Restaurant 1070 Review
The restaurant has no menu. Each dish is a surprise.
My family recently headed back to the U.S after visiting me for a couple weeks over the holidays. Before we parted ways, we had a very unique dining experience in the seventh district of Vienna. There are many fabulous restaurants located in the seventh, from delicious Austrian dining to hipster-y cafes and bruncheries… but none quite like this one.
What sets Restaurant 1070 apart from the others is the fact that it doesn’t have a menu. That’s right, it’s a haven for the indecisive. You just show up and the chef gets creative. The kitchen is Austrian and Mediterranean style and they don’t do anything TOO weird (innards and livers and what not). The owner, Dagmar, comes around and asks you what you don’t like (allergies or preferences, etc), but she does not tell you what she’s about to prepare for you. Dagmar is a lovely Austrian lady who clearly works her ass off. She was taking care of every one of the tables in the restaurant by herself, from greeting to serving to clearing dishes to bill-paying.
I told her I don’t eat meat but I do eat fish, while my sister told her no mayo (which they didn’t have anyway), and my dad said no salmon.
Below you can see pictures of our specific dining experience, but don’t expect the same thing when you go, because dinner each night is a mystery.
Our meals:
Dagmar asked us if we each wanted to start with an Austrian aperitif, which we happily accepted.
Next, we were brought “greetings from the kitchen,” (I love getting surprises like that) which was a cheese spread served with home-made bread.
Then we were brought smoked mackerel on beet red couscous. This was my favorite!
The second course was an artichoke coconut milk soup. On my spoon is smoked salmon, while the meat eaters of the table received duck in their spoon.
By the third course, my stomach was busting but I still made room for a delicious risotto with crawfish. The meat-eaters at the table had pork on their risotto.
While all of us were quite full, we still had to order dessert because as the owner said, “if you don’t, you’ll always wonder what it could have been.” When she brought it out we were not disappointed. There was chocolate ice cream over a very light cake, stewed plums with whipped cream and mint, and a white chocolate moose.
If you’re wondering how the restaurant prices the meals, it’s not cheap but it’s worth it. For four aperitifs, three jugs of water, seven glasses of wine, 12 dinner courses and one dessert, it was 187 Euros.
Our meals were 27.90 per person (for three courses), and you do have to pay for the water (eye roll from an American).
The restaurant provided perfectly sized portions and timed them nicely. We got to try several different things and all of our different needs were accommodated. Overall, I think this is a great place for those who just want to relax and take the decision-making out of their meal. It’s also a great place to take visitors to in order to make you seem like a fancy and hip Viennese local.
With the bill, we also each received a cocoa-dusted chocolate ball as a nice touch.
So in conclusion, this restaurant is great if you like:
- Spectacular service in a city that is definitely not known for spectacular service
- Delicious and creatively-prepared food made with love
- Reserving online and not having to speak on the phone
- English-speaking staff
- Cozy interior
- Surprise treats
Notes:
- Make a reservation as it does get quite crowded.
- Don’t expect to spend less than two hours here. There are multiple plates and they come at a nice pace. It’s Europe, so my family wasn’t used to not being handed the check as soon as our food was finished. So if you’re in a rush to get home and finish the puzzle you started before your flight (that was us, not kidding), be aware that this place is for leisurely dining.
- Don’t come here craving something in particular.
- Don’t expect it to be cheap 😉
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This is a fantastic idea and perfect for an indecisive person like me! I’d love to be surprised (of course, thankfully they’re not too experimental). I wish I had come across this post earlier because I was in Vienna in December and would’ve loved to try this place out!
Aw, what a shame! Well maybe next time 😉
The food presentation is great. Looks like the perfect restaurant for important occasions or romantic dates.
Oh I love that idea! I know a Taiwanese menu that has a ‘leave it to us’ option – but there’s also a full menu for those who don’t want to do so. The risotto looks so good that even I (a die hard carnivore) wouldn’t want the pork too…and the owner sounds like a wise woman who has mastered the art of upselling. Did you ask for tap water? sometimes in the UK that is free but you have to specify ‘tap water’ or you will pay. I don’t know about Vienna though
Nooo we didn’t! We were distracted by the food so when the owner kept saying “more mineral water?” We were just like, “yeah yeah!” Haha oh well!
These courses look amazing! I love eating what the chef chooses (as long as they note my allergies) & think it’s a great way to taste what’s best during the season and also what the chef excels at. Prices aren’t at all high for this type of experience- definitely looks like a good choice
How nice…to leave your night in the hands of an experienced chef/maitre d’! I would love to experience this kind of leisurely dining!
This place looks amazing! I enjoyed similar restaurants to this in Italy, where they simply served what the mom was cooking at home (called an Osteria). The portions looked small, but then again you said you were full by the third course, so now I’m especially interested. And boy do I know what you mean by having to pay for water. Too many countries in Europe refused to give a single cup of tap water with a meal.
Seems like a good place for that weekend dinner. Your food shots definitely add a drool appeal to the food. The coconut artichoke thing sounded yummy as. Did the chocolate mousse dessert. Cheers
I have never ever heard of something so unique as this! A restro without a menu! Whoa. I can actually appreciate this because good food is that which is made straight from the heart. And I am sure this is one place where food is cooked straight from the heart! 🙂 no wonder you loved it!
The dessert took my heart away! chocolate ice cream over a very light cake, stewed plums with whipped cream and mint, and a white chocolate mousse. YUM Yum!! 🙂
I wouldn’t mind spending in a tad bit more for surprises like these. Thanks for sharing this unique experience:)
It looks like a very cool experience and something that I would definitely propose to impress people visiting me. However, I am too picky about food to go to a restaurant without knowing what I will get so I would have a long list of don’ts please, lol. I liked the answer you got about the dessert and I can see it was worth the try! 27€ does not sound expensive for what you got (I live in Paris . . ) but I am also surprised you had to pay for the water. Good to know!
This sounds like such a fun place to try! I love that they cater to everyone’s specific needs. And wow, that’s crazy that she took care of everything herself. But she’s obviously doing a great job because the food all looked delicious!