Welcome Christmas cookies and fruit

After our two hour drive from Munich Airport to Salzburg, we reached Hotel Auersperg, a 4 star boutique hotel which features a blend of modern and traditional Austria. The rooms are given are in the new villa wing and are all very modern and when I walk in I see a welcome plate of Christmas cookies and fruit. It’s a nice touch as this is what a typical Austrian mother would prepare for her family around Christmas time.

A bakery in Salzburg

We’re experiencing what is known as an “old lady’s Summer” (Alt-Weiber Sommer) which means that the weather is unseasonably warm which will probably mean a distinct lack of snow as the temperatures peak at 12 degrees celsius.  I’m a little relieved as I am rather hopeless in the snow although snow capped photos would be lovely indeed.

Salzburg is a small, charming city in a sublime alpine setting. It houses 150,000 residents but every year also hosts between 6-8 million tourists a year and it is clearly a city that makes it’s living from tourism as witnessed by the groups of tourists and guided tours. The two main drawcards are of course composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart who was born in Salzburg and the Sound of Music film which was filmed in Salzburg.

Saint Rupert, Patron Saint of Salt

Salzburg means “Salt Castle” as they used to mine salt here directly from the mountain. Salt or “white gold” was precious indeed as it was the only means of preserving food at a time when there was no refrigeration. The best way to get around the city is with a Salzburg card which you can buy in 24, 48 and 72 hour blocks with the 24 hour card costing E22. This includes free entry into most of the attractions you’d want to see as well as transport.

Shopping street in Salzburg

It’s late in the afternoon once we’ve arrived. Tonight we are headed out to dinner at one of Salzburg’s most famous Hotels preceded by a quick tour of Salzburg. Our tour guide Martina is dressed in traditional Austrian costume and she shows us around the old and new areas of Salzburg. Night falls quickly here and when it does the beautifully lit streets almost come to life.

Guided Symbols

She tells us about all sorts of fabulous details like the guided symbols which date back to many centuries ago when people couldn’t read. To locate places, they simply looked for the symbol; the key is a locksmith, a pretzel is a symbol to the bakery and the beer barrel below is for a beerhouse. Can you guess which place this is below?

Guess whose guided symbol this is?

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Salzburg Christmas Markets

There are times when food blogging is quite the most fun thing on earth to do. It makes up for the times writing at all hours and never having a day off. One of these times was when I was invited to a media famil trip by the Austrian National Tourist Office  which was sponsored by Emirates Airlines. When I was first asked if I’d be interested in coming along to see the Austrian Christmas Markets in Salzburg and Vienna along with partaking of some gourmet goodies, I must have looked rather comically disbelieving. I may have even stammered in disbelief and after recovering briefly, I started packing my bag mentally in preparation. And a few weeks later when I saw the itinerary I was even more delighted. I may have squealed. And settle in for this story as it’s a long story (but I promise a goodie!).

Decorations at Vienna Christmas Markets

This was my first time to Austria. Of course I have my friend M who is Austrian who has made me all manner of Austrian food from Pancake Soup to Malakoff Torte but to actually visit Austria was a thrill and not only was I going to participate in Austria’s culinary and shopping tour, I was also going by Emirates Business Class and trying out the A380! My fellow travellers are Alison formerly of Vogue who now writes freelance for Get Up And Go magazine among others, Mike from the Daily Telegraph and Gerard from the Sydney Morning Herald along with Astrid from the Austrian National Tourism Office.

After a quick unpacking and refreshing, we all set off to check out the Christmas markets. Advent or the Pre Christmas season is very important to Austrians and starts four weeks before Christmas. There is a candle holder wreath with 4 candles inside and on each Sunday one candle is lit until 4 weeks later and all 4 candles are lit. There are many Christmas markets throughout Austria with a general rule that only good quality hand made items can be sold. Each market has its own personality and they each have special items that you don’t see at other markets. The Christmas Markets also serve as a gathering place for locals where they can shop for Christmas presents and ornaments and also rather importantly, drink cups of hot Glühwein and Punsch to help ward off the chills and eat Christmas Cookies. During our visit it’s unseasonably warm (which I’m rather happy about but we were all hoping for snow for some true winter photos) but the effect of the Glühwein and Punsch isn’t lost on us. It’s fabulously warming and even after we’ve left Austria I still have a hankering for a cup of Punsch at around 5pm (when we typically had it). So without further ado, here is your guide to some of the amazing Christmas Markets that we visited during our time in Salzburg and Vienna!

You can also skip through to the Christmas Market that takes your fancy from the list below.

• Christmas Market at Cathedral Square, Salzburg, Austria
• Christmas Market at Hellbrunn Palace, Salzburg, Austria
• Christmas Market at St Gilgen and St Wolfgang, Upper Austria
• Christmas Market at Vienna Town Hall, Austria
• Christmas Market at Schoenbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

Christmas Market at Salzburg Cathedral Square

Our first Christmas Market and a truly lovely one at that. These markets are housed at Cathedral Square in the centre of Salzburg. They’re very large with stalls selling all manner of items from beautiful glass ornaments, gorgeous wooden Christmas decorations as well as wooden children’s toys (there was even talk of banning plastic items here). The prices are reasonable but depend on the stalls. Buying from the stalls here will inevitably save you about 20%-50% from buying from a regular store, particularly if it’s a touristy store.

