Vienna has something of a reputation as being a foodie city, but unlike many other cities, the true jewels of a foodie visit to the city don’t lie in its restaurants, but in its wine halls, beisls, cafes and sausage stands. While there are indeed some nice restaurants, we found these more traditional treats more to our taste. There is great food in the city, but often the very best on offer in Vienna is generally the very cheapest. Here's what to look out for.
Cafes, Cakes, Coffees and Sweets
The cafes are of course an institution in Vienna, well worth a visit to the city alone for the cakes – these are quite unrivalled. We wrote an article especially on which cafes to go to in the city (link here), but if you don’t read it, the short of it is to go to Café Hawelka, Demel and Café Central in particular.
Viennese cafes are a great place to discover traditional Viennese cakes and the coffee culture, with different institutions tending to specialise in different cakes and coffees. Make sure to try a Schwartzer (essentially an espresso), Wiener Melange, which is similar to a cappuccino, as well as an Einspänner (a strong black coffee served in a glass topped with whipped cream). For cakes, make sure to try an Annatorte at Demel, a strudel, pancakes, a Sachertorte and a Mozart torte – in all honesty, you can’t go much wrong with any of the cakes in Vienna, being something of a baking Mecca.
If you have a sweet tooth, also consider paying a visit to Zannoni & Zannoni, an ice cream chain with many locations around the city.
Beisls
These are essentially traditional Viennese pubs, typically with a cosy, wood panelled down-to-earth environment. These serve traditional dishes, like liver, beef shin and of course the Wiener schnitzel. These are also good places to enjoy a glass of Austrian wine (read our Austrian wine guide here), beer or schnapps, but be warned, smoking inside is still fairly common. We visited Haas Beisl and thoroughly enjoyed it.
Würstelstands
These street food stands are an Austrian institution and were, according to some, created originally during the Austro-Hungarian Empire to provide a source of income for disabled veterans. Today, they are everywhere in the city centre and a great place to try curry wurst, or our personal favourite, a kasekrainer with a beer for an absurdly cheap price. It doesn’t get much better than a kasekrainer with a beer from Bitzsinger outside the Vienna State Opera.
Wine and Beer
Vienna, like many cities in central Europe, is surrounded by vineyards. In Vienna’s case, it specialises in the production of white wines, typically high quality Gruner Veltliner. As such, wine is a big deal here and this has led to the development of traditional wine halls, or heurige.
A good place to soak up this traditional atmosphere and enjoy a glass or two is Zwolf Apostekeller, located in a cellar that dates back to the 14th century.
Beer is also held in high regard in Vienna, with Salm Braeu by Belvedere palace being a good place to sample traditional Austrian beers brewed on site alongside traditional Viennese cuisine. 1516 is also worth a shout out for their beers.
Restaurants
Tian Bistro in the trendy area of Spittelberg is a very reasonably priced initiative developed by the vegetarian Michelin starred mind behind Tian. It has a great selection of reasonably priced innovative dishes and wines, with the Raffaelo and pumpkin soup being highly recommended.
Heuer am Karlplatz is another restaurant we highly recommend in Vienna, based just a stone’s throw from Karlskirche and located in an urban farm. The prices again are reasonable for the quality and their Wiener schnitzel was the best we had.
Another honourable mention is Justizcafe, located in the Ministry of Justice building. This offers the best views of Vienna around, with a reasonably priced menu and great food. It’s essentially the canteen for the workers of the building and as such, you have to go through security to get in, but it is definitely worth it for the views alone.
In short, Vienna has a great deal to offer foodies, but surprisingly it’s the stuff at the cheaper end of the spectrum that’s the best. Don’t be suckered in by a lot of the more expensive restaurants, we found them to not often be worth the price, while not really representing what makes the city great and not comparing to the quality or prices of fine dining restaurants in nearby cities like Prague, Bratislava or Budapest. If you’re visiting in the winter, also be sure to visit their Christmas markets.
Comments