Vienna's Famous Coffee Houses

Best Coffee Houses in Vienna

Updated April 2025

Vienna’s cafés are living theatres where history, intellect, and aroma share centre stage. For more than three centuries they have attracted emperors and exiles, Nobel laureates and night-owls, offering refuge beneath crystal chandeliers and beside time-worn marble tables. In 2011 UNESCO added Viennese coffee-house culture to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage, praising these venues as “places where time and space are consumed, yet only the coffee is found on the bill.” In other words: stay as long as you like—true Viennese hospitality refuses to rush you.

A Brewed Legacy: From Ottoman Siege to Intellectual Salon

1683 – The Fortuitous Beans

After the failed Ottoman siege of Vienna, Polish officer Jerzy Franciszek Kulczycki reputedly discovered abandoned sacks of coffee. He soon opened the city’s first café, Zur blauen Flasche, serving the beans sweetened with honey and milk—a revelation for sceptical locals.

18th & 19th Centuries – Rise of the Grand Cafés

As Habsburg power blossomed, so did Vienna’s café scene. Writers received their mail at Café Central, chess grandmasters duelled at Café Landtmann, and Theodor Herzl drafted Zionist tracts over black coffee at Café Museum. Cafés became incubators of modern thought.

Fin-de-Siècle & Modernism

Between 1890 and 1914 cafés entered a golden age. Architect Adolf Loos introduced sleek lines that foreshadowed Modernism, psychoanalysis blossomed at nearby tables, and political ideologies percolated alongside steaming Einspänner.

The Essential DNA of a Viennese Café

Below are the hallmarks you will notice the moment you step through a revolving wooden door:

  • Marble-Topped Tables – durable, elegant, and ideal for balancing demitasses and towering cake slices.
  • Thonet Bentwood Chairs – the iconic No. 14 design lets you sit for hours without back strain.
  • Silver Trays & Water – every coffee arrives on polished silver with a glass of chilled Alpine water.
  • Newspaper Racks – wrought-iron holders bristling with local dailies and international broadsheets.
  • Gentle Café Soundtrack – porcelain clinks, low conversation, and soft footsteps on parquet.

Etiquette tip: order just one drink and the table is yours indefinitely. Tip when you leave (around 5–10 %), not when served.

Beyond the Melange: Vienna’s Coffee Classics

  • Kleiner Schwarzer – short single espresso; essential pre-breakfast jolt.
  • Großer Schwarzer – a double for mid-morning focus.
  • Melange – equal parts espresso and steamed milk topped with froth; the city’s all-day favourite.
  • Verlängerter – espresso “lengthened” with hot water for a gentler profile, perfect after lunch.
  • Einspänner – double espresso in a glass, capped with whipped cream that keeps the brew hot.
  • Franziskaner – a Melange crowned with whipped cream; order with dessert.
  • Fiaker – an Einspänner fortified with rum and garnished with a cherry; ideal on cold evenings.
  • Mazagran – iced espresso splashed with rum or Cognac; a summer cooler.
  • Eiskaffee – cold coffee over vanilla ice cream with whipped cream: mid-July bliss.

Ten Cafés That Capture Vienna’s Spectrum

  1. Café Central (1876, Innere Stadt) – Neo-Gothic splendour, piano afternoons, miniature Gugelhupf crafted behind glass.
  2. Café Landtmann (1873, Ringstraße) – Belle Époque elegance, politicians at neighbouring booths, legendary Apfelstrudel.
  3. Café Sacher (1876, Kärntner Straße) – velvet drapes and the original Sachertorte.
  4. Café Demel (1786, Kohlmarkt) – Rococo patisserie; watch confectioners mould marzipan violets.
  5. Café Sperl (1880, Mariahilf) – wood-panelled intimacy, billiard tables, rain-day reading nook.
  6. Café Hawelka (1939, Dorotheergasse) – bohemian, candlelit; order warm jam-filled Buchteln after 10 p.m.
  7. Café Prückel (1904, Stubentor) – 1950s modernist decor; Saturday salon concerts.
  8. Café Schwarzenberg (1861, Ringstraße) – the oldest Ringstraße café; watch trams rattle by at dawn.
  9. Phil (2007, Gumpendorfer Straße) – hybrid bookshop-café with third-wave roasts and vinyl listening corners.
  10. Kaffeemik (2014, Siebensterngasse) – minimalist micro-roastery pouring single-origin filter brews.

