Across the Donaukanal: Skopik & Lohn on Leopoldsgasse, Mochi for Japanese, Karmelitermarkt on Saturday, plus the city's strongest cluster of new-wave wine bars and kosher rooms.
Skopik & Lohn on Leopoldsgasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt cooks modern Viennese classics under Otto Zitko's hand-painted ceiling, the 2nd district's most-recommended room.
Signature: Wiener Schnitzel, Backhendlsalat
Order: Wiener Schnitzel with potato salad and lingonberries; the canonical version of the dish.
Tip: Open Monday to Saturday from 18:00 to 01:00; the bar at the front runs later than the kitchen behind.
Mochi on Praterstrasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt cooks informal Japanese plates with the chefs visible at the counter, the second district's most consistent Japanese kitchen.
Signature: Yakitori, Gyudon, Sushi rolls
Order: A yakitori flight from the binchotan grill, plus the gyudon if lunching.
Tip: Tables go fast; book online a week ahead. The takeaway across the street serves the same kitchen.
Stadtgasthaus Eisvogel on Riesenradplatz in Vienna's Prater cooks a modern reading of Viennese classics under chef Toni Schrei, directly opposite the Giant Ferris Wheel.
Signature: Wiener Schnitzel, Backhendl
Order: Wiener Schnitzel with potato salad; the kitchen's most-ordered plate.
Tip: Open daily 11:00 to midnight; the Prater-facing terrace fills first on warm evenings.
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 to October under the chestnut trees.
Signature: Stelze (pork knuckle), Budweiser Budvar
Order: Stelze, the slow-roasted pork knuckle, with sauerkraut and a Krug of Budvar.
Tip: Open mid-March to 31 October only; the Stelze sells out by 21:00 on busy summer evenings.
Balthasar Kaffee Bar on Praterstrasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt pours award-winning specialty espresso from a marble counter, a tight kitchen for sandwiches and the small Kuchen list to one side.
Tip: The cortado is the room's signature pour; the kitchen does a serious avocado toast for breakfast.
Sources from: Ethiopia, Colombia
How they serve: Espresso, Filter
Weinschenke an der Au on Tempelgasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt is the bar end of an Austrian-grower wine import operation, the long counter and back garden hosting a tight by-the-glass carte.
Signature pour: Carnuntum Zweigelt by the glass
Wine focus: Austrian growers' wines by the glass
Food: Small Viennese plates
Tip: The garden at the back is the warm-weather seat; ask for whatever Carnuntum Zweigelt they have on by the glass.
Balthasar Kaffee Bar on Praterstrasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt switches from third-wave coffee in the day to a tight cocktail carte after 18:00, the same marble counter open until midnight.
Signature drink: Espresso martini
Food: Snacks and toasts
Tip: The espresso martini is the bar's signature; aperitivo hour from 17:00 brings the post-work crowd.
Pizza Mari on Leopoldsgasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt has fired Neapolitan pizza since 2011, the wood oven and short carte the 2nd district's go-to pizza-only room.
Try: Neapolitan pizza
Tip: No reservations; the kitchen runs lunch and dinner Tuesday to Sunday. The Marinara is the regular order, no cheese, no fuss.
Karmelitermarkt on Karmeliterplatz in Vienna's Leopoldstadt is the 2nd district's quiet, organic-leaning food market, the Saturday farmers extension from 08:00 the local-only weekly shop.
Tip: Saturday morning is the busy slot; the farmers' stalls at the square's edge run until early afternoon.
Eat the World's Leopoldstadt tour in Vienna walks from Praterstrasse along the Donaukanal to the Karmelitermarkt and Augarten, with six tasting stops at neighbourhood-run restaurants and counters.
Tip: Tours run Thursday and Saturday at 14:00; book online to two hours before. Children up to 12 pay EUR 30.
Secret Vienna's Jewish-Vienna walking tour in the 2nd district covers the Karmeliterviertel's Jewish history and present-day community in three hours, the tour run by licensed local guides.
Tip: Public departures need a minimum of six guests; book through the website at least 24 hours ahead.
Pizza Mari on Leopoldsgasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt fires Neapolitan pizza for under EUR 11, the wood oven the 2nd district's most-defended cheap pizza counter since 2011.
Try: Marinara pizza
Tip: No reservations; the kitchen runs lunch and dinner Tuesday to Sunday, with the dinner queue picking up from 18:00.
Schweizerhaus in Vienna's Prater serves half a Stelze with sauerkraut for around EUR 14, the cheapest serious pork-knuckle plate in town when the chestnut-tree garden opens mid-March to October.
Try: Half Stelze with sauerkraut
Tip: Order a small Krug of Budvar to start; the kitchen runs out of Stelze by 21:00 on busy summer nights.
Balthasar Kaffee Bar on Praterstrasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt runs a small all-day brunch carte off the specialty coffee bar, the marble counter the 2nd district's quietest weekend brunch.
Order: Avocado toast on Joseph Brot sourdough, plus a cortado.
Tip: The aperitivo crowd takes over from 17:00; the morning brunch slot fills by 10:30 on Sundays.
Skopik & Lohn on Leopoldsgasse in Vienna's Leopoldstadt runs the dining room and bar until 01:00 Monday to Saturday, the late-night Schnitzel a 2nd-district fixture for the post-theatre crowd.
Try: Wiener Schnitzel
Tip: The bar at the front runs later than the kitchen behind; the cocktail carte continues to the door.