The atmosphere is incredible, from the curtly servers to the authentic and old decor. The coffee is fantastic and the food looks great. I had a roll with butter and marmalade but kept dreaming of the omelet my neighbors were eating. I can't wait to return to Vienna and revisit this gem. read more

Of the several traditional Viennese cafes that I have visited, Cafe Sperl was the least touristy of them all. The interior [spacious dining area with brass chandeliers, antiques (clocks, mirrors, etc)] is a little more demure than other cafes. However, we didn't have to wait in line for a table, and I felt at ease upon seating down. The service was spotty. Early on, the waitresses were quick to give us menus and take our orders, but after our meal, it took a long while and some effort from us before we got someone to come back to give us our check. I got the mushroom risotto with grated parmesan cheese with a side salad, and it was great (and at a great price)! Then to end my meal with a Melange was delightful! Highly recommended! read more

Stopped by here for a coffee on the way over to the market. We were sat quickly and our order was taken. I wasn't sure in which places people prefer for you to sit yourself or if you need to wait, but I think here you need to wait. We ordered two coffees, which came fairly quickly. It is a very nice cafe, and was quiet on a Tuesday morning. The food coming out to the other tables looked very fresh and tasty, but we didn't have time to have lunch. The cakes looked nice, but can't vouch they are good. If I go back to Vienna I will certainly go here to read a book and order some lunch, nice space and relaxing cafe! read more

Café Sperl - Mokka on a silver tray. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Vienna, 9

Ok lets start with the decorations..... it's like from a different age something of the old Vienna!!! The staff is short for this establishment that is why they are a bit late... but smiles everywhere I love them!!!! Lets talk about food , I like the variety the flavors very nice, well I had the eggs with tomatoes and bacon and cheese so it's easy!!!! But good!!! Hear me coffee lovers everywhere try the karlsbader brewing FEEL REAL COFFEE.... overall I left happy and full!!! read more

Café Sperl - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Vienna, 9

For being one of Vienna's YOTCHes, Sperl is not so bad, and has a decent - if pricey - cup of coffee. (I'd normally give it 3 stars, but compared to the other traditional Viennese coffee houses, it gets 4. The YOTCHes get graded on a more lenient scale.) Of course, one can sit at Sperl for hours on end, drinking a melange (cappuccino) and having a chat with a friend, while watching old Austrians smoke and read newspapers. It's what you (and they) do at Vienna's Yea Olde Traditional Coffee Houses, but at least the coffee isn't burnt, here! The last time I went here there was a guy playing the piano, which was really nice, but it didn't really make up for the expensive melange, which costs about €1 more than at other cafes (especially outside the First District). read more

Cool cafe! It's definitely retained an authentic ambiance. The waiters and waitresses are nice and helpful. Definitely more of a place to go in the morning or afternoon, though-- after 6pm they're out of most sweet things and it's pretty deserted. I once went on a Sunday afternoon for the live jazz (promised by a sign I had walked by a few days previous), but unfortunately there was no music that day. But +1 for wifi! read more

My favorite place to sit in Vienna by myself for hours. There are waitresses here who I recognize from 25 years ago. I just love it here. We recently discovered their homemade Sperlschnitte, which looked like it might be a chewy, brownie type of cake. But instead it was light and hazelnutty and meringue-y. I wish I could have the recipe. Or that I could just stop by the cafe every day and have one. read more

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Hitler spent a lot of time in this cafe. But don't let it turn you off! The inside and outside are AMAZING. I think it wins for most beautiful cafe in the whole Vienna. The inside is so damn old, covered in velvet and wood, and the walls seem quiet with historical secrets. That's how I see it anyway :P They have every newspaper you could possibly want, each bound in a newspaper cane, and all neatly arranged on a central table. The outside garden, spreading from the cafe's front door, is surrounded by leafy plants and pink flowers. The ground is grey stone with moss growing between all the cracks. The waitresses have their little uniforms... so cute. Love the place. read more

