Feeling like having exquisite lunch or dinner in combination with a glass of fine wine these days? Flein’s situated right next to the beautiful Institut Francais building, Vienna’s French Cultural Institute, so there’s the great possibility to combine your meal with a little bit of rummaging around in French books, comics and music records or taking a walk in the spot’s beautiful garden.

Flein’s offering various dainties from all over, some endued with a little touch of French cuisine. So besides French classics such as Crème Brulée you should also give the international delicacies a chance, some of them will blow your mind.

One thing I really love about this spot is its cosy garden, hidden by many trees and offering a view direct into the Institute’s enchanting yard. Especially on a mild summer evening when crickets are chirping, the sun disappears slowly and the chains of lights hanging from tree to tree light this place up, it turns out to be a very nice place to spend your time at.

Of course, also in winter time Flein provides its guests with a cosy interior where you can warm yourself up with some tea or wine, watching snowflakes passing by outside the window panes…C’est si bon!

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Flein | Bars, Coffee & tea, Restaurants (French/Intern.) | Main Meal € 8.50
Boltzmanngasse 2 | Inner districts | +4313197689
Mon – Fri 11:30 – 15:00 & 17:30 – 23:00

Nomen est Omen. So, as the name (Donau = Danube) suggests, be prepared to have the feeling of diving into a world of lights, music and sombre colors when entering the place.

This is a great place to start your evening at. Maybe you’re just done enjoying contemporary art in Museumsquartier (check Museumsquartier article) or need a chill out after an exciting shopping expedition on Mariahilferstraße, so much the better coming here as it’s right next to a couple of urban hot spots!

Donau shows itself as a wicked combination of a place where you can have a beer or two, get to know the newest tunes and still are able to have a conversation, as the music’s volume is not beyond the convenient. There’s also quite stylish snack bar and some really comfortable original cinema armchairs giving the place a certain old school Viennese character.

And – I love this interior’s element – don’t miss catching a glimpse of the ceiling and the remarkable art installation giving you the feeling of actually floating lazily along the blue river…

Plus; if you already feel like gaining an impression of what your evening might be like or if you just want to see whether you like the music or not, there is also an online radio station you should check out!

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Das Donau | Bars, Music, Snacks | Beer € 3.00
Karl Schweighofer Gasse 10 | Inner districts | +4315238105
Open from 18:00 daily

This small market stall at the Rochusmarket (metro U3 Rochusgasse) is the perfect stop over for a nice lunch. The owner Roman is preparing a choice of delicious homemade soups (veggie and non-veggie) to take away or to eat there.

Not only his soups are a delight he also offers a small selection of good wines and depending on the seasons salads or other typical Austrian dishes.

If you are looking for a cheap and healthy lunch try KochbaRoman!

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KochbaRoman | Bars, Snacks, Restaurants (Soups) | Soup (small) € 3.50
Rochusmarkt 39a | Inner districts | +436643563904
Tue – Fri 10:00 – 19:00

Have you ever dreamt of a place where you get a delicious breakfast for only 3,50 euros (coffee not included, but for half the price)? Yes? Then you should definitely head to this place!

The Tunnel is located in the 8th district, in a nice and quiet street. In summer there are even some places to sit outside on the sidewalk. Interiors are in dark wood, with some nice big sofas and all in all it is very cozy.

There are some very big tables, where you have to share the place with other people, and as well some smaller ones if you have to discuss something serious with your breakfast partner!

There is a difficult choice among 8 international yummy breakfast dishes:Muesli with yogurt and fruits, Spanish omelet, Greek omelet, Ham omelet, Continental, Continental vegetarian, Arabian breakfast (my favourite: with hummus, eggplant salad, stuffed vine leaves, feta cheese, olives and Syrian Bread), or an Italian breakfast.

Breakfast from is from 09:00 to 11:00 (self-service!)

Lunch from 11:30 to 14:30

The lunch menu is 5 euro and there is always a meat and a vegetarian dish, or you can choose from the “a la carte” menu which includes vegan and vegetarian dishes!

Check out their concerts, there is live music every night, many times with free entrance.

At 21:00 the party starts with concerts, student gatherings, cheap beer and good atmosphere. Food is served until 01:00 am, and Pizza even until 01:30!

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Der Tunnel | Art & culture, Bars, Music, Restaurants (Intern.) | Breakfast € 3.00
Florianigasse 39 | Inner districts | +4319475720
365 days from 09:00 to open end!

Ever tried hemp or chili beer? No? So you should definitely come here, this is the place for beer lovers in Vienna. Best is to start with some rustic typical Austrian food to fill your stomach up, so you don’t get drunk immediately!

They have quite strong “bock” beer which contains around 6,2% alcohol. Most of their beer is self brewed and wholly natural without preservatives (compared to industrial beers).

Food is also good and inexpensive, and they serve huge portions! So if you are a small eater, one dish will be enough for two people.

The place is usually very crowded in the evenings and it can happen that you don’t find space if you come in a bigger group, so reservation is recommended!

At lunch you can have a main dish for €4 – €5 and it is also less crowded than in the evening.

The main restaurant area is non smoking, but they also have smoking areas, which are usually more quieter as they are smaller. The atmosphere is in general very much like in a pub, so don’t expect anything too fancy!

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7Stern Bräu | Bars, Restaurants (Austrian) | 0.5L beer € 3.50
Siebensterngasse 19 A | Inner districts | +4315238697
10:00 – 00:00 daily (closed Dec 24th)

Topkino is the place if you are a true lover of great movies (subtitled, original versions; films from all over the world), but can’t resist to have a beer or two after (or before) going to the movies. And if you’d rather have a solid meal in your stomach before watching some of the serious films, this is the right place as well. At Topkino you really find 3 in 1!!

