Indulge like the prince-archbishops: baroque cuisine at Hotel Goldgasse

Salzburg is considered the baroque jewel north of the Alps. Between 1600 and 1770, it was primarily the archbishops who had numerous churches, townhouses, gardens and fountains designed in the baroque style. From Salzburg Cathedral over Leopoldskron Palace, the New Residenz and St Peter's Abbey to Mirabell Palace or the Kajetanerkirche – the countless baroque buildings are a fascinating testament to the era of opulence.

The wealth of this formative period, however, is reflected not only in the elaborate architecture, but also in the indulgent food. The cuisine of the upper classes was opulent and refined at the same time. It was not only meant to be tasty, but also demonstrate the social status of the hosts. The preparation of the sophisticated dishes required a lot of skill and creativity from chefs. There was a strong emphasis on presentation and aesthetics, with dishes often artfully arranged and decorated. Baroque cuisine combined different flavours, textures and ingredients that were relatively unknown at the time, such as citrus fruits and spices, in extravagant ways.

Baroque dishes from the original cookbook of 1719

A popular place for baroque cuisine in Salzburg is the Restaurant at Boutique Hotel Goldgasse, only a few steps from Salzburg Cathedral, in one of the oldest and most picturesque lanes of the Old Town. Formerly a coppersmith's, Gasthof Goldgasse is now a place of indulgence that has been awarded one Gault&Millau toque. In addition to modern and traditional cuisine, the restaurant also regularly offers historical dishes from a baroque cookbook entitled Neues Saltzburgisches Koch-Buch [New Saltzburg Cookbook]. The book was written by Conrad Hagger, who was head chef to the prince archbishops for 27 years.

The team of hotel director Margot Weindorfer purchased the original leather-bound cookbook from 1719 at an auction in London, and adapted it together with gastrosophy experts from the University of Salzburg. The book, which is on display in the traditional Hotel Goldgasse, contains some 2500 recipes and 300 copperplate engravings.

"We are particularly proud of our quality philosophy in the kitchen, which places great importance on regionality, seasonality and good cooperation with local suppliers of high-quality products," says chef Dragan Miljkovic. "We therefore select dishes from the historical cookbook that we find intriguing and feasible in terms of ingredients." While the menu changes roughly every two months, it always features at least one baroque dish.

Decadent baroque

One of the signature dishes is most certainly the baroque fried chicken, prepared according to a recipe from the cookbook by Conrad Hagger. In keeping with the origins of the restaurant, this culinary highlight is served in a copper pot. "In those days, many dishes were deep-fried, since lard was readily available in most kitchens. We attempted to choose recipes we could replicate exactly, such as our baroque dumplings for instance", says the head chef. These crispy deep-fried delicacies are prepared according to the original recipe, with a kind of spelt filo-pastry and filled with seasonal ingredients. "Up to now, we've probably reproduced around 50 recipes from the historic cookbook – some of them exactly according to recipe, and others inspired by the originals", the head chef adds and remarks: "my personal favourite are the oxtail dumplings – braised slowly in the oven, then deep-fried, and served with kale – simply a fabulous dish, both then and now."

For visitors who wish to experience the perfect symbiosis of traditional and modern cuisine, Gasthof Goldgasse is the place to go – where the culinary spirit of the town's baroque history truly prevails.