A veal cutlet hammered paper-thin, dredged in flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs, then fried in clarified butter until the breading lifts off the meat in a golden hood.

The Wiener Schnitzel is documented in Viennese cookbooks from the late 19th century but is older as a court-cuisine technique; the breaded cutlet may have travelled from northern Italy in the cotoletta alla milanese tradition. The veal version is the Austrian protected name; the pork version (Schnitzel Wiener Art) is the cheaper everyday plate. Figlmueller on Wollzeile has hammered the dish since 1905, Lugeck and Meissl & Schadn cook the veal version, Plachutta the canonical veal at Wollzeile.

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