Eating Out #6: BUSCHENSCHANK KLUG-VOLTL

since we're now finally having appropriate weather for this time of the year, me and my mum decided to take a little trip to go swimming at a lake close to where I grew up which is in western styria. the water was still cold but it was lovely to chill and read my magazine after having a lovely swim. 

after some time in the sun a few clouds decided to come around and my mum and I decided that we were hungry. so we jumped back into the car and drove to a place called a buschenschank. in a buschenschank they generally only serve things they've made themselves and grown themselves. now I don't know how accurate that is anymore, but mainly they only serve cold things if you will. in austria we have a long tradition of eating cold cuts of meat and cheese and all sorts with bread, it's called jause and it's brilliant.

this kind of meal is kind of difficult to explain but all it is basically is that you have plates with cold cuts of things and veg and all sorts and you simply take whatever you like and eat it with a piece of bread. now that doesn't sound too difficult does it, now I look like an idiot.

we went to this place called Klug-Voltl (you can find out more about them and where exactly it is on their website here) which is located in the vineyards and it's truly lovely. the landscape is brilliant and we were so lucky with the weather. it was beautiful and warm and only a few clouds in sight, nothing compared to the ones that made us leave the lake. it must have been mainly us being hungry I suppose.

moving in to the food, which of course is the most important part and the reason we came, we ordered a Brettljause which is the typical styrian version of what I just explained and comes with several cuts of meat including ham and bacon as well as a sausage and meat spreads. there were several other things on the menu that looked very nice but I am glad we didn't get more as the Brettljause was more than enough for the both of us. also it definitely wasn't badly priced at € 6 for the size of it.

to go with it we both had grape juice made from the schilcher grape which is a regional specialty and has a very special taste to it, you'll have to try it if you ever find yourself in that part of austria. I'm not much of a wine person but I do love a good grape juice. 

needless to say we were definitely full after this and more than happy. however, we had spotted the waitress carrying around some sweet loveliness and when she was bringing some lovely cake to the table next to us we couldn't resist and asked what they had on offer. they don't have any desserts on the menu which is normal for places like this as they make it fresh and don't have the same things every day, you just have to know and remember to ask if you want to satisfy your sweet tooth. we did and ended up ordering a lovely slice of apple and cinnamon cake. it was delicious and I'm glad we shared it, although I would certainly go for another slice of it now if I could, might need to try and make some.

we were more than full after this and said goodbye to the lovely place and pretty scenery. how gorgeous is it that they have roses by the vineyard? they had different colours for every row. I do love roses. I'll be sure to come back and I definitely want to take my boyfriend here when he comes to visit so he can have some typical styrian jause like it's supposed to be.

have you ever been to a Buschenschank or would that be something you would like to try out if you ever found yourself in Austria? do you have anything similar in your country? let me know in the comments!

Magdalena.