The beloved local boutique artisan bakery has done it again

If you were to list all the current food trends out there and compare them to the sophisticated concept of the new Joseph Brot Bistro in the 7th district, it would be like ticking off all the boxes boxes on that list: hip looking personel with stylish aprons, an artisan looking display cabinet for bread, free-range and organic everything, matcha this, kale that, smoothies, a local interpretation of the ramen, brioche burgers, and of course, the famous avocado toast – it’s all there.

We remembered a few months ago when in Australia, a millionaire told millennials that the reason they can’t afford real estate is because they spend all their money on avocado toast. This reality fits as good in Vienna as anywhere else, where real estate ownership is a myth we heard about from somebody’s grandparents and at Joseph, an avocado toast will cost you 12€. The Joseph interpretation of this brunch favourite is made with gluten-free, organic ingredients & amaranth toast, tofu and cherry tomatoes, and you can add some protein to it like a poached egg, or smoked salmon, for an extra 2-3€. Is it good? You bet! Do you end up paying 15€ for toasted bread with avocado and egg? Yes, you certainly do.

There is also some fancy looking eggs bennedict on the breakfast menu, scrambled eggs with bacon, “pretty” homemade granola and a banana-coconut-polenta porridge for those with a sweet tooth in the morning.

All the baked goods are exceptionally good, from the pastries and tarts to the massive loaves of artisan bread lining the wall behind the service counter.

The coffee comes in real trained barista prepared quality, and the bistro space in which to enjoy it all – as is typically Joseph’s style – is bright, clean, beautiful and irresistably inviting.

The family-friendly place is packed and filled with chatter and laughter, and the open kitchen, where you can see the bread rising in the oven and the chefs flipping their pans, adds a charm and energy to the place.

While eggs are being scrambled and toasts are being buttered, something more is going down in the kitchen that puts on a constant show if you sit on the high stools looking over it – the lunch and evening dishes being simmered and roasted. We watch a slow cooked lamb being taken out of the oven that will later be served as an evening main. There’s also an intense broth boiling away that we guess will be the ramen on the menu.

The many wine boxes and bottles filling up the shelves signal that the indulgence doesn’t just stop at the food menu, yet rather that the fun begins once the smoothies have gone to bed.

This fancy joint knows what it’s doing: the products are local, they cater to every special diet, the language on the menu is pure Austrian and there is a surprising combination of flavours in the mix that has the exotic meeting the local – Blunzenbrot with Yuzu-Mayo anyone? 

You can taste the something special that pushes the prices up in every bite, so when the bill comes, we willingly accept and acknowledge what we’ve paid a few extra bucks for.

Bravo to this city’s self-made boutique baker – Joseph, you’ve done it again.