Blink and you'll miss it. Based in a busy part of Notting Hill, this restaurant is one that you could easily miss walking down the street. Access is from a single door at street level, which takes you below ground to a very cosy, and authentic feeling venue.
On this Saturday night the restaurant was particularly busy. On entering from outside we instantly felt the hustle and bustle, which was probably accentuated by the low ceilings, small surroundings and the live music. We were greeted by a very friendly gentleman dressed from head to toe in traditional gear. In fact, the whole experience and atmosphere was very authentic. In seconds we had travelled from a busy Notting Hill street to Tirol.
We were shown to our table, which was the only one available - the restaurant was packed. The service was extremely friendly, with the waiter cracking jokes. 10 out of 10 for effort, for sure. It was also very speedy - our food and drinks orders were taken very quickly, and shortly after that came a plate with a selection of bread and dips.
The plate was quite full, so we were almost certain that this was something that would appear on the bill at the end, despite not asking for it. In the end, we were charged. £3.60. The dips were mustard and horseradish.
The menu itself is a fascinating read. All the meal names are given in German, with English descriptions. There is a wide choice of starters, soups, mains and desserts. If seafood is your thing, though, you might be disappointed with the selection (of two meals). There is also a selection of Hungarian dishes, as the restaurant's owner hails from Hungary.
One thing on the menu jumped out at us straight away. The "Holzplatte für Zwei". If I was allowed to write the description on the menu, it would be "A massive plate of meat, basically".
In fact, it was much more than that. We didn't have to wait long before the waiter came carrying what might as well have been a table top full of meat. I reckon the "für zwei" part of the name relates to the number of days it should take to eat.
The plate consisted of another selection of breads - white, brown and a fruit loaf type - two sausage slices, black pudding, amazingly tender pork, rice, sauerkraut, mashed roast potatoes, gammon, chicken schnitzel, beef and pork belly. It was quite incredible.
What was more incredible is that we pretty much finished it all! The meat was all cooked fantastically. The bread didn't really play a huge part, but it would've been almost shameful to not have something offsetting all that meat. I can't imagine how many calories we consumed from this meal, but the grease left of the plate went some way to telling that story.
Desert was absolutely out of the question. I actually reckon the waiter asked us out of sarcasm.
It was at this point that we were left feeling a little disappointed. Not with the service, or the food, or the restaurant. Disappointed with the fact that it was over. Here we were in a lovely little cosy, packed restaurant, enjoying traditional music and singing, with great food, but now it was over. It was time to leave.
We didn't though. There was a small bar near the entrance/exit, so we relocated there for another couple of drinks. We had a good chat with the barman and another punter there. Later, shortly after the music stopped, the guy that was earlier playing the accordian and singing chatted to us, and told us more about the restaurant. It turns out he was the restaurant owner, and has been for 44 years. He told us about the restaurant, and how well it has done.
The fact that the restaurant has opened almost every day for 44 years, and is still packed out, shows that clearly.
Cost of meal: £42 for two (excluding drinks)
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