Bistros, trattorias and the everyday places where Vienna actually eats.
Bistros, trattorias, taverns and neighbourhood rooms: the mid-tier places where Vienna actually eats.
Gasthaus Poeschl on Weihburggasse in Vienna's first district is a Hermann Czech-renovated Beisl turning out the canonical Viennese carte, with Wiener.
OrderWiener Schnitzel; the Backhendlsalat is the lunch alternative.
TipOpen Monday to Saturday 12:00-23:00, kitchen to 22:00; book the back room for a quieter table.
Gasthaus Wolf on Grosse Neugasse in Vienna's Wieden cooks classical Beisl plates with a serious offal carte, a wood-panelled side-street room locals book.
OrderBeuschel; the kitchen's offal handling is what brings the regulars back.
TipDinner only, Monday to Friday from 18:00; the room takes weekends off and books up two weeks ahead.
Gasthaus Ubl on Pressgasse in Vienna's Wieden has been a family-run Beisl for over fifty years, the green-tiled stove and wood-panelled rooms turning out.
OrderZwiebelrostbraten with crisp onions; the kitchen's most-ordered plate.
TipCash only; book by phone because the room is almost always full.
Glacis Beisl inside the MuseumsQuartier on Breite Gasse in Vienna's Neubau cooks classical Viennese plates in a tucked-away bistro with a walnut-shaded.
OrderWiener Schnitzel from the lunchtime carte, with a Pfiff of Gemischter Satz.
TipOpen daily 12:00 to midnight, kitchen to 22:30; the walled garden under the old walnut trees is the room's best seat.
Figlmueller Baeckerstrasse in Vienna's first district runs the Figlmueller pork-Schnitzel carte across the cobbled square from the original Wollzeile room.
OrderThe Original Figlmueller Schnitzel; one plate-overhanging cutlet feeds two.
TipOpen daily 11:30-23:30, kitchen to 22:00; the Schnitzel-plus-Beisl menu also runs a vegan Schnitzel option.
Cafe Anzengruber on Schleifmuehlgasse in Vienna's Freihausviertel has been in Croatian hands since 1949, serving Wiener Schnitzel and one of the city's most.
OrderGoulash with bread dumpling; the kitchen's signature.
TipSit in the Schanigarten in summer; the room turns into a football-screening crowd when the Croatian team plays.
Schweizerhaus in Vienna's Prater is the city's most famous beer garden, the Karlovary-style pork Stelze and unfiltered Budvar tap drawing crowds from March.
OrderStelze, the slow-roasted pork knuckle, with sauerkraut and a Krug of Budvar.
TipOpen mid-March to 31 October only; the Stelze sells out by 21:00 on busy summer evenings.
Vollpension on Schleifmuehlgasse in Vienna's Wieden hires Viennese grandmothers and grandfathers to bake the menu of Strudel, Torten and Mehlspeise.
OrderApfelstrudel with vanilla sauce, made that morning by one of the resident grandmothers.
TipThe dining room fills fast on weekends; the Naschmarkt branch at Stand 343 takes the spillover.
Neni am Naschmarkt at Stand 510 on Vienna's Naschmarkt has been Haya Molcho's flagship since 2009, cooking Israeli and Levantine plates upstairs.
OrderSabich, fried aubergine with egg and hummus; weekend brunch leans on shakshuka.
TipOpen Monday to Saturday from breakfast; Sundays the Naschmarkt stalls close but the cafe stays open until 21:00.
Tewa at Stand 672 on Vienna's Naschmarkt cooks organic vegetarian plates with a Levantine accent, named for the Hebrew word for nature, open since 2007.
OrderThe hummus plate with warm pita; vegan options run the length of the carte.
TipThe market stand opens earlier than the inside cafe; eat shakshuka outside on weekend mornings.
Ulrich on Sankt-Ulrichs-Platz in Vienna's Neubau cooks all-day plates and a serious weekend brunch, the leafy corner square one of the 7th district's best.
OrderThe weekend brunch board with house granola, eggs and the Spittelberg sourdough.
TipOpen daily from 09:00; book a table on the leafy Sankt-Ulrichs-Platz terrace for weekend brunch.
Huth Gastwirtschaft on Schellinggasse in Vienna's first district cooks Beisl classics in a sober wood-panelled room, the Huth family's quiet.
OrderTafelspitz with apple horseradish; the kitchen runs it daily.
TipOpen daily 11:30-23:30, kitchen to 22:30; book a back-room table for a calmer dinner.
