18. 04. 11. - 14:47

Wrenkh – Wiener Kochsalon: pioneers of vegetarian cuisine in Vienna

By James Gray

The Viennese and vegetarianism do not always go hand in hand. My wife, who is strictly nil-meat-by-mouth, once ordered the vegetarian option at one Vienna restaurant and was horrified to be handed a bowl of cream of potato soup with chunks of bacon debris sloshing offensively on the surface.

Taking vegetarian cuisine to an entirely different level is the restaurant Wrenkh, located at Bauernmarkt in Vienna’s Innere Stadt or 1st district. Established in 1982 by Christian Wrenkh, 57, it was one of the first vegetarian restaurants in Vienna and has become synonymous with fine but simple vegetarian fare.

Christian Wrenkh’s original concept was based on using regional and whole foods, but he quickly realised the value of vegetarian cooking not only in terms of its relative novelty at the time, but also because of its health benefits; Wrenkh turned to vegetarianism as a way of coping with allergies.

Now run by his two sons, Karl, 24, and Leopold, 23, the menu is roughly 80% vegetarian and although regional meat and fish dishes have since been added, the principle remains the same: simple, tasty food using ingredients of the highest quality.