Vienna’s hospitality again offers enjoyment in the sunshine

Around 3,500 sidewalk cafés attract locals and tourists, half of them also in winter – WKW President Ruck: “Coffee houses are the living rooms of the Viennese, the sidewalk cafés are their open spaces”

Vienna (OTS) – – “Schani trag’ den Garten raus” isn’t something that’s often said in Vienna anymore, but that has a positive background: More and more coffee houses and restaurants are taking the opportunity to offer their guests outdoor enjoyment even during the winter months. “But the true season for combining sun, cuisine and relaxation is beginning now,” agree Mayor Michael Ludwig, Vienna Chamber of Commerce President Walter Ruck and the chairman of Viennese coffee houses, Wolfgang Binder. Together they rang in the “spring awakening of Vienna’s sidewalk cafés” in Café Stein today.

Café Stein, this year’s host of Spring Awakening, has long been a popular spot for many Viennese. “Students have been meeting here to learn and chat for decades. And they carry on the centuries-old coffee house tradition of the Viennese. Because the Viennese coffee house has been multifunctional since it was founded. It is an office and workplace, it is a living room and dining room and – when the sun is shining – it becomes your own garden. That’s why I’m glad that the Viennese restaurateurs can also offer their guests the open-air offer in winter,” says President Walter Ruck.

“With almost a third of the workforce, Vienna is the heart of the Austrian gastronomic landscape and the workplace of tens of thousands of people. With their sidewalk cafés, our catering establishments convey Viennese cosiness to the outside world and shape the cityscape in a unique way. In addition to the Viennese cosiness, our city is also known as an excellent business and work location and is highly regarded as one of the most livable cities in the world. The reason for this is, among other things, that we live the social partnership in Vienna, find common answers to the current challenges and thus strengthen cohesion in our city,” says Mayor Michael Ludwig.

And Wolfgang Binder is optimistic about the coming season: “After three years, we can finally celebrate the beginning of spring together again in the Schanigarten. I am glad that the uncertain times are now over and that we can look ahead again. Even if the energy prices pose a new challenge, we can finally do what we live for: be there for our guests.” An important step towards this is the possibility of being able to offer an open-air offer in winter. While there are around 3,500 sidewalk cafés in Vienna in summer, half of them are now also kept open in winter. Binder: “Especially the last – sometimes very warm – winter showed that it works well. The guests accept the opportunity to use the sun’s rays and since there is less and less snow in the city, the sidewalk cafés are not a problem for snow clearance either”.

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