Eating and Drinking
Austria
Café-Konditorei Heiner (Vienna) http://www.heiner.co.at	A favorite treat since student days in Vienna, head upstairs to the second floor to graze the offerings in the pastry case and order your mélange.
Café-Konditorei Schatz (Salzburg) http://www.schatz-konditorei.at	A favorite treat since student days in Salzburg, this café near Mozart's birth house is not only great for coffee and a pastry but they make their own Mozartkugeln.
Meierei im Stadtpark (Vienna)  http://www.steirereck.at/wien/meierei	The more casual and modern sibling of Steiereck in the Stadpark, this restaurant serves updated versions of Viennese classics and some wonderful Austrian wines.
Humers Uferhaus (Orth a.d. Donau) http://www.uferhaus.at	A restaurant on the banks of the beautiful blue Danube outside Vienna, offering fish so fresh they may have slid right from river to frying pan.
Weingut Jordan (Pulkau) http://www.weingut-jordan.at	Served at Francouzska Restaurace in Prague (see, below), Jordan's Grüner Veltliner and Zweigelt Rubin were exceptional.
Belgium
Breydel-de-Coninc (Bruges) http://www.breydeldeconinc.be	Mussels we love, but read more in our article about the restaurant, by clicking here.
Belga Queen (Ghent) http://www.belgaqueen.be	The Ghent version of Belga Queen is in a 14th century grain warehouse along a canal.  Sourcing most everything (except the wines) in Belgium, cuisine is innovative and outstanding.
Meril Markley's Article on Bruges for the Quarterly Newsletter of the Wine Society of Texas (Greater Houston Chapter)	Musseling in on Trips to Belgium
Czech Republic
Café au Gourmand (Prague) http://www.augourmand.cz/	Home of the legendary tarte à l'orange.  To read our article about it, click here.
Hergetova Cihelna (Prague) http://cihelna.com	Scrumptious duck, spaetzle, while dining on the banks of the Moldau with a breathtaking view of the Charles Bridge at twilight -- what's not to love?
Francouzska Restaurace (Prague) http://www.francouzskarestaurace.cz/	This 100-year old restaurant in art-deco Municipal House serves first-rate continental cuisine and memorable Austrian wines.
Café at Lobkowicz Palace (Prague) http://www.lobkowicz.cz	One of the world's great cheeseburgers, or did it just taste fabulous due to the view of the city from the Cafe's terrace or the inclusion of Czech pickles?
Meril Markley's Article on Prague for the Quarterly Newsletter of the Wine Society of Texas (Greater Houston Chapter)	Czeching out Oranges and Austrian Wines in Prague
Germany
Ratskeller (Bremen) http://www.ratskeller-bremen.de	As traditional restaurants in the cellars of German city halls go, this must be one of the best, along with a very historic wine cellar.
Hungary
Kacsa Vendeglo (Budapest) http://kacsavendeglo.hu	It's not just a memorable restaurant featuring duck, it's an event with music and a vast array of Tokays.  For more about our visit, click here.
Meril Markley's Article on Budapest for the Quarterly Newsletter of the Wine Society of Texas (Greater Houston Chapter)	A Hungarian Rhapsody of Duck and Tokay in Budapest
Gerbeaud (Budapest) http://www.gerbeaud.hu	Afternoon tea or coffee and one of their scrumptious pastries offers a window into fin-de-siècle Budapest in all its 19th century elegance.
Italy
Simon Boccanegra (Florence)  http://www.boccanegra.com	One of our most memorable meals in Italy on a cold winter's night; to read more about it, click here.
Don Chischiotte (Rome) http://grupodonchischiotte.com	Filet of beef in brandy cream sauce with oven roasted potatoes, washed down with a Montepulciano; don't be put off by the touristy location in the heart of Piazza Navona.
Volpetti (Rome) http://www.volpetti.com	Not a restaurant but a temple of gastronomy for take-out at the foot of the Aventine Hill; definitely take all the staff's recommendations, especially for cheese!
Meril Markley's Articles on Italy for the Quarterly Newsletter of the Wine Society of Texas (Greater Houston Chapter)	A Winter's Tale from the Black Mouth of Florence
	Venice Conjures its Wintertime Magic with Vivaldi and a Mandolin
Spain
El Obrador del Café de Oriente (Madrid) http://www.groupolezama.es	A specialty food store across from the Teatro Real, offering the world's best sangría; part of Grupo Lezama's stable of remarkable eateries.