My wife wanted to experience a real coffee house. This one was close to our hotel and was well rated. She advised me that coffee houses were famous for slow service and surly wait staff so I needed to be prepared. We did have a short wait after we sat down but nothing to what I was expecting. It was actually good as it gave us a bit of time to look around and soak up the atmosphere. The waiter couldn't have been nicer. Switched to English once he realized we didn't speak German. Our order was delivered quickly and we had a nice time drinking our coffee and eating our apple strudel. The coffee was perfect and the strudel was better than I was expecting. Not the best I've ever had but still way better that way passes for apple strudel in North America. All in all a good experience. read more

Cafe Sperl was the first Viennese Cafe that I frequented during my time in Vienna and it did not disappoint. The price was right compared to other cafes. Service was excellent and I did not feel rushed at all. The atmosphere was perfect for reading a book over a slice of their perfectly balanced Sperl torte, a chocolate and almond dessert. Rich chocolate flavor complemented by the almonds texture. The decor inside was nice but the upholstery on some of the booths was very worn and could probably be reupholstered in the near future. I guess people go there a lot and stay a while--I did! read more

Café Sperl - Sperl torte--chocolate and almond cake - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Vienna, 9

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Lovely lovely lovely atmosphere! Very quiet and quaint. Had the hot chocolate and rolls for two, accompanied by a ham omelette. Food was great and service was speedy but they didn't try to hustle us out the door. Welcome for tourists and locals. Can't rave on this place enough - if I visit Vienna again, Cafe Sperl is at the top of the list!! read more

The decor is really old which is what you expect in a historical cafe, but rather chabby and unmaintained. The food is acceptable but not great. However the reason for the one star is the service, our waiter with a beautifully maintained mustache and glasses was so unpleasant, sometimes nasty and inattentive. Will never go back. read more

We visited here several times when we were in Vienna about 9 years ago. it was welcoming, charming with very good pastry. We would slip down to it from our nearby hotel on Mariahilferstrasse for a late afternoon coffee and pastry. It made our stay in Vienna warm and pleasant. read more

This was just an okay café experience. The atmosphere was not as warm, inviting, and cozy as I expected. It felt more like a regular coffee shop or restaurant with the addition of newspapers. They do offer several different publications, in both German and English. We ordered a cheese strudel and sausage. The strudel was good, but I wouldn't label it as a strudel. It was more like a very light cheesecake with phyllo dough on top because the filling tasted like sweetened ricotta. The sausage tasted like any other sausage. It was boiled, so there wasn't really anything too exciting going on there. The waitress that served us was not very pleasant. She did not smile once and seemed to refuse to speak English. This soured our overall experience and we did not end up staying very long. read more

Elegant & pretty. Great location to stop and relax and take in lovely Vienna. I will return.

Our favorite of the classic Vienna cafes. This one has the iconic billiards, newspapers, and velvet-covered booths. The service was friendly and attentive, and the breakfast fare was enjoyable (if--as expected--somewhat unremarkable). Of course, one doesn't really come here for the food or even specially for the quality of the coffee (which was also fine) but rather to be transported back to the turn of the century. And this one does it the best of the lot. read more

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Very disappointing experience - very rude waitress. I'm familiar with the Cafe, I lived around the corner for quite a few years and visited often - alas that was some years ago. Today's visit was a far cry from how I knew and remembered the Cafe. It's a classic Viennese Cafe and architecturally very beautiful but my experience today was a stark reminder that 'Viennese hospitality' can be quite a double edged sword. Leaves a bad taste. read more

Terrible service. Rude from the onset. Felt unwelcome and ended up leaving as soon as we ordered our first and only item as I didn't want to be there. The original plan was to come here and enjoy sacher cake but after 3 incidences of rudeness from the waitstaff i just felt so unwelcome. It was the waiters shoulder shrug to my dismay they were it of sacher cake at 630pm that was the point I decided I wanted to leave. Won't bother writing about the other rude interaction with waitstaff. Yeah ok I get it, you are just too busy to bother with us tourists who want to order your food and drink and give you money and tip for it. Our bad for thinking you would want business. read more

