Gayle and I were recently on a Viking River Cruise (the Capitals of Eastern Europe) and one of our excursions was an evening of wine, food, and song at the Wiener Heuriger Wolff. Remembering a schlocky tourist tango show in Buenos Aires years ago, we were a little nervous about this one. But, Viking surprised us with this and other evening musical dinner shows that were actually culturally interesting and a log of fun.
I wish I could write about the great tenor during our Serbian show in Belgrade or the folk dancing and dinner in Sofia Bulgaria later in our trip, but Yelp doesn't support experiences in those countries. Ditto for our stops in Hungary, Croatia, and Romania. But while you're poking around my profile, please read up on our Istanbul adventures which Yelp does cover.
When the accordion player came out and started playing "show tunes", we paused. Yet, this guy was fun and engaging and really grew on us. The copious quantities of wine passed around might have also helped, but probably not. Like any wine tasting, there are OK vintages and pretty good ones. Nothing we tried made us want to buy a bottle to take home, but nothing was going back into the bucket either.
Various plates of bread, cheeses, means, fruits, and other stuff came out which went well with the wine and kept us singing along with the accordion guy. I think he was tipped well and he deserved it. We also heard from one of the business owners who gave us a little more background, including pointing out the vineyards in the back that we couldn't see at night. The room featured lots of wood (tables, walls, etc.), medium lighting, and what this tourist might consider an classic country Vienna atmosphere.
Maybe we could have done this sort of thing on our own, but there are clear advantages to package tours or even an individual tour by a local. And if you are local, there are other dining room and bar areas away from the tourist likes of us. And more places like this up and down the street. read more