Döner kebabs are big across Vienna, as I believe they are across the country as well as in Germany. They jostle for space, love, attention and importance with the more traditional Viennese wurstelstands. Dishing out döner kebabs and sandwiches by the minute, they seem to have taken over the imagination of the Viennese. It might not even be a snack anymore, but a full-fledged on-the-go meal.
BBC Travel did a story on how the döner kebabs have become Germany’s favourite fast food*. Thousands of stands making millions of döner kebabs each day, looking after Germans at lunchtime and past midnight on boozy weekends. I see parallels closer home – döner kebab stands make their presence felt on most, if not all, prominent places to hangout across the city. I have seen some very clever graffiti about the kebabs and their relationship with the right wing across the city as well. Clearly, this is a very successful import, built to withstand the test of time and politics.
I am out and about on a Friday afternoon, the start of a 3-day weekend. The other day I asked my friends about Vienna’s best döner, and they said that the Berliner Döner in the 7th district is a clear and comfortable winner. Judging by the line outside the döner stand on a slow Friday afternoon, they are not wrong. More than 15 people waiting in line for a döner kebab is truly a rare sight, but it says more about the Berliner’s popularity and taste than any TripAdvisor review could. I join the crew, and 10 mins later, I am ordering my very own Berliner döner.
The guy at the counter, a middle-aged man with a salt and pepper beard, asks for my order. The German language still does not come easily to me, so I memorize my order while standing and waiting in line. This part goes by smoothly. It gets complicated when it’s time for sauce and vegetable preferences. With my döner in his hand and his eyes towards the range on the counter, he looks at me and asks in German. I barely mumble something, not sure myself about the contents of the mumble. As if by telepathy, he understands my lingual handicap. He does what he feels best about the situation, inviting me for a true taste of his Berliner döner.
I find myself a spot just across the stand. The döner is delightful, and at the price, quite a steal! The numbers outside the stand keep swelling. If weekend afternoons are like this, what are party nights like?
*The link to the original article: bbc.com/travel/story/20170203-germanys-favourite-fast-food.
Immediate Environments 