Enjoy coffee, cake and classic palais interiors at the Gerstner premises in the 19th-century Palais Todesco on Vienna’s central Kärntner Straße.
- Konditorei, café-bar & restaurant on separate floors
- Gorgeous palais décor
- Friendly, attentive staff on our visit
- Try the apple strudel (big portions)
- Find a walking tour* for your Vienna trip
- See also:
- Other Café-Konditoreien in Vienna
- Coffee houses in Vienna
Palais and cake
(Wrought iron gates and 1800s architecture)
Parts of central Vienna seem to have lovely 19th-century palais buildings on every street corner. Literally. And between the corners, to be honest.
Wander down Kärntner Straße, and most eyes naturally drift to the Staatsoper: a beacon of operatic grandeur.
The opposite side of the street, though, has Palais Todesco, which a banking family built in the 1860s. (The words “prime real estate” were born for such a location.)
Anyone looking for a glimpse inside Vienna’s palais interiors is usually limited to stolen glances through doorways and windows (or a concert ticket).
Palais Todesco, however, is different, thanks to the presence of the Gerstner Konditorei, café-bar and restaurant on three floors within.
We popped into the café part expecting refinement and elegance. And we were not disappointed.
What we did not expect from such austere premises was to feel as relaxed and comfortable as we felt. A pleasant surprise. But I get ahead of myself…
(Like most of Vienna’s Café-Konditoreien, the cakes at Gerstner double as works of art, making you wonder how they make them)
The Konditorei shop on the ground floor looks like the reincarnation of a royal regency confectionery updated for the 21st century.
Definitely a place for buying gifts of the sweeter sort: a strong option alongside the original Sachertorte available further down Kärntner Straße or the Altmann & Kühne pralines on the nearby Graben.
We ignored the lift and took the staircase with its wrought iron balustrade up to the café-bar, which had the feel of a period drawing room: full of olive and burgundy upholstered armchairs and sofas, wooden tables, brass lamps and heavy curtain.
I certainly felt the urge to tell my wife that my feelings will not be repressed and she must allow me to tell her how ardently I admire and love her. (Bonus points if you recognise the quote.)
The atmosphere proved intimate albeit with a spacious layout despite the relatively small café premises: you don’t feel at all squashed in. That also means limited capacities, though the attached bar area had stools for those pursuing sparkling wine rather than a gentle melange.
As such, I would strongly recommend you reserve a table well in advance to avoid disappointment.
Bar snacks were available. We gravitated of course to the cakes and pastries menu, which featured popular Viennese varieties, but also unique variations like Gerstner’s own in-house cake (which my wife enjoyed).
(The K. u. K. Hofzuckerbäcker designation refers to Gerstner’s former status as by appointment to the Habsburg court)
The waiter who took our order was a house-proud attentive gentleman of the best sort for such locations.
I asked him for apple strudel, expecting a thin slice given upmarket prices often include a premium for the historical ambience.
The strudel arrived on a dinner plate: an unexpectedly generous portion in these days of shrinkflation. And it was excellent. I had it with whipped cream, though my friends tell me that’s a sin against the culinary gods.
The strudel also arrived with an extra fork, spoon and serviette in case I wanted to share. Yeeeaaahh…no. That’s not happening.
Incidentally, the Gerstner location in Vienna’s Schönbrunn palace actually does strudel shows.
I can’t say what the ambience is like at busier times (we booked toward the end of the day in March) but, as someone who normally feels uncomfortable in such refined surroundings, I really felt very much at ease.
And what of the restaurant one floor higher?
My research budget did not extend to a meal, but we walked up for a look. Let’s just say that those ceilings you see in Jane Austen movies? Yep, like that. We’re tempted to do the Sunday Brunch as a wedding anniversary present to ourselves.
How to get there
If you’re on my suggested self-guided walking route in the centre, you more or less pass Gerstner (just walk to the other side of the opera house). otherwise, subways and trams stop very close by:
Subway: U1, U2 and U4 lines to Karlsplatz and take the Kärntner Straße exit.
Tram: lines 1, 2, 71, D and 62 to the Oper/Karlsplatz stop.
Address: Kärntner Straße 51, 1010 Vienna | Website