9 new places in Vienna’s up-and-coming 9th district

As the name suggests, 1683 Handmade Bagels & Farm Coffee want to unite two very traditional Viennese things: coffee and bagels. Bagels and Viennese? Yes, you’ve heard right. Rumour has it that our lovely little city of Vienna is the birthplace of the bagel. At this little bagel coffee shop, they’ll serve you a round piece of history, as they get their kosher bagel from a bakery who’s baking them according to an old traditional recipe from 1683. There’s a selection of types and of fillings  (chicken breast, avocado, etc), and there’s also a kosher and a vegan bagel on the menu. Also, as the name would suggest, the coffee is an artisan affair, as well.

1683 Handmade Bagels & Farm Coffee not only celebrate the bagel, but they also incorporate organic ingredients, high quality and sustainability into their concept. In the narrow, yet roomy cafe on Währinger Straße, you should also spend some time looking at the walls. They had a caricaturist come in and draw the story of the bagel on the walls. Educational and damn tasty! This place is incredible!

We also recommend… a cinnamon-raising-bagel filled with chocolate cream, or one of their homemade lemonades!
What we especially love… the Wiener Schmäh that you’ll find there.

Plus: Open on public holidays!

La Mercerie is a true Parisian bakery/ bistro, right in the midst of one of Vienna’s most charming areas, the Servietenviertel of the 9th district. Once you find yourself sitting in the garden out front, or inside looking out the big windows, you’ll know you’ve achieved that state of being that the French live by – eat, love, laugh and live well. There’s an old wooden exterior encasing the place, and if you look down you’ll find beautiful old tiles covering the floor. We say ‘if’ as you’ll find it hard to convince your attention to wander from what sits in the pastry cabinet. A range of authentic, fresh and homemade French baked goods are presented as proud as the French in there. And what makes the baked treats at La Mercerie even more special is that everything (except for the éclairs that come from France), is made on the premises from scratch. Including the authentic handmade French baguette (and the mini one for 95 cents), and the selection of great breakfast pastries, like the brioche, pain au chocolat, pain au raisins. La Mercerie also boasts a bona fide croissant.

The café boasts a shiny vintage interior, definitely tapping into the hipster corner here, and with touristy greetings from Vienna drawings on the wall, referring to the name of the café. The coffee is the real deal and we’ll confidently stamp it with the ‘specialty’ label. With a menu of an impressive selection of different dishes from all over the world, while they are also trend hunters here at Cafe Telegraph, with a full page dedicated to Avocado-ccentric dishes, and very hipster-y Bowls. However, breakfast is the main meal of the day here (unless you count cake as a meal, which is totally above board if you do) with over 2 pages dedicated to it in their menu. They even have a whole page full of just avocado-centric breakfast dishes – proof that they’re taking breakfast to new heights in Vienna.

Meanwhile, they also have a secret French weapon that comes in the form of a trained patisserie chef. Chef pâtissière Sophie makes a fresh selection of French éclairs that come in different flavours, including the classic ones with vanilla, chocolate and pistachio, plus one seasonal variety.

Hidden away on a street that is a hop, skip and a jump away from the Votivkirche in the 9^thdistrict, the look of the place is even conducive to lazy morning breakfasts that last for hours, or afternoon coffee and cake – the bold-patterened tiles that will make you want to photograph everything with them as a backdrop, the large Schanigarten on the quiet street, the window booth seats, not to mention the quick and friendly service.

The cheesecake is also earning it a name for itself, while one could say the same about all of the pretty pastries in their cake cabinet.

The coffee is good and comes in a cup made out of recycled used coffee grounds, which we just found f*** cool. Almost as f*** cool as the fact that they were playing Destiny’s Child in the background while we were there.

Also good to know… is that their logo is actually morse code, and spells the café’s name.
We recommend… sitting outside in the cafe’s big Schanigarten while enjoying an Acai Bowl after your yoga class.

Vienna’s first Icelandic café opened about a year ago, and its name describes accurately the feel of the place. At Home cafe, they serve up some great homemade Icelandic food (with fresh fish delivered weekly from Iceland), homemade bread, good coffee and heartwarming friendliness. They aim to make everything they can themselves at this random cafe, and what they can’t do in house, they either buy locally, or try and import it in from Iceland. They used to change up the menu on an almost daily basis and served what their chef felt like (or what ingredients and fish they could get their hands on). Now, they’ve put the most popular dishes on the menu, but this one is still not set in stone. So every visit is a new surprise!

The idea behind this super cosy café, with the mix and match interior, is to bring a little bit of their Icelandic home to Vienna in the space of a living room atmosphere. And they’ve succeeded – it’s comfy, inviting and makes you want to cocoon up in it for the day.

They also have some great craft beer on tap from the local microbrewers, Brew Age.

We recommend… the Hjónabandssæla, which is a typical Icelandic cake that translates to ‘Happy Marriage Cake’ and truly does taste like a happy marriage.
What we especially love… is that their neighbours, the specialty coffee pros, Coffee Pirates, taught them how to make coffee, and they’ve even got their own roast, called ‘Home Cafe.’

Word on the street has it that this is one of the most unique bars in town. We’re not going to confirm or refute that claim, but rather tell you some special deets’ about it. You have to ring a bell to get into Krypt, at which point you’ll be let in by some handsome bouncer. Give him a kiss on the cheek (this part isn’t obligatory, but we tend to do it anyway) and through you go, into a glass door and down some elegant stairs. At the bottom (or in the crypt), there’s a bar that’ll make you feel like you’re anywhere but Vienna. Most of the place is made out of marble, while dark wood and bold paintings make up the rest of the eye-catching elements that keep your eyes busy. While the cocktails are pricey, you pay for what you get – the selection is vast and the drinks are damn tasty, and they’ll almost always taste like the unexpected.