Plachutta Hietzing serves the family's canonical Tafelspitz across town in 1130 Hietzing, an opera-quiet 13th-district room that draws Schoenbrunn locals.
OrderTafelspitz with the full set of sides; the cut of the day is the recommended order.
TipA quieter Tafelspitz alternative to Wollzeile, especially at lunch; the 1130 postcode makes parking easier too.
Labstelle on Lugeck in Vienna's first district cooks a regional, seasonal carte under a vaulted brick ceiling, a quieter alternative to the schnitzel rooms.
OrderThe five-course seasonal menu; the kitchen rebuilds it monthly.
TipThe walled inner courtyard is the room's summer-evening seat; book ahead for Friday and Saturday.
Reinthaler's on Dorotheergasse off Graben is an old-school Beisl with no closing day, the kitchen running 11:00-22:30 and the parlour bright with locals.
OrderWiener Schnitzel with parsley potatoes and a Spritzer to drink.
TipOpen every day with no closing day; phone reservations preferred between 09:00 and 12:00.
Gasthaus Kopp on Engerthstrasse in Brigittenau is a family-run Beisl since 1978, the room serving plate-overhanging Schnitzel at neighbourhood prices.
OrderWiener Schnitzel with the warm potato salad, Beuschel for old-Vienna offal lovers.
TipCash preferred; the lunch menu is the best-value plate in the district.
Reznicek on Reznicekgasse in Alsergrund is Simon Schubert and Julian Lechner's modern Wirtshaus, swapping the card each season alongside a serious wine list.
OrderWhatever roast is on the card; the wine list is deeper than most Beisl in the district.
TipMid-week dinner is easier to book than weekends; closed Sundays.
Cafe Englaender on Postgasse in the first district is a coffee-house-restaurant with 90 Falstaff points, the room a meeting place for the arts crowd.
OrderWiener Schnitzel for the classics-leaning card; the daily Mittagsmenue is the value play.
TipThe sister Cafe Englaender at Praterstern 9 in the 2nd district runs the same kitchen, easier to walk in on a busy weekend night.
Stuwer on Stuwerstrasse in Leopoldstadt is a new-Vienna Beisl that mixes Backhendl and Schnitzel with grilled pulpo for the local Prater crowd.
OrderThe Backhendl for traditionalists; the grilled pulpo for the modern card.
TipThe terrace tables face quiet Stuwerstrasse in summer; an easy walk from Praterstern.
Salm Braeu on Rennweg brews its own beer inside the Salesianer monastery vaults, the kitchen serving pork knuckle and Schnitzel with the house lager.
OrderSchweinshaxe with house Helles lager; the New England Pale Ale rotates seasonally.
TipOpen daily 11:00-23:00; the vaulted-cellar tables behind the kitchen feel furthest from the Belvedere foot traffic.
Schnitzelwirt on Neubaugasse in Neubau is a green-tiled-stove old-school Schnitzel room, the portions famously twice the standard size at bargain prices.
OrderThe classic Wiener Schnitzel or the filled Don Carlos with ham, mushrooms and peppers.
TipTue-Sat 10:45-21:30, closed Sun-Mon and holidays; the garden seats open in warm months.
Kolar on Kleeblattgasse in the first district is a small Beisl that lands on every local Beisl shortlist, the back parlour and bar room each their own crowd.
OrderThe Wiener Schnitzel and a house Spritzer; the lunch menu is the daily-value play.
TipThe bar at the front is the locals' room; the dining bench at the back takes reservations.
Pfarrwirt on Pfarrplatz in Heiligenstadt claims to be Vienna's oldest inn, the courtyard kitchen serving classic Austrian plates next to the village church.
OrderTafelspitz with apple-horseradish and creamed spinach, or the seasonal game card in autumn.
TipDaily 12:00-24:00; the Schanigarten under the chestnut trees is the room's summer seat.
Servitenwirt on Servitengasse in Alsergrund sits across from the Servitenkirche, the church-square terrace among Vienna's quietest summer Schanigartens.
OrderWiener Schnitzel with cucumber salad, then a Topfenstrudel for dessert.
TipThe terrace under the church plane trees is the room's headline seat; come on a weekday lunch.
Am Nordpol 3 on Nordpolstrasse in Brigittenau is a Bohemian-Viennese gem near the Augarten, the painted dining room famous for its plate-sized Schnitzel.
OrderWiener Schnitzel with bread dumplings and warm cabbage salad.
TipA 15-minute walk from Schottenring U-Bahn; the bar room runs later than the dining room.
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