What is a Trieste buffet?

It's a typical Trieste eatery where you eat at the counter or at a table, often quickly: hot dishes from the Central European tradition, such as pork cooked in the caldaia (a large boiling pot), served with horseradish, mustard and sauerkraut. It has nothing to do with an all-you-can-eat buffet.

What do you eat at a Trieste buffet?

The signature dish is the misto di caldaia: porzina, cotechino, frankfurters (called "Vienna" in Trieste), tongue and pork belly, with sauerkraut, horseradish and mustard. Many buffets also serve dishes such as goulash and hand-carved ham.

It's grated horseradish, the hot condiment served with boiled meats and cooked ham in Trieste's buffets, together with mustard.

Where can I find a Trieste buffet in the city centre?

Buffet da Vittorio, founded in 1933, is at Via Giosuè Carducci 30/A, a two-minute walk from Piazza Goldoni. It's open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:30 to 23:30 and on Mondays from 15:30; closed on Sundays.

The Trieste buffet: what it is and what to eat

Q: What do people drink at the buffet?

Traditionally a lager, or a glass of wine.

Fast food before fast food

The buffet is part of everyday life in Trieste. People drop in for a midday snack, a lunch break or a hot dish in the evening, and often eat standing at the counter. That's why buffets are described as fast food ante litteram.

Origins

Buffet cooking was born in the Trieste of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the port of Central Europe. Its signature dish, the caldaia, came from reusing the meats that flavoured broths, and was served from early morning to people on their way to work. Some buffets still open today date back to the late 19th century.

The caldaia

In the caldaia, pork simmers and keeps warm all day long. The "misto di caldaia" is a plate with a bit of everything in the pot:

porzina: pork shoulder or neck, slowly boiled;
cotechino and zampone sausages;
Vienna, as frankfurters are called in Trieste;
Cragno, a smoked sausage from the Karst;
tongue, pork belly and smoked pork loin.

Sides, sauces and drinks

The meats are served with sauerkraut (in Trieste dialect capuzi), cren, that is grated horseradish, and mustard, with bread. To drink, traditionally, a lager or a glass of wine.

Buffet da Vittorio

Buffet da Vittorio is a buffet founded in 1933, now at Via Carducci 30/A. At the counter there's hand-carved cooked ham (cotto taià a man) with horseradish and mustard, canapés, polpette and breaded vegetables, best with a glass of wine. At the table you can order Trieste dishes such as gnocchi with homemade goulash.

The full menu