Vienna Coffeehouses and Cafés

As one of the great capital cities of "Old Europe", Vienna’s fine coffeehouse tradition has existed for well-over 300 years. Hence, despite Starbucks’ enthusiasm in attempting to conquer the city, the Seattle company has - in most respects - a long way to go before it can teach the Viennese about coffee culture (though we do applaud its non-smoking policy).

The Viennese Kaffeehäuser, should be likened to literary cafés of Paris, rather than the espresso bars of Mlian. For here, in these venerable old institutions, artists, poets and writers look for inspiration, actors seek their muse and intellectuals/revolutionaries put the world to rights or plot social upheaval.

Introduced by the Turks in 1683, coffee is very much the lifeblood of the city. Not surprising therefore that locals drink twice as much of the stuff as they do beer (though, unfortunately, we have no statistics on how many Sacher or Linzertorte are served as an accompaniment).

Nowadays, of course, locals and overseas travellers alike take coffee in Vienna’s most famous, and best loved establishments (such as the Hotel Sacher and Demel), simply to enjoy their delightful turn-of-the-19th-century charm and elegance. And quite right too!

However, to visit and not sample such mouth-watering cakes as Imperial and Esterházy torte, or a fabulous topfenstrudel (a strudel with a sweet cheese filling) would be a travesty indeed!