So when I found out that Salzburg had a Michelin-starred restaurant named Carpe Diem, it felt like fate. Located in the heart of the city’s charming Old Town, Carpe Diem Finest Fingerfood looked like the perfect place to seize the evening.
Carpe Diem Finest Fingerfood became our second Michelin-starred dining experience in Salzburg (after lunch at Restaurant Ikarus @Hangar-7) for the second meal in a roll. Opened in 2005 and brainchild of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz, the restaurant is helmed by Austrian Chef Franz Fuiko, a former "Best chef of the Year" award winner in Austria (1994). After stints in Marseille and Colorado, he brought his talents back home and now delivers a cuisine that’s classic with a playful twist — at least in theory.
The restaurant occupies a two-storey building — a ground floor café and bar, and a more refined dining room upstairs.
Though honestly, the main dining room felt more like a tea salon than a fine dining temple.
The restaurant offers a fairly extensive a la carte menu and a few set menus differed by the number of courses. We ended up ordering the 4-course set at €75 which seemed to offer the best value for money.
Bread was first served with a special sea-salt and plain butter.
Our amuse bouche was a fun nod to the “fingerfood” concept with beef tartare paired and mashed potatoes, cleverly served in a crispy cone.
A further amuse bouche came in the form of a poached char fish with broccoli, pea purée and radish. A bit more forgettable than the previous nibble.
The first course of the set menu was a visually stunning starter. A sugar cracker topped with coconut ice cream, chili powder, chorizo, and edible leaves sat on top of a sweet corn pudding with poached langoustines hidden underneath.
Honestly, we didn't know where to start with this dish. Neither did our server offer any hint on how the chef thought this dish was best enjoyed.
We ended up smashing the cracker and combining bits of everything on the plate. The flavors were intriguing but clashed rather than harmonized. Creative, sure. Cohesive? Not quite.
The second course was less complicated this time - a Danube salmon showered with a parsley foam and served with an avocado flan and fermented garlic. This was my first time having Danube salmon.
I have long heard about its delightful texture and taste which is quite similar to tuna but it was surprisingly disappointing. The meat was very mushy and the taste was a little too fishy for me. I didn't like this dish at all.
Barbarie duck followed and finally we had something with a passing grade. The duck fillets were nicely roasted to medium before finishing with some lavender, peach and fennel cream.
Last in line was our dessert named "Walk through the forest". Despite the decent presentation, it was a poorly executed one that included a pistachio mousse, white chocolate mousse, black currant jelly, black currant sorbet, wild berry ragout and fresh wild berries.
There was only sour taste in it but nothing more.
Apart from the largely underwhelming food, service was also under expectation. It has been one of the weakest Michelin starred restaurant we have ever dined at.
Food Rating: 5.9/10
Price: $$$
Address: Getreidegasse 50, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
Tel: +43 662 848800
Website: www.carpediemfinestfingerfood.com/en
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