United Kingdom
La Poule au Pot (London) http://www.pouleaupot.co.uk	Headed to London without a stop-over in France? This 30+ year fixture in Belgravia (on Mozart Square) is the next best thing to dinner in a rustic restaurant in the French countryside.
Racine (London)  http://www.racine-restaurant.com	Just a few steps from the V&A in London, this elegant and traditional French restaurant is the perfect finish to a day of communing with the V&A's treasures.  And they serve Echiré butter!!!
The Goring (London) http://www.thegoring.com	Our favorite place for posh tea in London, reserve a table in the Conservatory or, on a warm sunny day, in the Garden.
Neal's Yard Cheese http://www.nealsyarddairy.co.uk	Heaven for cheese lovers, this shop stocks our all-time favorite, Colston Bassett Stilson (which pairs superbly with Don Luis Texas Tawny Port from Val Verde Winery).
Our Favorite Hotels
Austria
Hotel Römischer Kaiser (Vienna) http://www.bestwester.at/roemischerkaiser	A short walk from the Opera and St. Stephen's, this family-owned hotel, in a Baroque jewel of a building, is our favorite in Vienna.
Hotel Kaiserhof (Vienna) http://www.hotel-kaiserhof.at	If there's no room at our favorite, this hotel is a great alternative; a short walk from the Ring, in the grand style of Vienna in all its late 19th century imperial glory.
Belgium
Pand Hotel (Bruges) http://www.pandhotel.com	A small, romantic, family-owned hotel furnished with antiques and the perfect location from which to explore Bruges.
Germany
Die Vier Jahreszeiten (Hamburg) http://www.hvj.de	Old world sophistication, traditional luxury, and a prime location make this hotel a dream destination in Germany's capital full of really, really tall and elegant people.
Hungary
Kempinski Hotel Corvinus (Budapest) http://www.kempinski-budapest.com	Superb service, great location, best breakfast buffet on the planet -- all are reasons we hope to return to Budapest and this marvelous hotel.
Italy
Palazzo Sant'Angelo sul Canal Grande (Venice) http://www.palazzosantangelo.com	We stayed here in the magic of Venetian wintertime, our room filled with antiques and overlooking the Grand Canal.  To read more about our stay, click here.
Villa San Pio (Rome) http://www.aventinohotels.com	Perched on the Aventine Hill, this small hotel is an oasis of quiet in the chaos of the Eternal City.
United Kingdom
The Randolph (Oxford) http://www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/randolph	Memories of the Vassar Madrigal Singers' stay at the Randolph, mixed with scenes from Inspector Morse, make this place special.
Museums and other Great Places, Stuff to Do
Austria
Kunsthistorisches Museum (Vienna) http://www.khm.at	A roomful of Breughels is the highlight for us in one of the world's great collections of paintings; they'll print a poster version to take home with you, on the spot.
Schloß Hof (Marchfeld) http://www.schlosshof.at	The hunting lodge built for Prince Eugene of Savoy, recently restored with magnificent gardens and a white peacock, is a great day-trip from Vienna.  Don't miss Bellotto's views of it in the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
Belgium
Groeningemuseum (Bruges)  http://www.brugge.be	For lovers of Northern Renaissance painting, a wonderful museum with a great collection and a chance to see incomparable virtuosity up close and personal.
St. John's Hospital Museum (Bruges) http://www.brugge.be	Thrilling to experience the interiors and exteriors of Bruges and its local population as painted by its most famous artists in this collection housed in a building from their time.
Czech Republic
Lobkowicz Palace (Prague) http://www.lobkowicz.cz	Spend some time with Breughel's masterpiece, the Haymaking, and stroll through during the daily afternoon concert.  Excellent museum shop for hard-to-find CDs of Czech Baroque music.  To read more about our visit to Prague, click here.
Italy
Villa I Tatti (Fiesole) http://www.itatti.it	Bernard Berenson's estate, now owned by Harvard University -- need to request a private tour far in advance, but well worth it.  To read more about our visit, click here.
United Kingdom
Victoria and Albert Museum (London) http:/www./vamc.ac.uk	See our page dedicated to the V&A.
Ashmolean Museum (Oxford) http://www.ashmolean.org	A great museum, especially Dutch still life collection, and a rooftop restaurant that's worth a visit.