Tasty Tuesdays: HimmelBlau

Posted February 11, 2014 1 Comment by formosanserendipity

Himmelblau roughly translates into “Blue Sky”. This extremely cute cafe is located in the 18th district of Vienna and very walkable from our flat in the 9th. In fact, it was really ideal in this balmy 40 some-thing degree weather. Yes, you read correctly. Vienna is having a “heatwave” of sorts for the last week, with temperatures in the 40’s. And having lived through one of the harshest winters Vienna had last year, I may as well have put on a t-shirt and skipped along the way to the cafe.

The cafe itself is pretty small, but reminiscent of one that you’d find in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. I loved the simplicity of it. It must be a popular hangout, because it was packed when I arrived. I ordered a slice of himbeere topfentorte and a cup of melange. A topfentorte is best described as a cousin to the American style cheesecakes. Looks like part of the family, but it’s not quite the same. It’s lighter and made with a flaky crust instead of the graham cracker kind. Himmelblau’s version was perfect. Light, airy and the right amount of sweetness. The guy gave me a huge slice and I really couldn’t bring myself to finish it. I sat back and continued reading my book on my kindle. Although it got loud at times, it wasn’t enough to distract me from reading and the enjoyment of my treats.