Café Sperl ranks the finest of Vienna’s grand coffee houses. To this day, the establishment oozes Old World charm and serves exceptional traditional Viennese fare. Among the aged booths covered in velvet red and silvery-gold brocade worn by its occupants, it’s easy to picture yourself among the historic customers.
The conversations that may have taken place in these seats include artists discussing how to break free from traditional concepts of beauty, or among officials, how to respond to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914.
In the late 1800s, founders of Vienna’s art secessionist movement are believed to have regularly gathered here after resigning from the Association of Austrian Artists in protest against its support for more traditional artistic styles. The artists who met here included famous architect Joseph Maria Olbrich, who built Vienna’s landmark Secession exhibition hall. Other notable diners of the movement included Josef Hoffmann, Kolo Moser, Max Kurzweil, Leo Kainradl and Adolf Karpellus.
In the 1900s, Austria’s Archduke Josef Ferdinand, Archduke Karl Ferdinand, and then-Chief of General Staff Conrad von Hötzendorf—who lobbied for war following the Archduke’s assassination—are rumored to have been regulars. Josef Ferdinand and Karl Ferdinand were active military leaders during WWI.
In the 1980s, the owner worked with a local architect and government historical group to maintain the café in original condition as much as possible while bringing it up to code.
Not all of its influential diners are of a bygone era. The 1995 movie, “Before Sunrise,” starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy features the cafe in a scene where the lovers share a conversation in one of the booths.
