Best Restaurants and an Hotel in Vienna

The names that move are world-class for food, wine and service.    These are top-quality places, top value---but NOT top price.

All these places are within the Ring (the Old Town, the most attractive area).    Click for cafés, or  hotel.

Note that it is usual to buy wine by the glass, which is usually 250 ml (one-third of a bottle).    Do drink local Viennese wine, and beer---they are excellent, but not found much outside Austria.

Prices are for one person --- three course meal, half-bottle of wine (or two beers), taxes and tip. 

Price Euro

Opening Hours

Location

Phone

Fish and shellfish specialities, some Turkish.   Wonderful, luxurious.    Very convenient, and a great way to end the evening, after going to the Opera House.    Booking desirable, especially late evening.

1200- 1500, 1800- 0100

Closed Sunday

Do not confuse this with the Rathauskeller in the new Town Hall.    Lovely shaded courtyard with tables.    Game specialities excellent, as are other meats and fish.    Wines, service, food all very good.    Pancakes (palatschinken) make a marvellous dessert.    Book at lunch times (a lot of business people eat here), not for dinner.    Not in most Guides.

Near the Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus).

Carinthian food, lovely ambience and service.   Käsnudeln (cheese ravioli) or Fleischnudeln (meat ravioli) and Tafelspitz are excellent.   Wonderful desserts, including Kletzennudeln (spicy bread pudding).

1000- 2300 Closed Saturday, Sunday, and last week in July, first three weeks in August

Rustic tavern.    Traditional Viennese food, seasonal specialities, large portions.   Wines from Pfudl’s own vineyard.

In a very narrow, old street, with lots of other taverns.    Tables on pavement terrace.    Garden.    Includes game dishes.   Typical Viennese tavern.    Lots of small rooms, lovely ambience, service, food, wine, beer excellent.

20- 35

As the name says, it was originally for poor students.    Now high quality food and wine and very good value.    Tables on pavement, too.

Typical beer cellar (excellent wine also) with restaurant above.   In part of the 15^th century palace buildings.   Many inter-connecting rooms with high rounded ceilings.    Excellent food, beer, wine, service.    Schrammel music from 1830 hours—a must.  

Café-Konditoreien

One of the greatest pleasures in Vienna is real Viennese coffee.    They drank coffee well before other West European countries, due to Vienna's links with Turkey.

Now, of course, there are all too many cafés serving ordinary espresso and cappuccino.    Avoid them like the plague (which they are) and go for the real Viennese coffee houses that have a menu of 6-12 styles of coffee.    Here you can have schwarzer (strong and black), brauner (dark but with some milk), melange (white coffee), einspänner (served with a ball of clotted cream floating in it), etc.    Coffee and tea are not cheap because there is a tax on them in Austria, so you might as well pay a little more for the best.

Best of all, go to a café-konditorei, where they serve coffee, tea, home-made cakes and pastries.    The cakes and pastries in Vienna are unbeatable, even in Paris, which is the only competitor.    Nowhere in London competes.

There are some that have been around for well over a century (certainly since Schubert, which is 180 years or more).   They are well worth visiting, not just for the coffee and cakes, but also to watch the Viennese.    Most of these cafés have outdoor terraces with sunshades (not the Central).

Many of them serve light lunches, often from 1100 to 1400 hours.

The original Sachertorte is here and must be tried.

Many people come here for coffee, etc, and to read the daily papers.

Hotel

Most hotels are outside the Ring, some quite a long way outside.    Unless you want to spend a lot of time in the U-Bahn (Underground/Métro/Subway) or on trams or buses, it is highly desirable to stay in an hotel inside the Ring, like this one.

In a very quiet cul-de-sac, off a quiet alley.    Right next to probably the best, private courtyard in Vienna (full of lovely apartments in 18^th century buildings).    Roof terrace.    Art Déco elevator.   43 beautiful rooms, modern bathrooms.    200 metres/yards to Kärntnerstrasse and the main shops.   400 metres/yards from St Stephen's Cathedral.    Family-run small hotel.    Comfortable, attractive.    Excellent mid-European breakfasts.    No bar or restaurant —plenty within 100 metres/yards.    Drinks available in Reception lounge.   Very helpful staff, who will book tickets for concerts and theatres and boat trips, etc.    For a small fee you can park your car in the courtyard (locked overnight).    Staff speak good English.

170 double

fax 513 22 28

We have eaten in these restaurants---many for over 25 years (including staying in this hotel).    They have ALWAYS been excellent.    We have a reputation that, if we ever receive poor food, wine or service in any restaurant/hotel, we NEVER go back.