Cafeography
Konditoreien · Vienna

Konditoreien and cake in Vienna

Court confectioners on Kohlmarkt and Rathausplatz, strudel and Krapfen, and cake cafés in Mariahilf and Neubau.

Photo: Jonas Horsch, Pexels License

A Konditorei is a pastry shop, and many in Vienna have a café attached. The trade goes by two names, Konditor or Zuckerbäcker (sugar baker); under Maria Theresia the craft was renamed from the second to the first.1 The oldest houses still carry their court titles: Demel became a k.u.k. Hofzuckerbäcker (confectioner to the imperial and royal court) under Franz Joseph I in 1874, and Sluka received the title in 1896.23

The order is a slice of Torte (layer cake), a strudel or a seasonal pastry with a coffee. The best known is the Sachertorte, a chocolate cake with apricot jam under dark chocolate frosting, which in Austria comes with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream on the side.45

Local tip: Go during Fasching for Krapfen, and say so if you want vanilla cream: the standard filling is apricot jam.7

Where these cafés are: Innere Stadt (1.) (14), Mariahilf (6.) (12), Neubau (7.) (9), Leopoldstadt (2.) (7), Landstraße (3.) (6), Alsergrund (9.) (5), Margareten (5.) (5), Wieden (4.) (4), Döbling (19.) (4), Josefstadt (8.) (4), Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus (15.) (4), Meidling (12.) (3), Hernals (17.) (3), Brigittenau (20.) (3), Penzing (14.) (1), Währing (18.) (1), Hietzing (13.) (1), Liesing (23.) (1).

At a glance

87Cafés listed
50With opening hours
06:00Earliest opening
01:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Yildirim, from 06:00 (Mon–Sat 06:00–19:00).
  • Closes latest: Alte Bäckerei, until 01:00 (Mon–Thu 10:00–00:00 · Fri–Sat 10:00–01:00 · Sun 10:00–23:00).
  • Most common features: indoor seating (52%), vegetarian options (51%), outdoor seating (38%).
Mariahilf (6.)

ausnahmsweise

ausnahmsweise - Café for vegan, gluten-free cakes

  • Hofmühlgasse 18
  • Tue–Sat 12:00–18:30
  • +43 681 10591872
  • Indoor seating
  • Card payment
  • Vegetarian options
  • Partial wheelchair access
  • Toilets
  • Smoke-free indoors
  • Bakery café
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Mariahilf (6.)

L'Amour du Pain

  • Otto-Bauer-Gasse 21
  • Mon–Sat 07:00–19:00
  • +436781220689
  • Takeaway
  • Indoor seating
  • Card payment
  • Vegetarian options
  • Partial wheelchair access
  • Toilets
  • Bakery café
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Demel, Sluka and the court confectioners

Ludwig Dehne, a confectioner from Württemberg, founded Demel on Michaelerplatz in 1786. It moved around the corner to Kohlmarkt 14 in 1888, when the old Burgtheater was torn down, and Empress Elisabeth was among its 19th-century customers.2 Do & Co took the business over in 2002.2 The shop opens daily 10:00–19:00.

Wilhelm Josef Sluka and his wife Josefine opened their Konditorei in 1891 at what is now Rathausplatz 8.3 Sluka there opens at 08:00 from Monday to Saturday, and its shop on Weihburggasse at 09:00. Gerstner, which trades as a k.u.k. Hoflieferant (purveyor to the court), keeps its café at Kärntner Straße 51 open until 23:00 every day.