Topkino is situated in a nice old building and the bar is a long and spacious room with very high ceilings, packed with people on old sofas, chairs, at coffee tables etc.

The showroom of the cinema is neither huge nor too comfortable, but they really show very special movies, you hardly see in any other cinema (though Vienna is a great place for movie connoisseurs) and of course also award winning movies from Filmfestival in Cannes or other smaller film festivals. So it is definitely worth checking out the programme before or after going to the bar.

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Topkino | Bars, Cinemas, Coffee & tea, Snacks | Ticket cinema € 7
Rahlgasse 1/Theobaldgasse | Inner districts | +4312083000
Bar: Mon – Sat from 15:00, Sun 10:30 – 00:00 | check website for cinema

Imagine you are a bon vivant, imagine you adore good food, imagine you win 1.000 EUR in a lottery, imagine you would like to spend this on the most gorgeous selection of fruits, wine, fish, antipasti, cheese, spices, bread and whatever else you can think of (when thinking about food…). If this thing might happen to me one day and I end up with lots of cash in my bag, I will take the next subway bringing me straight to this market!

Naschmarkt probably is one of the best known markets and it’s worth its fame. It all started about 200 years ago with a small market, mainly for dairy products – nowadays there are roughly about 150 vendors, most of them in fixed food stalls and stores.

You will notice that one line of shops is focused on selling fruits, vegetables and so on. Here you find mangoes, you have last seen on a market in Singapore or Kuala Lumpur (though the prices differ…) and the fruits of the Tamarind tree you remember from Tanzania. Let alone Sicilian octopus, Norwegian cheese or Indian spices.

The other row of shops is focused on preparing food – so sit down in one of the Austrian, Vietnamese or Israeli small restaurants. On a Saturday you can spend the rest of your money on a flea market at the very end of both rows.

What a heaven for bon vivants!

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Naschmarkt | Bars, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants (Intern.)
Kettenbrückengasse | Inner districts
Mon – Sat 06:00 -Food stalls Mon – Sat 06:00 – 19:30 | Bars/restaurants till 23:0019:30 (food stalls; the bars/restaurants are open till around 23:00)

A spot of the superlatives: 60.000 m² (!) for art, architecture, design, dance, theatre, fashion, restaurants, cafes and space for relaxation. It’s a world in a world and if you are into art, it’s not difficult to spend a whole day in this impressive area.

A combination of old buildings (once the royal stables from the 18th century) and gorgeous modern architecture – like the MUMOK museum – sheltering a huge square.

In summer time you can enjoy the colored “Enzos”, huge kind of plastic sofas for hanging around. They former Enzis used to change their color every year, the result of an annual Internet-Voting. Many events take place here, like the famous Wiener Festwochen.

My favorite spots in this area are definitely the MUMOK, here you find great exhibitions of modern art, the book store Walther König and the “Kantine” in Quartier 21. And maybe you wanna check out the store “Musiktank” – the first On Demand Music Store for any kind of Austrian music.

By the way, if you are younger than 19 or a student under 27 there is free entrance for example in MUMOK. There are combination tickets if you want to visit more than one museum. The website is worth checking out, they provide all information – in seven languages! You see, it’s not a hidden spot, but one place a lot of Viennese love to go to, just like the tourists.

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Museumsquartier | Art & culture, Bars, Shopping, Theaters
Museumsplatz 1-5 | Inner districts | +4315235881
Daily

..and an even greater area for sitting outside when it’s the time to enjoy warm evenings outside on the Radetzkyplatz, surrounded by flowers and plants in the so-called “Shani-Garten” (the Austrian word for outdoor dining area).

In winter and spring time you can enjoy the interior of this traditional Austrian tavern, with simple but cozy furnishing. Wild provides very good Austrian cuisine mixed with some modern culinary ideas. The prices are a bit high, but the atmosphere – indoor and outdoor – is quite special. The food is very tasty, there is a selection of very good wines!

At Wild you get an idea of Austrian “tavern-culture” without ending up in a gloomy smoky Inn where vegetarians are seen as people from outer space.

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Wild | Bars, Snacks, Restaurants (Austrian)
Radetzkyplatz 1 | Inner districts | +4319209477
10:00 – 01:00 daily

When I used to live in the 8th district the U.S.W. was my favorite pub. “u.s.w.” is the German shortcut for “and so forth” while “Beisl” is Austrian slang for pub. The bar is only a 200m walk from the university campus (check out the Altes AKH article). Usually I happened to be there on Sundays when there was free Chili Con Carne served with any drink as well as on Thursdays – table soccer’s for free.

Nowadays they serve differing meals every Sunday, still for free! The food is generally typical Austrian, like Nockerl or Spätzle – no, both can’t be translated because it only exists here (and right after the border). Okay I’ll try: it’s a little bit similar to gnocchi but the dough’s made of eggs and flour. We love to eat them fried with eggs (again) or cheese.

I very much like the mix of music played at the U.S.W. – mostly Alternative, Indie and Rock.

Their menu in April – in this order: Chili Con Carne, roasted dumplings witch egg, bell-pepper-flavored chicken with the above described Nockerl, Schweinsbraten [the Austrian classic] & last but not least Schinkenfleckerl [noodles with bacon au gratin].

“Mahlzeit!” [= what we say for 'Enjoy your meal!']

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U.S.W. Beisl | Bars, Music, Restaurants (Austrian) | Pint from € 2.30
Laudongasse 10 | Inner districts | +4369917151384
Sun – Thu 18:00 – 02:00, Fri – Sat 18:00 – 04:00