Trzesniewski – Vienna’s Famous Sandwich Shop

Trzesniewski Offers Finger Sandwiches in Twenty-Two Different Fillings:

Vienna’s Famous Sandwich Shop

Vienna is famous for its Schanigärten (sidewalk cafés), gasthaus, traditional restaurants and heuriger, all offering traditional Viennese cuisine like the Wiener schnitzels, Tafelspitz (boiled beef), apfelstrudel, etc. A food that is rarely promoted is the humble sandwich.  At Trzesniewski Buffet, a famous Vienna sandwich shop, you can select from a smorgasbord of twenty-two sandwich toppings.

Trzesniewski Sandwiches

We were brought to Trzesniewski Buffet by our local guide.  This quirky Viennese cafe at Dorotheergasse 1, off Graben, only serves sandwiches in finger-food proportion. The twenty-two different fillings range from speck mit ei (bacon with egg), salami and geflugelleber (chicken liver) to krabben mit ei (crab with egg), matjes mit zwiebel (white herring with onions) and so on.  They also have a range of vegetarian options such as champignon (mushroom), gurke mit ei (cucumber with egg), karotte und gervais (carrot with cream cheese), etc.  To wash down your food, you can have the traditional Pfiff – this is the smallest mug of beer that Tony has ever seen, wine or soft drinks.

It was lunch-time and many locals came in for a quick bite. There are usually some bar round tables outside as well as some seats inside.  When it’s busy and there aren’t any free seats, customers just stand at the little bar tables and eat their food.  As it was raining, the outside area was not used during our visit.

Tony with his Pfiff of beer

Ordering Sandwiches at Trzesniewski

At Trzesniewski, you can choose from a range of sandwich fillings and the finger sandwich costs €1.10 each.  When they are very busy, don’t expect them to take time to explain what the fillings are – and I suspect the women behind the counter don’t speak English.  The little pictures in the sandwich bar tell you what the toppings are in German and they do have a sandwich list that explains what the English equivalent is.  We didn’t do the ordering, but I believe you pay the cashier for your sandwiches and drink and you’ll be given a token which you then exchange for your drink at the bar counter.  The place was busy at lunch-time, but the service was very efficient.

Trzesniewski has been around for over 100 years and is a local institution, but we’ve only discovered it on this trip, thanks to our local guide. There are several Trzesniewski bars in Vienna, but if you are in the Stephanplatz area, the Dorotheergasse cafe is the closest. 

If you don’t fancy a heavy Schnitzel or Tafelspitz for breakfast or lunch, Trzesniewski is a fun place for a light snack.  The finger sandwiches are quite cheap, it’s a local eating experience and the interesting concept of finger sandwiches lets you try a range of sandwich fillings. And if you want to experience a typical and famous Viennese coffee house, Café Hawelka is a few doors away at Dorotheergasse 6.

Opening Times:
Mon – Fri : 08:30 – 19:30 | Sat : 09:00 – 17:00

Address:
Trzesniewski
1010 Wien, Dorotheergasse 1

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Things to do in Vienna

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