Sachertorte and the Demel dispute

Franz Sacher gets the credit for the cake. One account dates it to 1832, when he was 15 or 16 and baked it for Prince Metternich, though Sacher himself later placed it in the 1840s in Pressburg.4 In 1934 Demel began selling a single-layer version as the “Eduard Sacher-Torte”, while Hotel Sacher kept its two-layer “Original Sacher-Torte”.4

The quarrel ended in 1963 after reaching the Austrian Supreme Court, and today Demel sells “Demel's Sacher-Torte” while the hotel keeps the “Original”; Demel had switched to two layers by 2022.4 At Café Museum on Operngasse a slice cost €8.50 in 2026, with whipped cream €1.30 extra.5

Strudel and Krapfen

Strudel reached Vienna by way of Hungary during the Turkish wars and was an established Viennese pastry by the 18th century.6 The Wienbibliothek im Rathaus holds what is probably the oldest known strudel recipe, in a handwritten cookbook from 1696.6 The famous fillings are Apfel (apple), Topfen (curd cheese) and Milchrahm (milk-cream).6 Café Museum's Topfenstrudel comes with raisins, and in 2026 it cost €8.20, the same as the apple strudel, with warm vanilla custard €3 extra.5

Krapfen, filled doughnuts, belong to Fasching, the carnival season. Under the Austrian food code a Faschingskrapfen is filled with apricot jam; vanilla cream or nougat are the variations.7 About 10 million Krapfen are said to have been eaten during the Congress of Vienna in 1815.7

Cake cafés outside the Ring

The Innere Stadt has the most Konditoreien and cake cafés, with Mariahilf second and Neubau third. The older family shops open early: Cafe-Konditorei Angelmayer on Meiselstraße starts at 07:00 on weekdays, and Cafe-Konditorei A. Blocher at Lindengasse 2 opens at 07:00 from Monday to Thursday. Café & Konditorei Groissböck at Schönbrunner Straße 228 takes cash only.

In Mariahilf the newer cake cafés gather around Stumpergasse and Hofmühlgasse. Gartencafé at Stumpergasse 3 has vegan options, takes cash only and closes on Saturdays, and ausnahmsweise at Hofmühlgasse 18 opens Tuesday to Saturday from 12:00. In the 1st, Kashtan Patisserie on Goldschmiedgasse serves daily until 21:00.

Sources

  1. Konditorei, Wikipedia (German), accessed October 2026
  2. Demel, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Wilhelm J. Sluka, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Sachertorte, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  5. Coffee & Cakes menu 2026, Café Museum, accessed October 2026
  6. Strudel, Wien Geschichte Wiki (Stadt Wien), accessed October 2026
  7. Krapfen, Wien Geschichte Wiki (Stadt Wien), accessed October 2026
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By area: Innere Stadt (1.) Leopoldstadt (2.) Landstraße (3.) Wieden (4.) Mariahilf (6.) Neubau (7.) Josefstadt (8.) Alsergrund (9.)

FAQ

Konditoreien & cake in Vienna: questions

What is the difference between Demel's and Hotel Sacher's Sachertorte in Vienna?

Hotel Sacher sells the “Original Sacher-Torte” with two layers of chocolate sponge. Demel sells “Demel's Sacher-Torte”, which historically had a single layer, though Demel had switched to two by 2022. The two houses fought over the name until 1963. Both are chocolate cakes with apricot jam under dark chocolate frosting, served with unsweetened whipped cream.

How much does a slice of cake cost in a Vienna café?

At Café Museum on Operngasse, a slice of Sachertorte cost €8.50 in 2026, with whipped cream €1.30 extra. Apple strudel and Topfenstrudel, the curd cheese strudel with raisins, cost €8.20 each, and warm vanilla custard added €3. Prices are from the café's 2026 coffee and cake menu.

Which Konditoreien in Vienna were court confectioners?

Demel, founded on Michaelerplatz in 1786 and at Kohlmarkt 14 since 1888, became a k.u.k. Hofzuckerbäcker, confectioner to the imperial and royal court, in 1874. Sluka, opened in 1891 by Wilhelm Josef and Josefine Sluka at today's Rathausplatz 8, received the title in 1896. Gerstner on Kärntner Straße trades as a k.u.k. Hoflieferant.

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