My 10 Favourite Coffeehouses In Vienna, Austria.
As a Viennese, I love a good cup of coffee. The Viennese Coffee House Culture is world famous – and since 2011 even an UNESCO intangible cultural heritage. The Viennese Coffeehouse Culture is described in this inventory as a place “where time and space are consumed, but only the coffee is found on the bill.” And oh is that true!
The list of my 10 favourite coffeehouses in Vienna is in no particular order. I like all of them equality – it just depends where I am or what mood I’m in.
1. phil
The phil was the first one of its kind in Vienna. Today there are several coffee shops that offer food, drinks, shopping and culture all in one. The phil served as a role model and has become a real institution. Almost everything can be bought and most of the books and magazines here have been put together by the customers themselves. It’s a great place to sit for hours while listening to some great tunes.
- Address: Grumpendorferstrasse 10-12, 1060 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday 5.00pm – 1.00am & Tuesday – Sunday 9.00am – 1.00am
- Website
2. burg.ring1
The shabby-chic look of the burg.ring1 might remind you of a coffeehouse in Berlin or London – or even one of the similar looking coffee houses in the 7th district of Vienna, yet the difference is the noble address and the spaciousness. It feels like an extended living room with a house bar. A real feel-good place with yummy breakfast and the best home-made lemonade.
- Address: Burgring 1, 1010 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday – Thursday 11.00am – 1.00am, Friday 11.00am – 2.00 am, Saturday 9.00am – 2.00am & Sunday 9.00am – 6.00pm
- Website
3. Kleines Café
Built by the famous Viennese architect Hermann Czech, the Kleines Café is a primary rock of the culture scene. It’s very popular, therefore overcrowded most of the time. But the wait is well worth it because the charm of this tiny café is beguiling. In summer, sit down at the Fransiskanerplatz, which is one of the most picturesque places of the inner city.
- Address: Franziskanerplatz 3, 1010 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday – Sunday 10.00am – 2.00am & Sunday 1.00pm – 2.00am
4. Café Drechsler
The Drechsler has always been an institution in Vienna. In 2007, it was completely refurbish by the British star designer Sir Terence Coran. It’s still one of the most important meeting points in the scene, especially for a great breakfast after a hard night out in the town. Located right next to the Naschmarkt, this café is located in the hot spot of Vienna.
- Address: Linke Wienzeile 22, 1060 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday – Thursday 8.00am – Midnight, Friday & Saturday 8.00am – 2.00am, Sunday 8.00am – Midnight
- Website
5. Halle
One of the two undisputed centrepiece of the Museumsquartier (apart from Café Leopold), the Halle offers lots of seating spaces, high ceilings and designer furniture. But even with all the available room, this place is packed most of the times, so be sure to make a reservation – especially on weekends. In summer, there are approx. 200 additional seats outside in the centre of the MQ.
- Address: MQ, Museumsplatz 1, 1070 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday – Sunday 10.00am – 2.00am
- Website
6. Le Bol
French living and dining right here in Vienna? It’s possible! There are a couple of French restaurant in Vienna and the Le Bol is an original. Located in a side street of Vienna’s city centre, you almost feel like in a small French town. A very authentic, small & charming coffeehouse with a great atmosphere – also due to the French speaking waiters.
- Address: Neuer Markt 14, 1010 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Daily from 8.00am, Sunday from 10.00am
- Website
7. Café Sperl
Café Sperl might just be the most typical coffeehouse in Vienna – plus one of the few old-school ones that is not filled with smoke or run-down. Charm, tradition and history is a great priority here. This coffeehouse is a great place to get away from your daily routine: simply sit down, drink your coffee, read the newspaper and let time fly by. The “Herr Ober” (Viennese for waiter) might have to be asked twice, but no one is really stressed here. During summer, you can sit outside and eat one of the best Apfelstrudel in the city.
- Address: Grumpendorferstraße 11, 1060 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Monday – Saturday from 7.00am – 11.00pm & Sunday from 11.00am – 8.00pm
- Website
8. Daniel Bakery
From a Florentine bread salad and oriental antipasti, through to American Rib Eye Steak. At the Daniel Bakery you get all of that. But the bakery is not just popular with fans of international cuisine … those who love desserts & those with a sweet tooth will have lots of fun here. Listen to this: Crème brûlée, a great range of cookies, muffins, cupcakes or tasty cakes and gateaux (all homemade)…
- Address: Landstraßer Gürtel 5, 1030 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Daily from 06.30am – 1.00am (food is served until 11.00pm)
- Website
9. Café Berg
The Café Berg has been a popular breakfast spot in Vienna for quite some time. It’s also a meeting point for the local gay & lesbian scene (not only though) with the adjoining book shop Löwenherz which offers literature, music and film on the same topic. Customers are easy going and sometimes even glamorous.
- Address: Berggasse 8, 1090 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Daily from 10.00am – Midnight (Kitchen until 11.00pm)
- Website
10. Manameierei
The Manameierei is a wonderful spot in the greenery with high quality, yet simple and light food & drinks. It’s located right next to the Schwarzenbergpark, a stunningly beautiful area in the Northwest of Vienna great for excursions and walks, so make sure to have some spare time to get a seat. What I really appreciate is that the owners set a strong focus on food products, therefore most of them come from farmers in the adjoining area.
- Address: Exelbergstrasse 32, 1170 Vienna
- Opening Hours: Saturday & Sunday 9.00am – 6.00pm
- Website
Join the Discussion
“My 10 Favourite Coffeehouses In Vienna, Austria.”
Thanks for the inspiration.
Unfortunately some of the cafés are smokers only :(
Hi Peter!
