Barbecue at the Panoramic Seegrube Restaurant

A plate of fresh barbecue served with a panoramic alpine view? Yes, please!

The Nordkette mountain range is like a three-tiered cake offering assorted flavours. On the bottom tier sit the Alpine Zoo and Hungerburg where several hiking and bike trails start. Seegrube on the middle tier is a skiers’ hub in winter and Innsbruck’s highest sun terrace in summer. Crowning the top tier, Hafelekar not only boasts a breathtaking view but also leads to the wide side of the Karwendel.

There is an additional cherry on the cake this summer: barbecue weekends at the Seegrube restaurant! I was honestly very excited by the perspective of combining professionally prepared barbecue, dramatic cable car rides and the feeling of liberation on the mountain top. The day out was indeed an experience worth savouring.

The restaurant DoN shares the building with the Seegrube cable car station. Overlooking Innsbruck from 1.905 meters above sea level, the restaurant’s outdoor seats are extremely sought-after. The summer-exclusive barbecue stand was set up on the lawn, taking the spot of the Cloud 9 Igloo Bar in winter. Although the stand and the bar are run by the restaurant, orders are taken here separately.

The barbecue stand offers:

• Barbecue Plate (Grillteller) €15.90
  chicken fillet + pork neck steak (Schopf) + sausage (Bratwurst)
  served with two side dishes of your choice: corn on the cob, grilled vegetables, jacket potato and salad buffet
• Sausage (Bratwurst) or pork neck steak (Schopf) in a bread roll €3.80

The juicy chicken fillet and the pork neck steak were marinated so well that I actually didn’t use much of the sauces (there were three choices). The sausages had good texture and the salad was refined and refreshing. Overall it was a balanced meal and the portions were generous. (I have to admit that I couldn’t finish the jacket potato!)

Tender and succulent! What a treat. The meat was supplied by a reputed butcher shop at the foot of the Nordkette.

After the satisfying meal, we firstly walked around Seegrube and then took the cable car further up to Hafelekar.

Seegrube: 1.905 m MSL

Not far beyond the lawn stood the portal of the Path of Perspectives (Perspektivenweg), a trail designed by Snøhetta. The Norwegian firm stated that the Path “introduces a series of ten architectural elements along the panorama trail in the alpine landscape that highlight the unique features of Innsbruck’s spectacular Nordkette mountain range”. One of the steel platforms could be seen in the photo below.

Hafelekar, “Top of Innsbruck”: 2.256 m MSL

With the help of the Hafelekar cable car, you could reach the summit, Hafelekarspitz (2.334 m MSL) almost effortlessly. At this height, you have a superb view on the mountains in both Italy and Germany. For people who are fitter than me, there is a 7.5 hours long free guided hiking tour “The Nordkette in Innsbruck” focusing on the Karwendel (11 Jul – 12 Sep 2021, mostly on Sundays, meeting at Hungerburg).

Location: The Restaurant Seegrube by DoN
Barbecue season: from June to August 2021, Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. onwards (weather permitting)
Transportation from Innsbruck:

• Hungerburg funicular or Bus J to Hungerburg
• then cable car Seegrubenbahn to Seegrube where the restaurant is
• add-on: cable car Hafelekarbahn to Hafelekar