Third-Wave Meets Tradition

A new generation of baristas has joined the pantheon, roasting lighter profiles, experimenting with V60s and AeroPress, yet still serving water on the side—proof that innovation and ritual coexist. Try Coffee Pirates near the university for a floral Ethiopian natural-process brew, or Jonas Reindl where beans are roasted in-house beneath vaulted ceilings.

The Sweet Side: Pastries & Pairings

  • Sachertorte – dense chocolate sponge, apricot layer, glossy ganache; pair with a straightforward Kleiner Schwarzer.
  • Apfelstrudel – paper-thin dough, cinnamon apples; temper the sweetness with a Verlängerter.
  • Topfenstrudel – cream-cheese filling with raisins; delightful alongside a Franziskaner.
  • Gugelhupf – marble Bundt cake enjoyed with a Sunday Melange.
  • Buchteln – jam-filled yeast buns served warm at Hawelka after 22:00; complete with a night-cap Fiaker.

A Coffee-House Hopping Itinerary (Self-Guided, ~4 km)

  • 09:00 – Café Schwarzenberg: watch commuters on the Ringstraße with a Kleiner Schwarzer.
  • 10:30 – Café Central: stroll to Herrengasse, order a Melange, let the pianist serenade you.
  • 12:00 – Demel: observe pastry chefs sculpting Punschkrapfen, sample one fresh off the tray.
  • 14:00 – Café Prückel: 1950s interior for lunch—a classic Wiener Schnitzel.
  • 16:00 – Phil: contrast old with new, sipping a V60-brewed Kenyan while browsing second-hand novels.
  • 19:00 – Dinner Break: graze through Naschmarkt stalls or a rustic heuriger.
  • 22:00 – Café Hawelka: night-owl dessert of hot Buchteln and an Einspänner; savour bohemian ambience till closing.

Seasonal Coffee Traditions

  • Advent: Weihnachtskaffee spiced with cinnamon, clove, and orange peel—served at Christmas markets.
  • Fasching (Carnival): Krapfen & Kaffee—jam-filled doughnut with Verlängerter, a February staple.
  • Easter: Kaisermelange (espresso whisked with egg yolk, honey, Cognac) for a decadent brunch.
  • Summer: Eiskaffee with vanilla ice cream—best enjoyed on a shaded terrace.

Brew Vienna at Home: Advice from Local Baristas

  1. Choose Medium-Dark Roasts: chocolate-nutty profiles match traditional Viennese palates.
  2. Use Pressure Brewing: a Moka pot or small espresso machine replicates café body and crema.
  3. Mind Your Water: Vienna attributes clarity of flavour to Alpine springs; use filtered water for similar purity.
  4. Serve Properly: always provide a small glass of water and, if possible, a square of dark chocolate.

Practical Pointers

  • Opening Hours: classic cafés open around 07:00 and close by 22:00; Hawelka stays open past midnight.
  • Reservations: generally unneeded, but book Café Central online to avoid queues.
  • Smoke-Free: since 2019 all Austrian eateries are non-smoking—only the patina remains.
  • Tipping: round up or add about 10 %; hand cash directly while saying “Danke, passt so.”

Pair Your Coffee Journey with Vienna’s Top Sights

Between cappuccinos and cake, soak in imperial grandeur at Schönbrunn, marvel at Klimt’s The Kiss in the Belvedere, or wander creative courtyards in the MuseumsQuartier. For a full list of must-see landmarks browse our curated Attractions.

Conclusion: More Than a Cup—An Institution of Identity

In Vienna coffee is not a beverage but a social ritual, a literary forum, and a slow-drip chronicle of the city itself. So claim your marble table, order a Melange—or dare a rum-laced Fiaker—and let the gentle rhythm of Viennese café life seep into your soul. Here, time is the ultimate luxury—and you are free to consume it, one aromatic sip at a time.