And Café Schopenhauer in the 18th district shows how it’s done. In Vienna, a disco ball and traditional coffeehouse atmosphere don’t necessarily have to represent a jarring contradiction. Kur Konditorei Oberlaa is perfect for a rest after a walk around the sights at Central Cemetery – featuring treats from the famously delicious Oberlaa patisserie. While the Central Cemetery might seem like an unusual place for a café, it does go to show what an unusual relationship the Viennese have with the subject of death. There is even a coffeehouse at one of Vienna’s cemeteries. Today, Café Landtmann, like Café Schwarzenberg, is just one of a handful of reminders of the original 27 legendary cafés that lined the Ringstrasse boulevard. And at the turn of the century it celebrated the golden era of Viennese coffeehouses. Even so, Café Landtmann was a success from the word go. In 1873 it was surrounded by major building sites, with work on City Hall, the University and Parliament only just starting. The decision to open a coffeehouse at this location was a bold one. Originally typicalĬafé Landtmann opened on the Ringstrasse in 1873 – the same year that Vienna hosted the World Expo – which means that its 150th jubilee is coming up in 2023. People went to coffeehouses to read, play, set the world to rights, share philosophical ideas and to write. The Viennese coffeehouse had its heyday at the end of the 19th century. It wasn’t just the extra glass of water that took off in other places due to the World Expo countless visitors from all over the world had their first encounters with Viennese coffeehouse culture in 1873, too. To this day, a glass of water is a seal of quality and the practice was then adopted in other countries. Serving a glass of water with every cup of coffee was the cafe operators’ way of showing that their food and drinks were prepared using clean, crystal-clear mountain spring water. ![]() ![]() Later it became a way for coffeehouse owners to show off the quality of the water used to make their coffee – something that took on added significance with the World Expo of 1873, which was staged in the same year that the First Vienna Mountain Spring Pipeline came online. Originally the glass of water was served to give patrons somewhere to put their spoon once they had finished stirring their coffee. Today, the Einspänner is also served in Vienna’s coffeehouses, in a stylish glass mug with a handle. So to meet the brief, their mokka (double espresso) was covered with a large topping of whipped cream for insulation. While the carriage driver holds their coffee, sitting on the box, they want it to stay warm for as long as possible. This particular coffee specialty has its origins in a cart or carriage drawn by a single horse, known as an Einspänner or single-span. Like Viennese Heuriger wine tavern culture, traditional Viennese coffeehouse culture now appears on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural assets.Ī central reason recorded in the official UNESCO report is that “the coffeehouses are a place where patrons consume time and space, but only the coffee appears on the bill.” ![]() Intangible cultural heritage of UNESCOĪ typical Viennese coffeehouse exudes a unique atmosphere with booths, bentwood Thonet chairs, marble and newspaper tables and coffee in all its rich variety from Melange (a shot of espresso “lengthened” slightly with hot water, topped up with hot milk and milk foam) to Einspänner (mokka in a glass, topped with whipped cream). And not everyone will be aware of the ten facts that follow. The German writer Bertolt Brecht summed it up perfectly when he said of Vienna: “The city is built around a few coffeehouses where the population sits together and reads papers.” There is a lot to be said about Viennese coffeehouses. The Viennese coffeehouse is an institution.
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