Vienna’s seventh and eigth district are known to be the natural habitat of hip, young and not-so-young-any-more artists and creatives. Being creative all day, they also want to eat from time to time…a true living room bar/bistro/grill just comes right here: The St. Ellas !
The St. Ellas is actually a spin-off of the more gourmet-oriented Gaumenspiel, both restaurants share a common courtyard, that is really beautiful. The restaurant itself presents itself very casual, the tables are near to each other and it is quite loud – the Austrian version of a french bistro. The separation of smokers/non-smokers is not optimal – you enter the restaurant through the bar where everybody smokes and also in the non-smoking area there is this distinct smell, which is kind of a downer.
![Inside/Bar](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_1-300x225.jpg)
![Patio](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_0-300x225.jpg)
The restaurant offers casual kitchen, there are (well priced!) steaks from the grill and many snacks. The service was friendly, but not very present which is okay for a restaurant of this kind. The wine menue is not too big but offers well priced wines per glass. As a first course I went for the „Tapas“:
![Tapas](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_2-300x225.jpg)
Not really Spanish, but still a very nice variation of the theme. It was a mixture of Austrian-Mediterranean-Spanish appetizers, all good in quality and taste. I especially liked the smoked trout and the prawn.
![Papaya Salad](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_3-300x225.jpg)
Then Papaya salad – sounds strange but was actually quite good! The crunchy sald went along quite nice with the fruity acidity of the papaya and the nuts…
![Tuna Sashimi Pizza](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_4-300x225.jpg)
The Tuna Sashimi pizza is something like a signature dish of the restaurant. To be honest it was a bit disappointing: A baked pita (a bit hard and dry), topped with wasabi-cream (not really spicy), tomatos and raw tuna sashimi of good quality. All was sprinkled with cress. The dish lacked a certain twist, maybe some real wasabi or some soy sauce – so it was quite boring.
![Burger and fries](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_5-300x225.jpg)
The burger was very tasty, nice soft bread and a (small, though good) beef patty. The homemade fries were good too. All in all it was a bit small for the price. If it is the best burger in town, as often stated ? You have to decide for yourself….
![Lime tirami-su](https://www.jakli.at/wp-content/Stellas_6-300x225.jpg)
Hm. Lime tiramisu….a little bit weird, because it was no real tiramisu. No Mascarpone, no ladyfingers. It was curd-based, which I didn’t like very much and had cantucchini inside. The lime taste was nice anyway.
All in all it was a relaxed evening in a busy, yet comfortable atmosphere. The prices are reasonable and so is the quality – we paid approx. 30€ per person with drinks and food.