124 CultureShock! Austria
Other restaurants provide salad bars, but be advised that
you are permitted one trip only. The number of vegetarian
restaurants in the cities is steadily growing, however, and
more options are becoming available. When travelling
through rural areas, though, you’ll have to make do with a
limited menu.SOUPS
Perhaps because winters can be so cold and long, soups
are popular. One of the tastiest ways to start off a meal is
with Fritattensuppe, a clear beef broth with thin slices of
crêpe. Other clear soups are Leberknödelsuppe, with a large
liver paté dumpling, and Griessnockerlsuppe, loaded with
small gnocchi-style dumplings. Hühnersuppe (chicken soup)
is always a safe and delicious choice, as are Nudelsuppe
(noodle soup), Knoblauchsuppe (cream of garlic soup) and
Erdäpfelsuppe (potato soup).BEILAGEN
In most restaurants, Beilagen, or side dishes, are ordered
separately. Unless the description of your entrée specifically
mentions an accompaniment, it will come à la carte. The
Beilagen section consists of a number of Kartoffel or Erdäpfel
(both words mean potato) dishes. Gröstl or Röstkartoffeln
are fried potatoes with onions. Petersilkartoffeln are parsley
potatoes. The term Pommes Frites, borrowed from the
French, is used for French fries. Kartoffelsalat is cold potato
salad made with a vinegar and sugar dressing. Reis (rice) is
another option, or you may choose the heavy but delicious
Knödel, large dumplings. These are made from either bread
or potato dough and boiled.
You may notice that vegetables are lacking on the side
dish menu. In fact, most meals are not accompanied by
anything green. This can be traced back to medieval days
when vegetables were in short supply and considered
luxury items. Even though the price of vegetables is no
longer prohibitively expensive, they have failed to become
an integral part of the Austrian diet, with the exception of
asparagus in season.