Sacher torte

Tasting a sacher torte is definitely a must when in Vienna. That's exactly what we did during our first visit last October. My husband and I shared a sacher torte at Cafe Aida in Stephansplatz, and regretfully I must say we were not impressed with how the cake compared to the Aida's Mozart cake. You may want to read more about this here.

 

During our recent trip to Vienna last August we were looking forward to find a Sacher torte which was as good as history behind this cake suggests. I cannot say whether we found the best Sacher cake, as I have only tasted 3 in total but I can definitely say the cake was delicious, so delicious that it ranks at the top of all the chocolate cakes I have eaten so far. If you are wondering where you can eat this cake, I can tell you this small cute cafe' is located right in the centre of the old city, in one of the most famous shopping strees, few metres away from Steffl department store. If you have not guessed it yet, I am talking about the L. Heiner Kartnerstrabe cafe'. Below are few pictures of the cafe and the desserts we got to try. 

 

Entrance of the ground floor level at L. Heiner Cafe'

Truffle cake at L.Heiner Cafe in Kartnerstrabe Vienna

Best sacher torte I ever ate. Cafe' L. Heiner in Kartnerstrabe, Vienna

 

 

If you would like to try more sacher tortes, I have heard that the best one is made at the famous Demel cafe' in Kohlmarkt. The Cafe Sacher in Kartnerstrabe seems to make a great sacher torte too, and is also a very elegant cafe'.

 

Speaking of Cafe' Demel, I am shy to say that I only discovered this cafe' thanks to the blog Merisi Vienna for Beginners. The author states that this cafe' is the oldest cafe' in Vienna and is thus a must attraction to visit. So while I did not get to try the cafe' during my first visit to Vienna, I made sure to go on the last day during my recent trip there. I actually went twice, the first time my husband and I just looked around through the shop selling hand made chocolates. We also had a look at the cakes and didn't end up staying because there was no outdoor seating. The second time we spotted the big chocolate cake in the cake window called Anna cake, which is one of Demel's signature cakes, and we knew we had to try it. So we waited in line to be seated on the second floor. Yes, this cafe' is so popular that you have to wait to be seated at least 15 minutes. We had 2 cappuccinos and 2 Anna tortes. The bill came 19 euros, including the glass of water each which all cafes in Vienna provide like it's done in Italy. It was definitely the most expensive cake and cappuccino I ever had but it was worth the price. As you can see in the pictures below, there is a section of the kitchen where cakes get prepared which can be seen by the public through the glass partition.

 

Demel's menu

Anna torte in Demel cafe Vienna

Second floor at Demel Cafe'

Demel Cafe' kitchen

Demel Cafe' own chocolate delicacies for sale.

First floor at Demel Cafe in Vienna

 

Vienna is not however only about the sacher torte. The many cafes scattered throughout the city offer different sorts of chocolate cakes, and a must try in my opinion is the Mozart cake at cafe' Aida. Below are some pictures taken during our recent visit to cafe' Aida inside the Donauzentrum shopping mall.

 

Mozart cake at Cafe' Aida, in Donauzentrum (also located in Stephansplatz) Vienna

 

Cake and coffee is part of the Viennese culture. In my opinion this ritual blends perfectly with the cold weather and the many sightseeing options as it is the perfect treat to have during an afternoon spent shopping, or sightseeing or even as a break from working or to shelter oneself during a cold and rainy day. One thing I keep asking myself is what is the secret of the Viennese women, which makes them be so tall and slim while enjoying all these chocolate cakes. Who knows....it might be all the walking done since a great percentage of the population uses public transport instead of the car, the sports practices at the Green Prater on Sunday morning or simply lucky genes. And while I am not blessed with these genes myself, I look forward to eating more chocolate cakes during my next visit in Vienna. There are so many nice cafes we didn't get to try including Sperl cafe', Cafe' Central, Cafe' Landtmann, Cafe' Leopold Hawelka, Burgring 1, Cafe' Le Bol and Kleines Cafe.'

 

What about you do you love a chocolate cake and cappuccino?

Which is your favourite cafe' in Vienna? Share it in the comments below.

 

STAY FAB