Visited several times early in the morning, during a month here. I didn't suffer from the bad service mentioned frequently, but here's some tips for american tourists: In the morning when you enter the place, just seat yourself anywhere. There's no hostess there to seat you. Otherwise you will be standing there for awhile, feeling ignored and dissed. It's the waitress's job to notice that you're seated at a table. Know what you want. Get familiar with all the different coffee concoctions and realize that all coffee begins as a shot of espresso, not in a pot brewing on a warmer. The Austrian waitstaff are like computers. They perform exactly what you request of them, and answer exactly what you ask of them. They're not there to banter with you like it were TGIFs. When you're ready to go, signal the waitress with a simple "die rechnung bitte" and they bring you your bill and you pay immediately at your table. Use cash (usually preferred in cafes) and the waitress will perform the transaction right there with their bulging money belt. Then personally hand her a tip, don't leave tips on the table as you leave. I don't think they do that there, and I've seen other customers swipe the money off the table in those cases. Learn a couple german words like 'morgan' ("morning") and 'danke', just to show some effort. It helps break the icyness with them often, especially if you're going to be a tourist asking dumb questions. Yes, that was me. One time at Sperl, I had to complain about a foreign object floating in my coffee and they were totally apologetic about it. Lastly, their apple strudel is among the cleanest tasting there, almost like eating apple sauce wrapped in a couple layers of filo pastry. Other places offer loaded with more raisin and spices. So it is what it is there. read more

This 1 star rating is due to poor service. Not only did the waitress forget some of the food order, but also forgot to bring our check. On top which she did not seem to be bothered by her incompetence. read more

Probably one of my favourite old style traditional cafes in vienna. its just got so much history and flair to it, service is good, food is really good as well, and its really chilled, perfect! read more

SO delicious and fairly priced! We had the egg dumplings which were cooked scrambled eggs that were sorta mixed into dough and some french toast with brie, camembert and cranberries. Everything was absolutely delicious and the prices for each were under 7 euros. They also had wifi! Really sad we discovered this place on our last day, we definitely would have gone back the day after. read more

Love this place...! Very typical coffeehouse where you can sit for hours. Good selection of breakfast foods, pastries and small snacks. Coffee is good too and they have free wifi...! read more

My first favorite non touristic viennese coffeehouse. The atmosphere is flawless, the food is cheap and the pumpkin soup ands the baked camembert are to die for. Love this place. read more

This is a very outdated coffeehouse, the inside is visibly degraded, the food is not good, and the employees are very very rude. Did not feel good at all, and would not recommend. read more

Perfect. Phenomenal soups, breads, and desserts. Professional staff and friendly to travelers. Lovely location and setting. Not in a rush like the good Viennese folks, so easy morning taking time over a nice meal and coffee. read more

Our experience at Cafe Sperl was pleasant, but didn't quite fulfill the grand promise that many of the other reviews have set up. A friend and I went on a Thursday afternoon, and found the cafe to be crowded, but not overwhelmingly busy (no line out the door, as we'd seen at other cafes in Vienna) - we were able to grab a table immediately. The ambiance was grand, but still casual, with lovely old furnishings, though slightly uncomfortable chairs. Our waitress was lovely, but it was obvious she was overworked, so while her service was efficient, our interactions were quite abrupt, as well as few and far between. We waited approximately 45+ minutes for two omelettes (though we were warned it would take about 30 minutes up front). The food itself was quite tasty (buttery and delicious), and the coffee selection expansive. When we finally caught our waitress again later on, we added on the special Sperl torte, which was chocolate + hazelnut and delicious. We weren't in any rush, but did feel as if it was exceptionally hard to find our waitress at the end for our check, and wound up sitting idle for another 30-45 minutes post dessert. I really wanted to be more enthralled with this place, but definitely preferred Cafe Central over Cafe Sperl, despite the higher tourist count. Still probably worth a coffee break if you're roaming around Vienna! read more

