The Best Cafes in Vienna

Mini Guide

Vienn a is known for many things–gorgeous architecture, incredible symphonies, beautiful palaces… and coffee. Yes, coffee is so central to Vienna that the coffee house culture here is near impossible to miss. We’re not talking about grab-and-go coffee. Coffee in Vienna is a sit down experience, and most of all, it should be enjoyed with a delightful slice of cake, torte or anything sweet. It’s a true act of luxury that happens daily, and a real pleasure to enjoy when you’re visiting the city. So wake up early and people watch with the locals at one of these 4 amazing cafes.

Best cafes in Vienna:

Café Central

Café Central, Herrengasse 14, 1010 Wien, Austria

Café Central dates back to 1876 and is one of the city’s most famous coffee houses and one of the best cafes in Vienna. It’s famous for its wide array of Viennese dishes, sweets, cakes and for being a popular meeting spot for Trotsky, Freud, Polgar, Zweig and Altenberg. The fact that the cafe brought in revolutionaries like Trotsky, Freud, writers, poets, architects and more is reason enough to visit and feel the history. But it’s also been considered one of the most beautiful coffee houses in Vienna (a city that is filled with stunning coffee houses). Avoid the line by booking a reservation online in advance (try to do this weeks in advance to make sure you get a good time slot).

Best cafes in Vienna: Café Prückel

Café Prückel, Stubenring 24, 1010 Wien, Austria

To try out a truly local coffee house, and to get away from the long lines at many other central, popular spots, head over to Café Prückel for a taste of one of the best cafes in Vienna. Located on the Ringstrasse Café Prükcle has an inviting mid-century interior that will bring you back to 1955 when architect Oswald Haerdtl refurbished the cafe. From its velvet green sofas to bamboo details and floor-to-ceiling windows, not much has changed here since the refurbish. And it’s known for its true local feel. Café Prückel might not have the same grand high ceilings, marble tables and steep-in-history vibes, but it will feel like you’ve stopped firmly in the 1950s and that may be why it’s one of my favourite cafes in the city. You’ll still get the coffee menu, your coffee served on a metal tray, and all the sweet cake and tortes you could want here, but it truly feels like a local spot and not an Instagram moment.

Best cafes in Vienna: Café Mozart

Café Mozart, Albertinapl. 2, 1010 Wien, Austria

Cafe Mozart is as traditional as you can get when it comes to the best cafes in Vienna. The coffee house, which has been in existence since 1899 has been a meeting place for over 200 years, with upholstered benches, Thonet chairs, chandeliers and mirrors and small tables. The building itself housing Café Mozart was built in 1794 as a part of the beautiful Albertina Square… after a few changes, it officially became Café Mozart in 1899 and has been a popular meeting spot since and film and novel buffs will know that the café inspired the writer Graham Greene to work on his novel “The Third Man”.

Best cafes in Vienna:

Café Sacher

Café Sacher, Philharmoniker Str. 4, 1010 Wien, Austria

Stopping by Hotel Sacher is a must in Vienna… they’re known to have the world’s most famous cake. The delightfully chocolatey, apricot Sacher Torte that made its debut in 1832, which just so happens to be the perfect pairing with any kind of coffee. The Café Sacher offers the perfect setting to sample the typical Viennese coffeehouse atmosphere, making it ones of the best cafes in Vienna. The setting at the hotel’s cafe is also so lux and photo ready decked in red and white. Since this spot is probably the most famous of all the coffee houses in Vienna, make sure to book a reservation, or risk waiting in very long lines…

— How to order your coffee

Best cafes in Vienna:

You need to expand your coffee ordering know-how when it comes to a Vienna Coffee House. It’s not just drip coffees, americanos and lattes here. Every coffee house has a full coffee menu… with many variations that include cream, whipped cream, chocolate and so much more. The traditional here is the Viennese Melange–equal parts coffee and milk, topped with milk foam. It’s like their version of a cappuccino. But my personal favourite is the Einspänner–coffee topped with whipped cream. There’s no ordering at the counter here. Once you’re sitting at a table, all you need to do is wait for a waiter to appear, and say “Ich hätte gerne eine Melange, bitte” (I’d like to order a Melange, please).

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