CAFES
Cafe Central
This Vienna institution is a charming place where Franz Kafka, Arthur Schnitzler, and Karl Kraus hung out and had their coffee. Yes, it's now filled with tourists but manages to not be a tourist trap and you won't go wrong if you get your caffeine fix here.

KLEINES CAFE - Franziskanerplatz, 3
This charming café owned by a well-known Austrian actor is located on the quiet Franziskanerplatz square. It has a small interior (you may or may not recognize it from a scene of Before Sunrise), but if you feel claustrophobic, sit outside where you can have a light meal consisting of salads and sandwiches.

Kunsthalle Café
One of the hippest places in town at lunch time is this cafe inside the Kunsthalle cultural center. You can watch video installations or performance art at the center and have a light meal at the café, or come at night when DJs provide a cool soundtrack.

Österreicher im MAK café
This restaurant in the MAK (Museum of Applied Art) opens early and is a great choice for breakfast, especially if you sit in the garden. For more details about lunch and dinner see the restaurant listings below.

Palmenhaus
The glass-and-steel architecture of this former greenhouse is seen by many architecture admirers to be the most beautiful structure in Vienna. You be the judge as you have a superb breakfast on the terrace of this chic café that is surprisingly informal for such a setting. Return at night when DJs provide the soundtrack at the two bars serving good cocktails.


RESTAURANTS
Coburg restaurant
Housed in the luxurious Palais Coburg, it's only natural that this restaurant have an opulent dining room and a matching menu. The reinvented classic dishes are Michelin-starred, and you have an excellent wine list to choose from.

Halle Restaurant
Both a cafe and a restaurant, Halle offers a sophisticated menu that changes twice a month. The décor as well as the service is classic European style, with the staff taking your order either in the café area or at the more formal dining rooms upstairs.

Steireck Restaurant
Considered to be the best restaurant in Austria, this is a lavishly extravagant place where impecable modern Austrian cuisine is served. Its wine list is superb, but you'll also want to go for a drink at the bar on the lower ground floor where you'll find a hip but casual ambience.

Österreicher im MAK
The MAK's restaurant has a stylish minimalist interior serving both a classic and a modern Viennese cuisine menu by star chef Helmut Österreicher. Local ingredients are found in most dishes, which change every couple of months.

Yellow
Yellow is an Asian restaurant with a -- what else? -- yellow interior. It was designed by BEHF architects who also created the take-out packaging. Have your meal in the dining area and a drink at the black bar at night.

Ra'Mien
Love noodles? Go to this minimalist Asian restaurant serving Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese specialties. You'll likely choose a Chinese soup, then head downstairs to the bar-club where you can sit with a drink on a chaise longue listening to trance and progressive house sounds.

Fabio's Restaurant
This sleek restaurant-bar-club has managed to maintain its reputation as one of the most fashionable addresses in the city for some time now. It seems to never go out of flavor, serving Mediterranean cuisine and Italian and Spanish wines to go with it. The city's beautiful people come here to see and be seen, and the BEHF-designed interior surrounding them is just as attractive, having won the Loos Architecture Prize in 2003. The bar serves some tasty cocktails and an extensive list of Austrian and Italian wines.

Nemtoi at the Levante Parliament
This design restaurant in the design Levante Parliament Hotel is a space dressed in light stone and Turkish marble. You'll taste delicious gourmet creations chosen from a seasonal menu, and the staff will suggest the right wine to accompany them. If the weather permits, sit in the peaceful courtyard.

Yohm
Contemporary Asian delights await you at this trendy restaurant that is also a good choice for vegetarians. Locals fill the warm, modern space, so advanced booking is advised.

Expedit
This stylish restaurant serves innovative Italian cuisine in a light-filled space. It used to be a textile warehouse, but now large communal tables placed between storage shelves are filled with a relaxed crowd, to whom the friendly staff reads the daily specials.