This was the first cafe I visited in Vienna. Fans of Before Sunrise will recognize it from the film. Interior is nice, a little run down with the smoke-stained cushions. I ordered the strudel - it was around 10 in the morning, and there were about 6 people in there, all locals, reading newspapers or chatting. The strudel dough was raw. The dough was pale white, as if it hadn't been baked yet. The apples were so undercooked, I could not break a piece with my fork and knife. When I tasted the apple, it was sour. I asked the server if this is how they serve their strudel. She said, yes, this is Vienna's style of strudel. I'm not sure why anyone would want to insult their city this way. I left my raw strudel, paid the bill, and met some locals outside who said that Sperl doesn't respect you if you aren't a local; try Hotel Sacher for the real thing. Glad I ran into these guys. Sacher's strudel and cake were excellent. I think Sperl charged me to be their garbage disposal. read more

After trying many incredible coffeehouses in The Czech Republic and Hungary we were excited to check out Cafe Sperl, which was touted as typical and not touristy. I think we might need a second visit, but I didn't get the appeal. Love the biliards and the surly waitresses were amusing. read more

This just may be my favorite Old Wiener Cafe for breakfast. Sperl doesnt have a large menu, but they offer all of the Viennese style and personality that you could ask for. From the antique tables, chairs and coatracks to the piano and pool tables, Cafe Sperl and its ladies serve up excellent coffee and standards like ham and eggs or scrambled eggs with pumpkin oil, which I enjoyed with a classic melange. The price is right for breakfast, but the coffee is a bit overpriced for its size. On a Saturday morning we had no problem without a reservation, but you may want to make one just in case. read more

Historic cafe in Vienna. Our service was very good. The wait staff was busy but the food was there quickly and they returned to check on us as needed. Food was good and the coffee and hot chocolate was great. read more

Beautiful tree and small garden. Food god but coffees and cakes much better. Service can be a bit down but still nice place to chill and chat with friend. read more

In October 2018, while in Vienna, I searched out this 'prestigious' café to experience the 'Viennese Café culture'. Because we were clearly tourists, and non-native German-language speakers, possibly this had a sobering effect on the wait staff's disposition: we were basically ignored when we entered the café. In all fairness, however, the waiters appeared to be very busy... and maybe they were having a bad day. Eventually, we were seated and beverages and dessert followed-eventually. People watching was fun, of course. Dr. Sigmund Freud apparently did not frequent Café Sperl; nevertheless, after a member of our party ordered a 'Small Bruaner' coffee, and was shocked at its sparse contents, I could not help but analyze and summarize my overall impression of my experience there: Café Sperl is like a Small Brauner, (and Life): full of disillusionment, angst, and disappointment. Joseph read more

This is one of my favorite spots in Vienna. Delicious, quiet and classy. Although they did raise the prices so it is not that cheap as per Vienna coffee shops but I still definitely recommend it! read more

Amazing warm cosy cafe with the best coffee I've ever had. Service is great with no need for waiting or trying to catch attention of the waiter - they are always to be found. Delicious chicken noodle soup and creamed zucchini soup. No fuss and simple. read more

Comfortable cafe in the sixth district offering a corner viewpoint of the crowds. In the Summer you can sit outside as well. I had the traditional apfelstrudel with a kaffee. 'Twas fine and the service not bad. read more

It's a good place to hang out for a while with coffee. We stumbled across it after exploring the Museum Quarter and waited out a rainstorm over Viennese iced coffees. The decorations give it a fun old-fashioned feel. Will definitely come back! read more

atmospheric fin de siecle café in the Mariahilf district, Vienna's equivalent of the Marais in Paris. repair here in between shopping and sightseeing for coffee, apfelstrudel and most excellent pariser (pork) schnitzel with salad. trivia: johan strauss played his music here and was hitler's favorite kaffeehaus. read more

Very beautiful place. We took pastry and coffees and we were very happy about it. Not fabulous but really good.

I like the food and atmosphere here. I think it's a very good place to experience the local dynamic and feel the history. The waitress was actually very nice to me. After being seated, I waited for a while to order but I didn't mind at all because I needed time to decide what to eat while listening to the piano performance. After I ordered, I went to restroom and when I went back, the dish was already on the table! I had a pretty pleasant afternoon here and enjoyed this lovely cafe very much. read more