Today I went to Brigittenauer Stadl for the first time, hoping to get a portion of Martinigansl (this restaurant started the goose season before most of the others). Unfortunately, as the waiter informed me, goose was only available upon prior reservation, which, alas, I did not have. That did not make me particularly upset, though; it is much better to get a fresh Gansl, cooked especially for you, than some old bird found at the back of a fridge and warmed up multiple times.
As if to make that point stronger, Brigittenauer Stadl served me spare ribs that featured some oldest, toughest meat I have ever experienced. The meat had dark gray color, fervently resisted being detached from the bones, and made my jaw muscles work so hard, that I started to sweat. On the other hand, the sweating could have been caused by the layer of chili, which was generously spread over the ribs to turn them into the “spicy” version (there are two other variations that one can order).
Normally, spare ribs are that rare kind of food that gets better the more you eat them, and if the serving is insufficient, one may leave a restaurant craving for more. In Brigittenauer Stadl’s case, the portion was huge, but having finished a half of it, I was seriously considering giving up and concentrating on the tiny salad served as a side dish and roasted potatoes, which were incidentally quite good.
I know that Austrians love large portions and will appreciate this restaurant for its low price/quantity ratio, but for me these “rips” were worse than no spare ribs at all. I hope that the goose will be fresher and better.
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