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Coffee? In Vienna?

The Turks besieged Vienna in 1683 and were fought off at the very last minute by Sobieski´s Polish rescue army. Legend has it that they fled so hastily that they forgot to take their coffee with them. The beans were unknown to the locals, except for one man (Georg Franz Kolschitzky) who knew what to do with them. He opened Vienna´s first café, from where the black brew started its triumph procession throughout the occident. Many cafés have become legendary as meeting places for artists, such as the Café Hawelka and the Café Central, or for their traditional ambiance, such as the Café Landtmann near the Burgtheater. At Wollzeile, artists, students and other bohemians meet at the Café Alt Wien. The Viennese often ridicule German tourists when they simply order „ein Kaffee“, not knowing that it comes in dozens of flavours and sizes. The arrival of Starbucks to Vienna a few years back is still widely regarded as a sacrilege.

Some places to get coffee:

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Café Central

Mon-Sat 7:30 am – 22:00 pm. Vienna’s last café with original fin-de-siècle-design, really worth a visit. Come and meet Lenin, Trotsky & Freud - actually they’ve just popped out for a few minutes, this was their chess meeting place.

                 (1., Strauchgasse/Ecke Herrengasse)

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Café Demel

Daily 10:00 am - 7:00 pm. When Demel claimed to have bought the recipe of the Sacher long lawsuits followed. In 1965, the judges decided in favour of Sacher, giving them the right to “Original Sacher Torte” while Demel had to be satisfied with the “Original Eduard Sacher Torte”. Find out the difference - is that a good excuse to nibble another 60 million calories? (We are just trying to be helpful.)

                 (1., Kohlmarkt 14)

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Café Hawelka

Daily except Thu 8:00 am – 2:00 am. An institution, probably older than Vienna itself and it’s getting better with age.

                 (1., Dorotheergasse 6)

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Café Sperl

Mon-Sat 7:00 am – 11:00 pm, Sun 11:00 am – 8:00 pm, closed on Sundays in July, August. A very charming Café off the beaten track near Naschmarkt. 

                  (6., Gumpendorfer Str. 11)

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Palmenhaus

Daily 10:00 am – 2:00 am. Wonderful Café in an old greenhouse in the park next to the Hofburg with 100 tables outside, this is the place to see and be seen.

                 (1., Burggarten 1)

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Sacher Eck

Daily 9:00 am – 1:00 am. Yes, that is the place where the famous “Original Sacher Torte” comes from. Of course expensive but WTF?

                 (1., Philharmonikerstraße 4)

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Zanoni Eissalon Garda

Daily 9:00 am – 10:00 pm. Without doubt, the Zanonis make Vienna’s greatest ice cream - after all, aunt Giovanna is married with the guy who brought the art of making Italian ice cream from Riva to Vienna in the fifties. One of their venues is nicely located right between our two hostels!

                 (15., Mariahilfer Straße 140)