History

Franz Sacher invented the Sachertorte in 1832, aged 16, while filling in as the apprentice pastry chef in Prince Metternich's kitchen. The recipe was perfected by his son Eduard at Demel before the family opened Hotel Sacher in 1876. A long legal dispute between Hotel Sacher and Demel was settled in 1963: Hotel Sacher won the right to the 'Original Sachertorte' name and the round seal; Demel uses a triangular 'Eduard-Sacher-Torte' seal to this day. Both versions are still made by hand at the respective addresses.

Common allergens: Gluten, Egg, Dairy

Make it at home

Yield 12Hands-on 45 minTotal 3 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 150g dark chocolate, 55 to 60 percent cocoa
  • 150g unsalted butter, soft
  • 120g icing sugar, plus 100g caster sugar
  • 6 eggs, separated
  • 150g plain flour, sifted
  • 1 pinch sea salt
  • 300g apricot jam, sieved
  • 200g dark chocolate, 70 percent cocoa, for the glaze
  • 200g caster sugar, 125ml water, for the syrup
  • Whipped cream, unsweetened, to serve

Method

  1. Heat oven to 170 degrees. Line a 23cm springform tin. Melt the 150g chocolate over a bain-marie, set aside to cool.
  2. Cream butter and icing sugar until pale. Beat in egg yolks one by one, then the melted chocolate. Sift in flour and salt.
  3. Whisk the egg whites with the 100g caster sugar to soft peaks. Fold a third into the chocolate batter to loosen, then fold the rest in carefully.
  4. Pour into the tin, bake 50 minutes until a skewer comes out with a few crumbs. Cool in the tin 10 minutes, then turn out and cool completely.
  5. Split the cooled cake horizontally. Warm the apricot jam to a brushable glaze. Brush both cut sides, sandwich together, and brush the whole cake.
  6. For the glaze, boil the sugar and water 5 minutes to a syrup. Off heat, stir in the 70 percent chocolate until glossy. Pour over the cake, smooth quickly with a palette knife. Let set for one hour.

Tip from the editors. The apricot jam layer is what keeps the cake moist for days; do not skip the brush over the top before glazing.

Where to eat sachertorte

Sachertorte in Vienna

Cafe Sacher Wien ★ 4.3

Café€innere-stadtMon-Sun 07:00-23:00Wifi

Cafe Sacher inside Hotel Sacher on Philharmoniker Strasse in Vienna serves the Original Sachertorte under chandeliers across from the State Opera.

Signature drink: Sacher coffee

Tip: The slice with whipped cream sells out by 17:00 on busy days; arrive before the matinee crowd.

Philharmoniker Strasse 4, 1010 Wien

Demel ★ 4.5

Café€innere-stadt

Demel on Kohlmarkt has been a court confectioner since 1786, the Eduard-Sacher-Torte and Anna-Torte from the K. und K. Hofzuckerbaecker still served.

Signature drink: Hot chocolate

Tip: The first-floor dining room takes the queue; the ground-floor takeaway moves faster for a Sachertorte to-go.

Kohlmarkt 14, 1010 Wien

Cafe Landtmann ★ 4.4

Café€innere-stadtWork-friendlyWifi

Cafe Landtmann on Universitaetsring in Vienna has poured at the Burgtheater corner since 1873, Sigmund Freud's preferred coffeehouse with a long carte.

Signature drink: Grosser Brauner

Tip: Open daily 07:30 to midnight; the front-room bench seats face the Burgtheater across the Ring.

Universitaetsring 4, 1010 Wien

Kurkonditorei Oberlaa ★ 4.4

Bakery€innere-stadtMon-Sun 08:00-20:00Viennese Konditorei

Kurkonditorei Oberlaa on Neuer Markt in Vienna runs the Karl Schuhmacher Konditorei from 1974, the wide carte of Torten the modern alternative to the Demel.

Tip: The Oberlaa Torte is the house signature; the Mehlspeisen counter beats the cafe for takeaway.

Worth the queue: Oberlaa Torte

Neuer Markt 16, 1010 Wien

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