To explore this new Israeli gem of the 9th district, we decided to go with our strictly vegan and extremely fussy flatmate so we could get an extra critical perspective on the place. The place has a warm atmosphere, almost resembling the hip neighborhood in Tel Aviv which it’s named after. After going with the guidance of the lovely staff when choosing what we’d pick out of the menu, we’re quickly convinced that this is a standout place for when it comes to Israeli food in Vienna. The high note is definitely struck with their unique falafel and hummus recipe ( it took our flatmate by surprise and made him lick his plate clean). There’s a whole bunch of Hummus- based dishes, and we’d recommend trying the Hummus and fūl, which is a dish of cooked fava beans.

Amongst the main dishes, you’ll find the likes of the chargrilled and spiced cauliflower, Sabih open sandwich (a traditional Mizrahi Jewish sandwich), and, of course, Shakshuka.

Florentin offers delicious breakfast dishes all day long (extremely helpful if you like your daily dose of brunch without having to put on an alarm clock!). It uses only organic and regional products in their dishes, and this is noticeable in the flavour There’s no trying to be something you’re not at Florentin – the family behind the place have based it on the Israeli food, restaurants and traditions they’ve experienced and loved throughout their life in Tel Aviv, and Vienna. There’s also a welcoming international vibe about the place. The staff wrapped it up nicely when they said: “Florentin is a place where Israeli feeling and international experiences meet”.

We also recommend… the lunch menu they offer. It’s a different menu everyday and changes weekly. Also, check out their live music events on their Facebook Page.

We love… their Nana (mint) herbal tea

Where: Währinger Straße 3, 1090

Opening times
MON–THU: 5­pm–10pm
FRI: 5pm–11pm
SAT: 1pm–11pm
SUN: 12pm–11pm

Since September 2017, this dream boat burger place left it’s former waterside home on the Donaukanal and has attached itself to the bar Charlie Ps – the irish bar outfit run by the same guy, Brian Patton. Their bodacious burgers are nothing short of the real deal, and one of the daily priced boutique burgers in the city.  At ‘meat baby’ you won’t get just another boring burger, but instead, you’ll get original burger creations that go through a lot of thought before they land on the menu. The Bad Ass burger and their new Mega Cheeseburger live up to their names, while the Egg Mess and the Twin Onions makes dinner messy…but in a good way.

What makes meat baby so special is that every element of the burger is made in-house: fresh brioche burger buns, special Irish ground meat that uses 3 different parts of the cow, and some wicked good sauces. Also, because it’s attached to a pub run by a craft beer loving bunch, it’s got loads on the menu in this department, including a special beer of the month.

We recommend… definitely make a reservation as it can get busy, and do get there cheesy, cheese fries!
We love… that they do an amazing student offer that includes a burger, their homemade French fries and a soft drink!

Price guide
The Mega Cheeseburger = 8.50€
The Bob Marley Burger (veggie) = 8.90€
Bad Ass Burger = 9.90€
Charlie P’s Fish and Chips = 12.90€
Hot cheese fries = 5.90€
Student meal offer =  10€

Card accepted
Wifi available
Non-smoking

Website: www.charlieps.at

Without getting too cheesy (sorry, we couldn’t help ourselves) this  sweet looking place is what every cheese lover hopes heaven is like. With over 90 types of cheese behind their cabinet and the varieties constantly changing according to season, it’s quite possible that you can go to Edelschimmel every single day and still try something different each time (you know what they say, a different cheese a day keeps the doctor away…or something like that). Edelschimmel, is run by two young and passionate cheese pros, Klaus and Sarah.

You can get your cheese to go (feel free to ask hundreds of questions and for recommendations – they love it) or you can take a seat at one of the few tables inside and pair a cheese platter with the perfect wine.  And if this isn’t enough, they also make a cheesy quiche which makes for the perfect starter! It’s worth mentioning that the owners drew inspiration for this project from places they visited in New York. And, after the success of their other venue “Pramerl and the Wolf” (which has one freakin’ Michelin Star!) they decided to join with Klaus to open this stylish looking place dedicated to cheese. This is the place where to broaden you cheese horizons and explore the many different smells, tastes and textures of cheese.

We suggest… you go there and order cheeses you can’t pronounce the name of, or never knew existed (you can have your normal brie any day of the week).

This fine little restaurant and wine bar, MAST Weinbistro, in the 9th district will be celebrating its 1-year-anniversary this May. Three young, wine-loving men are at the core of MAST: Matthias and Steve are responsible for curating and sourcing the wine selection, and Martin is the maestro in the kitchen. Which wines make it onto the extensive wine menu is a democratic decision, but one strain through is their focus on Austrian and French wine. They select only top quality wines, of course, with a preference towards Natural wines, meaning they’ve had the minimal amount of chemical and tech involved during the production process.

Young and old, you’ll find all sorts of wine aficionados here. It’s usually always packed as there are only 10 tables in the small, but chic bar. People don’t only visit MAST for the wine, but the food also draws a crowd. As a bistro, they carry a small number of dishes that they serve for lunch and dinner. We’d say the dishes here are a mix of traditional Grandma’s kitchen, meets fine cuisine (especially in terms of the presentation).The ingredients are regionally sourced where possible, and of high quality. The menu is also adjusted to the wine they are carrying, and the current season.

Good to know… due to their preference for Natural wines, they have an extensive list of vegan wines on their menu!