On a recent trip to Salzburg, I had a chance to visit SENNS Restaurant. This restaurant holds two Michelin stars. Located outside the city centre, it isn’t an obvious choice for an evening out. A taxi is needed to get here, costing an additional EUR 50-75. The building is gorgeous though and is well worth the drive. What the cool thing is that makes it worth the trip? It is the fact that the restaurant is located in an old (church) bell factory. In the interior design, some features of the building’s former glory have been retained. This industrial look has been tastefully combined with modern design which is present in the form of a beautiful kitchen and comfortable bar.

My table for the evening has a front-row view of the kitchen, and what I notice is how calm and quiet it is inside the kitchen. On the day of my visit, only three of the roughly 15 tables were booked (it was a Tuesday), and as a result, there was more staff than guests. In the beginning, this was a little strange and awkward, as it felt like I was a monkey in the zoo. Soon it became clear the staff was very relaxed and friendly, making the awkwardness that was there earlier subside and I really started to feel very welcome.

With the aperitif, the menu was also delivered to the table. Some snacks followed when the order was taken. Taking the order is a formality, as they serve just one menu. Orders are taken only to confirm dietary requirements and food preferences. Where you can give them at this moment, it is of course best to inform the restaurant when making the reservation to avoid disappointment. The snacks set the expectations and it would turn out that they were able to meet these expectations. The menu included some of my favourite ingredients, from scallops to carabinero and from caviar to some delicious lamb. Both in presentation and flavour, the restaurant was worthy of the awarded two stars.

For my visit, the only thing that could have made it better is more booked tables. This really was due to ‘bad timing’ on my part as I decided to visit on a Tuesday. According to the Michelin guide, the restaurant is categorized as ‘spare no expense’. Indeed, it is not the cheapest restaurant with a price tag of EUR 275 (excluding drinks), but it is well worth every penny. I will not be surprised if this restaurant is awarded a third Michelin star.