Vienna: Pastry Coma, Courtesy Of Demel

In these coming entries it will be difficult to explain how I lose instead of gain weight on this trip (but I do walk A LOT when I’m roaming) because just looking at windows in these patisseries around Europe is enough to pile on the pounds. I know, it’s easy for you to say stop looking inside the windows then, but how can I resist any place with a canopy just begging to provide shade from the sun and treat for the eyes?

All I know is that a whiff of the sweet scent triggers a Pavlovian behavior in me…the salivation begins and before I know it, I’m inside the store–in today’s case I’m at Demel, the famed chocolatier and pastry shop–induced into some sugar frenzy where my mind can justify paying an arm and a leg for a tiny box of chocolates meant for people with elfish appetites. But judging from the crowd of other zombies…er, tourists…it seems I’m not the only one on a candy high. Honestly though, who can resist these types of pretty displays!

I should say the candy boutique is to the right of the entrance, which I suppose most people may miss because when you first come inside the store, you are mesmerized by the pastry display that immediately catches your eye. I tell you, the choices are so varied you just want to weep because there are not enough hours in a day to eat everything…though I’d like to give it a shot!

If you can pry yourself away from the pastry counter, you will see a beautiful mahogany bar ahead, where you can order any kind of coffee (I prefer the strongest expresso possible) to go with your sweets.

You can also grab a quick savory lunch here, but who am I kidding…let’s get back to the sweet stuff, shall we?

Geez, I’m drooling now just looking at the pictures again. But I digress. Walk past the bar toward the back of the joint and magic will find you. For it is here that you get a glimpse of the bakers in their white uniforms working on the sweets.

Is it wrong to want to live in this kitchen? Do you see all those chocolate cakes on the counter in one of the photos? More about that tomorrow.

By the way, the last pic is a cake rendition of me falling into a pastry coma, courtesy of Demel (like my shoes?).

Please don’t wake me up.

August 25, 2010