise we recommend you travel by car. However, the slightly longer way is worth it. Especially in the warmer months, when the warm evenings invite you to end the day outdoors by the water.
But the interior of the restaurant also has a cosy ambience. Lots of wood, some dark, some light, and comfortably upholstered chairs create a homely feeling. During their stay, visitors tend to imagine themselves in more rural or even more exotic places than in the federal capital – a successful concept.
How’s the Food at Klee am Hanslteich?
But let’s get to the most important part, what do the kitchen and bar have to offer? After a round of complimentary bubbly, served by the very attentive restaurant manager, we turned our attention to the menu. And it has a lot to offer. The Stracetti di Manzo got off to a good start. Served as a spicy salad, the chilli pieces gave the marinade of the fillet strips just the right kick. As a shared starter, the quantity was just right.
The wild garlic soup with croutons, sour cream and prawns was also excellent – a surprisingly successful combination. We continued our meal with seasonal-regional pasta. Namely the homemade wild garlic ravioli with brown butter, cherry tomatoes and grana were to die for. The strong Parmesan harmonises perfectly with the wild vegetable pasta, which is tossed in butter and cooked to perfection.
The veal wiener with potato salad put another classic to the test at the end of the evening. Tender meat and fresh breading put the schnitzel in the top ranks of the Viennese schnitzel ranking. Only the salad was of the somewhat duller variety and prevented an absolute top ranking in said category.
Our courses were wonderfully accompanied by refreshing Ottakringer Bio-Pils and the quaffable Roter Zwickl, also brewed in 1160 Vienna, both on tap.
Bottom line
Good to very good food, which also has its price in a very beautiful location. On the one hand, the service was very attentive, but on the other hand, they were a bit overwhelmed or apparently still in the training phase. As we all know, everyone has to go through the latter at some point, so we hope for improvement next time. And there will be for us, after all, there are (fortunately) natural limits to the stomach. We had to leave many tempting-sounding dishes untasted. Especially the extensive wine list and the summery grilled dishes are at the top of our to-do list for our next visit.
Klee am Hanslteich
Amundsenstraße 10, 1170 Vienna, Austria
klee.wien
