This was a totally unplanned and unexpected goose. I was going to try Selitsch’s food for the first time, partly because I was hungry and partly in order to evaluate Selitsch as a potential lunch location. Surprisingly, the goose was still on the menu. The waiter (possibly also the owner) explained that they had 10 portions left. Well, in other circumstances that would have sounded highly suspicious (how long did they store those portions?), but: Selitsch was listed as the provider of the fifth best goose in Vienna by the VOR Magazin (the free monthly magazine of the public transportation authority).
One thing is clear – the magazine was wrong. What it should have written is that Selitsch served the heaviest goose in town. The dish contained two legs of the animal, which in total provided about 50% more meat that the average. Instead of red cabbage, it came with a big plate of warm cabbage salad with pieces of bacon in it. This was a welcome change, though the cabbage salad was quite acidic. The bacon was tasty (it usually is), and extremely filling. The goose meat was tender – the way I like it – but the skin was not at all crunchy, and there were big pieces of fat to discover.
The restaurant itself is very “hardcore” down-to-earth Austrian (in a friendly way), and seems to be extremely popular. In fact, one has to be very lucky to find a table at lunchtime or in the evening without a reservation. I’ll visit it again and can recommend it to any big eater who wants to experience non-tourist-oriented Viennese food and does not mind sitting close to very drunk locals.
As for the goose, it must be said that if before the visit to Selitsch I was quite open to the idea of eating another one this year, now I can firmly say that the season is over. And I need a schnapps. Or two. Preferably three.
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