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The Michelin restaurant Silvio Nickol is the other two star gourmet temple in Vienna. It is located in luxury suite hotel Palais Coburg, one of the finest luxury hotels in town. Silvio Nickol, one of Austria’s top chefs, trained with German gourmet chef Heinz Winkler among others. Since 2012, Silvio has been firmly holding two Michelin stars for his outstanding Viennese gourmet restaurant.
In the past six years I have been twice to Silvio Nickol’s. Here is my updated review from our first visit.
The Restaurant Interiors
Michelin Restaurant Silvio Nickol. My husband and I hence had expectations when attending Silvio Nickol’s. We were to push the boundaries from local hearty eateries into international luxury cuisine, mostly French style, with some Austrian elements.
The restaurant’s interiors were our first encounter with the taste of the house. A huge glitzy wall of amethyst at the entrance, more amethyst with giant eggs, cream white with deep violet, smooth surfaces with rocky glitz, rays of light in a dark ambience; a wine cabinet storing rare wines from the vast archives of Palais Coburg.
The 55 restaurant seats were mostly grouped into bunks filled with subtle music to ensure conversations stayed private. The place exuded the elegance of a futuristic Sixties style lounge. Silvio had helped to choose the interiors. He designed rooms as he designed his food: Unconventionally, tastefully, feel-good.
The Culinary Surprises, aka Food
Michelin Restaurant Silvio Nickol. We were welcomed by the customer relationship manager and two waiters. They offered us a table next to the glitzy egg-amethyst wall. Our expectations were left sizzling when offered a surprise menu. We went for a symphonic feast as it later turned out: a trio, a quartet, a composition, a symphony.
To begin with, a trio of melone, among it melon sorbet with foamed bacon, and the quartet of gambas lifted the curtain. While my husband’s eyes were glazing we expressed our delight to the waiter. Not before long, my five year old daughter answered that she didn’t like the food. No problem … simple Viennese cuisine for her and my three year old son. If we hadn’t been short of a baby sitter, we would have gone on our own. We would have never found out that our kids missed out on a wonderful experience in the kitchen of one of the top gourmet restaurants in Vienna.
Second, the creamy polenta with onsen egg and a roundel of winter truffles was served. As we found out later, this was a recent creation that Silvio and his team were especially proud of. Its soft round taste dwarfed the previous symphony of regional pike perch and the composition of unstuffed organic goose liver. And that was difficult to achieve.
However, the ultimate surprise was Silvio’s mushroom soil, an earthy brown texture with the most delicious mushroom flavour that unfolded beautifully on my tongue. “I love to baffle my guests”, Silvio told me later when I asked him what he was aiming for every day. Truly he was not exaggerating.
As for the wines, the wine book boasted 5,500 wines which went far beyond the stock of Vienna wineries. It showed off the riches of Palais Coburg’s unique wine collection two levels down. Sommelier Thomas Fassl saved us from utter confusion with recommendations which proved to be splendidly right.
Talking With The Chef
Michelin Restaurant Silvio Nickol. “Quality is most important in my kitchen. And luckily, Austria’s produce, which we mostly use, can easily compete internationally, but there are still lots of local farmers delivering excellent quality who are just unknown”, said Silvio. All the meat used comes from Austrian farms.
Silvio was humble when it came to his and his team’s cooking excellence. There was really no need to: He sculpted meals with the precision and sense for aesthetics of a luxury goldsmith.
Every guest could watch his very own meal being prepared, via small video screens in the restaurant area.
The Chef’s Kitchen
For dessert, our kids re-entered the gourmet game. They were invited right into the chef’s kitchen to help choose their own desserts. When we entered, my kids were greeted by the entire 10-strong team by their names! My daughter got a 1:1 with her personal dessert chef while proudly balancing her new chef’s hat. Outside, those guests who had been watching the kitchen on a video screen were amusing themselves…
Should You Visit Michelin Restaurant Silvio Nickol?
My conclusion: Without being too lyrical here, Michelin restaurant Silvio Nickol somehow translates art and music into food. If you love gourmet meals and exploring new world class compositions, Silvio Nickol is a great alternative to the Viennese cuisine of Michelin restaurant Steirereck.
Price (5 course menu): approx. EUR 150, without wine
Location: Coburgbastei 4; A-1010 Vienna
Bookings: book directly through the restaurant’s website.
Check my other Michelin star restaurant reviews: Michelin Restaurant Steirereck, Michelin Restaurant Walter Bauer
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