The Christkind

Whilst wandering around Salzburg we spotted these girls. They are the Christkind who are the child like bearers of gifts as opposed to Santa which is more an American or British tradition (and there is some opposition with Austrian traditionalists who don’t want Santa to intrude or overtake on their Christkind). Every year the Christkind is chosen in a competition and they dress up in gorgeous outfits and parade around the city centre wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. One is the Christkind (in the gold dress) while the others are angelic types that surround her. The Chriskind usually has blonde hair and wears angel wings.

The Hot Chestnut Stall

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When my feet and back are sore from sightseeing, it’s a dream of mine that I am carted around in a pram like a child but unlike a child, I get a say into where I go. I am serious about this, if anyone is willing to do this for me, please call me. So after a morning pounding Paris’s cobblestoned streets in thin soled ballet flats, I come across a restaurant that peaked my interest. Ribouldingue, an Offal only restaurant. Offal only? Yes. It’s part of my “only in this country” theme that has me seeking food that I can only get in Paris and not at home. Although if you know me, you’ll say “But you hate offal” I convinced myself that I loved the Duck Liver at Drouant so other types of offal are also welcome on my palate.

It’s charming inside with lots of gorgeous fresh flowers, cream doors and large mirrors. The waitress is efficient and working alone. It’s empty when we walk in but it fills a bit more. At €27 for 3 courses at both lunch and dinner, many may feel that they would want to visit at dinner time while seeking lunch deals that give more savings.

The menu is in French and our waitress does her best to explain what the items are. I can understand the dessert menu but offal, well, I can’t say that I recognise any of those words aside from “tripe” and “veau”. We choose adventurous things, ones that I wouldn’t normally order but I figure if anyone can make these cuts delicious, Ribouldingue can.

Amuse Bouche: Pork Skin terrine

The Amuse Bouche, a pork skin terrine sliced thinly with a side of dressed leaves is interesting, the pork skin gelatinous and soft. It’s not chewy like some pork skin can be as it’s boiled rather than roasted.

Sabodet (commes a Lyon), lentilles vertes tiedes en vinaigrette (pig’s head and skin sausage with lentils)

Our first course, the pork sausage (pig’s head and skin specifically) and lentils is delicious, the sausage are three wide discs on top of some soupy perfectly cooked lentils.

Ravioli des champignons, couers de canard Poetes, pequillos (Mushroom ravioli with duck hearts and capsicum)

The mushroom ravioli with duck hearts and capsicum almost stops my heart but I talk myself into it “Don’t be gutless, be adventurous” (no pun intended). My husband loves this dish and his reaction spurs me on. It’s softer than the heart at the Yurakucho Yakitori Alley but still not quite to my taste. I do try some and it needs the ravioli and strongly flavoured sweet capsicum to help mask it or complete it whichever way you’d like to look at it.

Rognon de veau roti (roasted veal kidney)

Gratin dauphinoise (potatoes with breadcrumbs and cheese)

Thew Veal Kidney with Potato Dauphinoise is certainly an arresting sight. I was expecting something more …conventionally kidney shaped. I take a small bite and it’s that unmistakable kidney taste (yes I realise how stupid that sounds but I was wondering if they would do something to it to reduce the offal flavour) and small bites of this with the Potato Dauphinoise is actually quite good although if I am to be honest, I much prefer the potatoes to the kidney.

Tripes au vin blanc

The tripe soup is getting appreciative murmurs from my husband. I ask him how it is, never intending to try any as I dislike tripe and he says “The soup is great” and I ask him how the tripe is and he repeats “The soup is great”. I try a little tripe with some potato and soup and it’s not bad although the strong smell is too much for me and I pass the plate back.

YAY no offal on the dessert menu!

Cremeux de citron jaune, macarpone, crumble

Our desserts which I gratefully see do not feature offal arrive, the lemon curd and cream layered dessert topped with toasted flaked almonds sprinkled with icing sugar. The lemon curd is just on the right side of tangy and my husband usually fearful of lemon curd readily eats his share.

Blancmange au lait d’amande, salad de framboise et son coulis

The almond blancmange with minted berries is good, the blancmange quivering and mildly flavoured against the ultra thin slivers of mint and fresh berry. It reminds me a bit of Chinese almond jelly.

Petit Fours

The puffy icing sugar dusted homemade marshmallows and glossy dark chocolate coated almonds are delicious. Although it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, I’m sure to offal lovers, it is Nirvana.

And because this was our last meal in Paris, allow me to offer some tips on Paris.

• Purchase a carnet of Metro tickets (10 tickets), it’s the easiest way to get around Paris. Sure it smells a bit and is crowded but trains run very frequently and it is very easy to master. The distance between stops is very small too and sometimes walkable.
• Walk everywhere, it will really, truly help counteract the effects of copious pastry and cake consumption
• When you walk into a boutique or store (not a department store) say “Bonjour” or “Bonsoir” and when you leave say “Merci, Au Revoir”. Unlike Australia where you may be met with silence, they’ll always respond.
• You may get the occasional snooty waiter but on the whole the service is good, often friendly and charming (I think we were just lucky). I actually found service in high end/gourmet food stores a bit stiffer and snootier than high end restaurants.
• Department stores are closed on Sundays. Yes, believe it.
• The Dali museum in Montmatre is well worth a visit, and you can buy sculptures and Lithographs there.
• Take advantage of lunch specials and the Plat du Jour. Even Michelin starred restaurants will often have a very well priced lunch deal.

Ribouldingue

10, rue Saint Julien Le Pauvre, 75005 Paris.
Tel.: 01 46 33 98 80.
Métro: Cité, Maubert Mutualité or Saint Michel.
Open Tuesday-Saturday for lunch and dinner.
Fixed-price menu: €27 for lunch and dinner
Cash, Visa and Mastercard only (no American Express)