For those in the know, some of the most popular and best cafes in Vienna are located outside the touristy inner city district. In Josefstadt, a colourful and lively multi-ethic district just a short ride by tram from the Ringstrassen, there are several marvellous family-run cafes with plenty of tradition and history, whose owners have continued to serve authentic Viennese cuisines and good coffees to a demanding public for decades.
Cafe-Restaurant Hummel, situated at a busy crossroad in the centre of the 8th district of Josefstadt, offers delicious home-made Viennese specialities such as pumpkin soups, potato salads, fried pork cutlets, boiled beef with potatos and vegetables, etc. The public space is divided into three sections: a smoking lounge, a non-smoking lounge, and a dining hall.
The interior decoration and the furnishings of Cafe Hummel have nothing of the glittering glamour which characterised the overtly touristy image-perfect cafes in the inner city, but the place radiates such warmth and personality that it is hard not to be enchanted by its flaire.
The thing I like about going to these not so well-known cafes is, in addition to the thrill of being in a place where most of the customers are locals, there is no need to put up with unfriendly waiters, slow service, long queues and over-priced coffee and cakes. You can spend three, four or five hours in the cafe and no one will raise an eyebrow or ask you to vacate your seats unless you order more food or drinks. Such laid-back attitude is, and should be, the essence of any visits to a traditional Viennese cafe. It is important to bear in mind that the process of having a cup of coffee at a historical cafe in Vienna is almost like a ritual in itself; it shoul be done elegantly and discreetly, always in style but never in a hurry.
Cafe-Restaurant Hummel
Josefstädter Straße 66 · A-1080 Wien
Copyrights@2011. All text and photos by YC Cheng. All Rights Reserved.
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