I’m still not sure how we were lucky enough to end up dining at Huth Gastwirtschaft, which was recommended to us as one of the best places in Vienna for traditional Austrian food. And the fact that I don’t speak German means it will forever be a mystery.

The first issue we had to overcome last Friday night was to figure out which Huth was the Huth we wanted. When we got to Schellinggasse, we found two Huths on opposite sides of the street, and we weren’t sure which of the two was the one that had been so highly recommended. So we studied both the menus hanging outside and what we could make out of the diners through the windows, and were able to determine that the Huth on the north side of the street had no tablecloths and served more casual food such as burgers, while the Huth on the south side of the street—the one with Gastwirtschaft in its name—appeared more upscale both in the table settings and what was being served on them.

So we went in and asked whether we could have dinner. Unfortunately, we were told … no. Which is understandable—it was a Friday night between Christmas and New Year’s, so it made sense restaurants would be busy. But it was our first night in Vienna, and we were hungry, so we thought we’d give it a shot.

I then asked whether there were any openings for two later in the evening, because we had no problem coming back. Again, we were told … no.

As we buttoned up our coats and started heading back out to the street, a grey-haired woman seated at the bar said a few sentences—in German—to the server who’d turned us away. Irene and I then stood in front of the restaurant wondering where we should try next, when the server rushed outside and waved us in. “Come, come!”

Puzzled, we went back inside and were given a table. I have no idea what the woman said to get us seated—was she the owner, taking pity on two bedraggled tourists?—and due to the language barrier, we’ll never know. I’m just extremely grateful, and happy that we got a chance to order from this menu, which proved to be second in quality only to Steirereck of the meals we had in Vienna. (more…)

If you’re a fan of Next restaurant and aren’t already following chef David Beran on Twitter, you’re missing out—because his updates will help assuage your gnawing anticipation for the latest incarnation of his ever-changing menu, The Hunt, set to launch on January 9.

Last night, Beran tweeted a pic of the charcuterie that’ll be part of the restaurant’s upcoming cuisine, showing off both what we’ll put in our mouths and what we’ll be looking at when we do.

I don’t know about you, but as for me, I can’t wait!

Our week-long trip to Vienna was magical, particularly New Year’s Eve, when we saw Die Fledermaus at the Staatsoper and then threw ourselves out into the celebratory crowds to wander the streets past midnight. Wish you could have been there.

And thanks to my Flip camcorder, you can be!

I took three videos on December 31, which will give you a small idea of what Vienna was like on New Year’s Eve.

First, a midmorning marathon. When we stepped out of our Marriott Hotel at around 10:30 a.m. (because we were both staying up and waking late), we found that the #2 tram wasn’t running on the Ringstrasse due what was billed as the “traditional New Year’s Eve race.” Check out some of the runners, and watch for Spider-Man, Wonder Woman … and a lot of Smurfs.

(more…)

I’ve been quiet here lately, but I’ve had a good reason—Irene and I were off in Vienna to celebrate the new year by (among other things) seeing Die Fledermaus at the Wiener Staatsoper. I’ll share about the trip later, but now that a new year’s begun, I thought I should start off my 2013 posts with a list of the 10 posts from 2012 that you clicked on the most.

And they are …

1917 aviation infographic: “Incidentally, there may be a revival of smuggling”

First look at Next restaurant’s Kyoto menu

Oh, Kodak! “What fun we had,” indeed!

What I’m doing to stay alive a little longer

9 reasons you should visit Artomatic this year

Can you identify this comic book?

Marie Severin’s ’70s Marvel Bullpen map

Did Stan and Steve deliberately soften Spider-Man’s origin?

Next, Alinea, The Aviary … and the greatest amuse bouche the universe ever gave a foodie

The essay I thought would get me fired from Marvel Comics

Honorable mention goes to—

Happy birthday, Dad. I still miss you.

