Grinzing & Heurigen, Vienna

Many tourists have not discovered this place yet. It is a 3-basement (18 meter deep) heuriger which will please up to 450 people. Their brochure says that the place was already mentioned in 1339. The upper cellar is said to be built before 1500 but was destructed in 1561 and was rebuilt. The basements became shelter sites in 1529 and 1683 when the Turks tried to invade Vienna. Between 1716 and 1721, the baroque facade was formed and the building was named Hildebrandthaus, after the name of its Viennesse master builder Lucas von Hildebrandt.

When you enter the place you will still be surprised of the ambiance of the basements. The wooden seats, the lights, the stone walls - simply great! A cheerful place even when most of the guests have left the place. You'll also find it romantic if you go there with your partner. They will make sure that you will enjoy the spirit. Austrian folksongs will be played too which make the experience unforgettable.

The heuriger does not only offer great drinks but also traditional Austrian foods.

Favorite Dish: I drank, laughed, chatted, drank, laughed...Gee, I can't remember exactly what food I had or if I ate at all. The wines were great!

Open from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

For a more authentic experience of "Heuriger" you should not go to Grinzing in Vienna, but go to Stammersdorf ( also in Vienna, take the tram number 31) they are very nice and sometimes also with traditional music. The food is definitly more authentic and it tastes much better than the mass products for tourists in Grinzing!!!

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We happened to stumble upon this lovely wienhof-heuriger while we were looking around for a local restaurant for dinner. We heard that Stammersdorf district has some good heurigers and we wanted to try one. From the outside, it looked quite simple and kinda quiet. However, when we walked into the heuriger-restaurant, we were surprised to find the place full of lively austrians.

The restaurant was warmly light and cosy, with wood panellings, tables and benches. They have a good buffet selection (warm & cold food including salads) and a good variety of local wines on the wine list. The prices were reasonable and the service is quick.

There is however one small problem. Austrians love their smoke, and even though there is a designated non-smoking room, the rest of the restaurants tend to be smoky. Blame it on poor ventilation. But you can sit out in the garden during the warmer months, so you can avoid the smoky feeling.

Favorite Dish: All the food is good and delicious, not salty or dry/tasteless/greasy like other touristy- heurigers tend to be. In fact, I had one of the best "kümmel Schweinerostbraten" (cumin-roasted pork) here in Heuriger Wieninger. Their salads (incl. potato salad, sauerkraut, zuchini, cucumber, beans, grilled vegetables, green salads, etc.) were also good.

The local wines are also excellent; you should try the Chadonnay Classic. The wines come from their wine estate, Wiengut Wieninger.

In several district are clusters of perfect wine & dine(r)restaurants. Some Wien-recepies are worldfamous (see next point) and with a Riesling white wine ... hmmmm. The atmosphere in the (often musical) taverns is great and the more wine is in the men ... .
My experience here is already long time ago, but Grinzing is still a popular place where many tourists go (are brought) to enjoy Austrian hospitality and food.

Favorite Dish: Wiener Schnitzel: a speciality originating from the Italian 'costoletta milanese'-breadcrumbed and fried veal escalope / and as desert /
Kaiserschmarren: legend has it that this dessert of shredded pancake and stewed fruit was invented for Emperor Franz Joseph.

There are many Heurigen around Vienna, and most of them are really good.
I am suggesting this one because the Viennese I know have a special liking for it.
Tourists like the Heurigen in summer, because there is plenty of space to eat outdoor, but I have been at Fuhrgassl-Huber in November, and it was very pleasant and cosy to dine by a fire-place.

Favorite Dish: There is a wide choice of the classic Heurige meat dishes, and also a lots of vegetables.

“Heuriger” is a famous instiution in all Austrian wine growing areas. A law - more than a quarter of a millenium old - allows Austrian producers of wine to sell their own wine and other products grown and prepared by themselves at their places subjected only to very low taxes. Because the number of days to do so is in some way limited they mark with a bunch of branches they hang over the entrance that the “Heurige” is open. Therefore it is in Styria also called “Buschenschank” (“Buschen” is a bunch of branches).

How to find a good “Heurigen”? Avoid all places to which tourists are transported by bus (mostly in Grinzing). But nice Heurige can be found in many outer districts of Vienna, almost all comfortably reached by public transport (may be quite important for the way back;-)). Authentic inexpensive “off the beaten path” places are at the left side of the Danube in Stammersdorf and Strebersdorf. And a good idea is always to ask your Viennese friends about their favourite places.
In good weather you can enjoy the wine and the snacks often in very romantic gardens.

The Viennese usually visit frequently the Heurigen, but for rather short stays. The best time for the Heurigen is late afternoon to early evening.

Favorite Dish: Heuriger is the name of the youngest wine - from 11.November onwards the wine of the same year. But already in September, soon after the first grapes are harvested, it is possible to enjoy the “Sturm”, the only partially fermented intermediate product on its way to wine still containing quite some grape sugar which is not yet fully transformed to alcohol. It is quite a “dangerous” stuff, it tastes great but you are easily persuaded to drink much more than you should….

The home made food which you mostly choose from a buffet is often very delicious.

Cosy restaurant in the area of Poetzleinsdorf, at the end of the Poetzleinsdorfer park. It features typical Styrian food in a very cosy wood interior. There is also an outside sitting garden. I tried "holundersekt" or white elder extract with prosecco and I had styrian cornweed salad with roast bacon, eggs and pumpkin oil and some "Baerlauchtascherl" or cheese filled ravioli with fried breadcrums. Lovely!

Big, big restaurant. Outside, inside, downstairs, bar area, buffet and menu service. Big wine list. Whats not to like, it had everything. Service was great, wine, they had their own label, the food was outstanding, the price was excellent. There are a number of restaurants in Grinzing area that have entertainment at night. This restaurant also had entertainment, but we ate a late lunch here.There was a buffett area, so if you wanted something that was already cooked you could do that or you could get a menu and order off that. Lots of choices. Would definitely go back.

Favorite Dish: Had a beef dish, that was just out of this world. Also a bowl of the soup. Bread was excellent and so was the wine.

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The restaurant was located at Grinzinger, a wine growing district on the outskirts of Vienna. It is very easy to reach using public transport, catch the metro train to Heiligenstadt and then catch the bus outside the station to Grinzing #38a. The trip is very easy , but ask the bus driver what time the return trips leave otherwise you may have a half hour wait. Your Weekly Transport Card is valid on both bus and train.

The restaurant had a fabulous atmosphere, wandering musicians,singing personally to you, and as the evening proceeded guests started to dance in the hallway. There was a broad selection of meals with many local dishes. The local wines were enjoyable.
My wife enjoyed the music so much she purchased their CD.

Favorite Dish: I had a most enjoyable local snitchel followed by traditional strudal.

Any of Heurigens (taverns given name by young, light wine thas serve with quite serious food) OUTSIDE the city

Favorite Dish: Try everything they have (you can usualy just point - everything is displayed). Food tends to be rather heavy (all kinds of meat), but you can always offset that by salads and, naturally, young wine.