Paul Ivic, Heinz Reitbauer, Markus Mraz, Silvio Nickol

In China, ‘Tian’ means the heavens. In France, a vegetable stew. In Vienna, the only vegetarian restaurant to have earned a Michelin star. And the dishes served in Himmelpfortgasse are every bit as varied as the name.

And true fine dining dishes such as Jerusalem artichokes with mountain hay and cinnamon are enough to have any diner up in the ‘heavens’. And that’s not all! Tian also offers an impressive selection of vegetarian and vegan patisserie. Thomas Scheiblhofer, who was recently crowned ‘Patissier of the Year 2016’ by Gault & Millau, has been creating his confectionery masterpieces at Tian since 2011.

It is almost as if Heinz Reitbauer had drawn up the blueprints for the restaurant himself: Steirereck lies in Vienna City Park, a sophisticated Viennese villa which collides with a modern, almost futuristic glass building in a juxtaposition that can also be identified in the dishes.

The result is concoctions such as pheasant with lemon-salted onions, chard and strawberry groundcherries, or venison with spinach, coconut and yellow nutsedge. A fine balance which has already earned the restaurant its second Michelin star.

Good taste is a family affair – or at least, it is at Mraz und Sohn restaurant. It all began in the suburban tavern of the father, Karl-Heinz. It was there that his son – today the chef Markus Mraz – first began to think outside the box. That thinking grew to a vision of modern cookery – something that looked anything but Austrian at first glance. After his initial experiments, the creative son took over the restaurant and turned it into a showpiece of Viennese cuisine.

For proof that this simple but daring concept really works, look no further than the customers who take the trip out to Vienna’s Brigittenau district and the restaurant’s two Michelin stars.

The Viennese gourmet restaurant Palais Coburg has the motto: “indulge your curiosity”. In the stately atmosphere of the Palais dating from 1845, inquisitive guests are met with a chef whose creativity was allowed to run wild under culinary titans such as Harald Wohlfahrt and Heinz Winkler.

And credit is leant to these words by compositions such as foie gras, hibiscus, parsley root and cherries, making their way across the palates of the diners without a hint of pretension before coming together in a true explosion of flavour. 

Anyone wishing to experience four luminaries cooking together in a single kitchen will have their chance in March 2017, when ‘The Best of Vienna’ are invited to Restaurant Ikarus.