—which though posted in 2011, produced the third number of 2012 hits of any post. Guess a lot of you are missing your Dads and wrestling with how to express those feelings.

And for comparison’s sake, here are the 10 posts you clicked on the most in 2011.

Happy New Year, everybody!

Sean Howe, whose history of Marvel Comics in the ’70s, Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, was one of my favorite reads of the year—how could it not be? I was there—shared this poster the other day for Phil Seuling’s 1970 Comic Art Convention.

I hadn’t seen it in decades, and boy, did it bring back memories. Because as I’ve already told you, I was there, too.

It was my first convention, one at which I met many who would eventually become part of my karass.

And now you’ll have to to excuse me … I think I’ve got something in my eye …

Yesterday, Bradley Gene Smith, manager at Next, tweeted the first pic of preparation for the restaurant’s first 2013 menu—The Hunt.

Whether taking a look at the whimsical photo below leaves you happy or sad will depend on how lucky you were over the last couple of days. Did you manage to score season tickets for next year’s three offerings (the way I did)—or will you end up spending 2013 on the outside looking in?

As for me, I’m happy … and stoked!

As those of you who’ve read about my visits to Chicago for Next’s Sicily and Kyoto menus know, the restaurant is not only unique—completely reinventing its cuisine three times each year—but also extremely difficult to get into. Thousands more people want to dine there than can. As Eater quoted co-owner Nick Kokonas back in February:

” … the queue reached 1,500 within 10 seconds of turning the sales page on … so in reality you had to be there within 8-10 seconds to have a shot at season tix.”

I very much wanted to be part of Next’s Brigadoon-like magic again next year, and through careful (and sometimes exhausting) attention to the restaurant’s updates on its Facebook page, I managed to become a season ticket holder for 2013.

So here’s what I’m in for: (more…)

I’ve got a foot in many different worlds. I’ve got a foot in the science fiction world, a foot in the comic book world, a foot in the foodie world, a foot in the ukulele world …

Wait! That’s far too many feet.

In any case, sometimes these worlds overlap, such as when I’m at a science fiction convention and take my friends along on foodie expeditions. Or when some other friend brings a ukulele to one of those same cons and we get to jam. But for the first time, comics and the ukulele have formed their own Venn diagram, overlapping to result in this.

That’s right—a George Formby comic strip.

Thanks to Steve Thompson of BookSteve’s Library for pointing me to Lew Stringer’s blog, Blimey!, where Stringer posted this page from the December 26th 1953 issue of Film Fun.

I’ve no idea how many of these there were, but it looks like George’s Christmas turned out nice again!

So Irene spent part of her day poring through her comic book collection, which meant that when I stepped into her office late this afternoon, I saw the cover to Action Comics #196—and with a cover like this, you know I had to pick it up.

I don’t think I’d ever seen that issue, which would have gone on sale a couple of months earlier than its September 1954 cover date during the year before I was born. But far more interesting than the story that cover was touting was an ad advising kids how not to catch polio. (more…)

As a result of my Saturday night dinner at Range, Bryan Voltaggio’s new restaurant, I was interviewed yesterday by Amy McKeever of Eater about what that first pre-opening preview night was like from the perspective of a customer. Since she’d spent the day and night following the staff around, she needed some input on how it all seemed on the other side of the tables.

Her article was published late this afternoon, and reading it not only brought the meal back to life, it also made me want to get back there again soon so I can order the beef shin!

Irene and I can be seen as a teeny, tiny couple through Range’s long curved glass exterior in one of Amy’s many photos. Can you spot us below (after clicking makes it a little bit bigger, of course)?

See us?

If you look toward the right side of the photo and can find two guys standing side by side, that’s Irene forward of and directly between them, and I’m seated to her right/your left. Our dining companions, who were across from us, are unfortunately obscured by another couple closer to the camera.

Oh, and one last thing—get yourself to Range! But leave some of that beef shin for me, OK?