True, some of them are (I’ll actually add that information part to the article – thanks).
But as an Austrian you’re pretty much used to that … For a lot of Viennese, it’s almost impossible to have a coffee without a cigarette. Personally I’m not a fan of it either, but everyone still has the choice to go to a smoking or non-smoking café…
Best, Nisa
Tolle Tipps – viele gehörten zu meiner Wien-Zeit auch zu meinen Favoriten.
Und selbst jetzt bin ich in machen immer noch sehr gerne, wenn ich mal wieder in Wien bin.
Danke Mela!
Und wenn du das nächste mal in Wien bist, meld dich und dann treffen wir uns in einem der oben genannten :)
Alles Liebe, Nisa
Nice pics and selection. These are the more soulful and higher quality cafes (I only think you should have made it a list to 11 and included Prückel). People flock to the more corporate places like Museum, Mozart, etc., but you’ve chosen well.
But one problem: almost none of these serve good coffee. In fact, there’s only a handful of places that do: People on Caffeine (PoC); Kaffee Küche; Vienna School of Coffee; Akrap; CaffèCouture to name the ones I can think of now.
Heya Scott!
Yup, Prückl is a nice coffee house that could be included –> Re-write on 12.01.2015: – Prückl is definitely a coffee house, I would NOT visit anymore. A lesbian couple was asked to leave the café with pretty harsh words. An absolute no-go in today’s world. –
You really think that most of these don’t serve good coffee? Have you been to all of them? Cause I honestly have to say that as a coffee lover, all of the ones mentioned above serve splendid coffee, that’s why I included them here. But tastes are different, so all is good :)
Will check out the ones you mentioned for sure and will happily give you my feedback to them.
Best, Nisa
Hi,
thanks for the inspiration; I´ve lived in Vienna for (almost) my whole life, and only have been in four of the places you suggested – maybe not a bad rate after all.
enjoy!
manfred
Hey Manfred!
I think the same about so many other places in Vienna…but it’s never too lake to check out new paces :)
Best, Nisa
I am a big fan of coffee, especially skinny late with cinnamon on top. I always have it in the morning when travelling to a new place. I have never been to Vienna, but I hope to make it there this summer. I’ve heard the city is famous for its cozy and charming coffeehouses. To me, the Manameierei looks very nice so I will definitely visit it when in Vienna.
Hi Agness!
Manameierei is a really lovely place. Getting there with public transport is a bit of a challenge, but it’ll be worth it for sure! Let me know how you enjoyed Vienna :)
Best, Nisa
Hallo! I’ve just returned from Vienna. Miss the coffee and Kaffeehäuser and Kaffeehauskultur (was at Cafés Central, Mozart, Prückel, Hawelka, Demel, Landtmann… also Café Stein at Währinger Straße) during the three months I was there. Unfortunately I haven’t been to any of those you’ve mentioned :( but hope to find them the next time I am in Vienna!! My favourites were Cafe Hawelka and Cafe Mozart, but I also really miss the coffee at Kaffeeküche. Schöne Grüße aus Kuala Lumpur :)
Hey Swan!
Glad you enjoyed your stay in Vienna.
Well, there are so many coffee houses in Vienna, it’s really hard to name just my 10 favourite ones :) Hawelka, Prückl, Demels, etc. are of course all famouse ones as well, which I can recommend too.
Many greeting to KL!
Best, Nisa
Hey Nisa.
I from Moscow and really would love to visit Vienna some day to visit some coffee houses:) I have one question to you: I wanna open a small stop and with to-go coffee in my city, and would like to know some popular places like the ones in Vienna which would fit here. Thanks for any of your advice.
Thank you.
Hi Dmitriy! Sounds like a cool plan, but unfortunately I have to admit that I’m probably not the best person to give advice on this. I have no clue what would work in Moscow – Sorry ;)
I have to admit, I thought all cafes in Vienna were just like the ones I saw in Before Sunrise, like Kleine’s, you know, kind of old school. Your first few though blew my mind with how stylish the Vienna cafe can truly be and I look forward to visiting on my next trip!
Hi Annie!
Well I’m glad you feel that way ;)
It’s true that there are many old-school (I’d rather call them traditional) coffee houses in Vienna, but there is a vibrant and modern scene as well and coffee houses pop up like mushrooms at the moment (but luckily not mass-chains like Starbucks).
and what about Cafe Central and Cafe Hawelka? Visiting Vienna on 21st Aug.
I am in Vienna on that day as part of a 12 day Euro trip from India. Your suggestions are awesome. I don’t know how to fit it all in 1 day. The Palaces, Opera, Naschmarkt, area around Drahtgasse, Prater, Museums, Otto Wagner Church. Don’t know what to miss !
I visit 2 or 3 coffeehouses each day when I’m in Vienna – morning coffee, dinner before the opera, and dessert after the concert. I will add your selections to my list. Sorry to hear about Cafe Prückel’s indiscretion…the schokolade-ingwer torte there is truly unique if you’re a chocolate lover. Also, I really like Frauenhuber. I’ll definitely visit your list the next time I’m in Vienna. (And BTW, Cafe Francois, across from Votiv Cathedral, has some great salads if one is, like me, vegetarian).
Thank you so much for this list. As a lover of coffee and cigarettes I can not tell you how pleasantly surprised I was to discover the coffeehouse culture of Vienna, and your list was my guide. We tried all of the ones we had time for, not all on the list but most, two of them even made me utter some profanity in my delightful surprises. Excellent list! Thank you again.
My wife and I will be back in Vienna this spring for several weeks of concerts and good coffee. We look forward to exploring your list of coffeehouses. We’ll probably visit one each morning until we’ve done the whole list. Thanks for the tips!