A few days after landing in Vienna last month and scrolling through Instagram, it seemed to me that Wild Kaffee had opened a coffee shop in Vienna with none other than 2024 World Brewers Champion Martin Wölfl however when I looked up the address on google maps, I drew a blank…… there was no such coffee shop in Vienna, only in Germany – where Wild Kaffee originates from. So, visiting Balthasar, I bumped into the owner, Otto, who confirmed that indeed they had opened and were located on Pilgramgasse 6. So, on one of the days when I had some free time with my wife and son, we set off to find it.
Oops, where are you?
In fact, we accidentally went into another café first and, as I sat there sipping coffee, I kept thinking, I am sure Martin’s place is actually across the road. Sure enough, when we crossed over and stepped inside, I immediately knew we had found it.
Décor and First Impressions
The coffee has a fresh, distinctive feel, with bright green brand colours and a handsome granite brew counter that gives the space a polished but welcoming character.
The space itself was bigger than I had expected and already pleasantly busy. Best of all, Martin was there. The last time I had seen him was at World of Coffee Dubai earlier this year, so it was a joy to catch up again in his own café.
Coffee Setup
As a coffee person, my eyes immediately went to the setup: a custom made Slayer espresso machine, coffee bags at the bag to give a clean look and three Mahlkönig grinders lined up neatly across the counter, which I presume are to serve different espresso-based coffees allocated for house blends and guest offerings. To the extreme left of the set-up, was the state-of-the-art brew bar, but of course.
Coffee
After Martin had attended to a few customers, we had a little chat and I mentioned that I had been told to try the Panama espresso. However, as I was in the mood for something milk-based, I opted for a cortado instead, and Martin kindly offered to make it for me himself.
Now really, who would say no to coffee prepared by a world champion?
He served it in one of the most unusual cups I have seen – the 2-way cup “barista series”. Its shape was slightly asymmetrical, with one flatter side and one more curved side, and Martin explained that each side brought out a different aspect of the coffee.
From one angle I noticed more body and depth, while from the other I picked up brighter, fruitier notes. As you can imagine, this delighted the coffee geek in me.
Of course, I could not leave without trying a filter coffee prepared under the guidance of a World Brewers Champion. Following Martin’s recommendation, I went for an El Salvador that carried notes of blueberry, vanilla and apple pie.
He brewed it for me and I shared it with my wife, which made the whole visit feel even more memorable.
Retail Offering
I spent some time looking at their retail coffee selection and was impressed by the variety on offer and that like Square Mile coffee in London, they also offer 350g bags.
There were espresso blends, single origins and plenty of options for filter brewing too, alongside pastries for those wanting something sweet with their coffee. Naturally, I could not resist buying a bag to take home, which I asked them to grind for AeroPress brewing for my stay in Vienna.
I actually went back again on another day with a friend and the café was packed, which is always a good sign but this time I tried their long black.
On my last visit, I knew I had to buy some coffee to take back to Dubai and as I was confused as to which one to take, the barista kindly brewed me their house blend as an espresso, which I loved, so that’s what I got.
But I wasn’t done, as I was especially intrigued by their filter bags, which offered a fun and practical way to brew good coffee without too much fuss especially when I travel or on flights. For around €10.5, you get 10 bags, which I thought was excellent value, especially for something so convenient and well thought through.
Final Thoughts
All in all, this is currently probably my favourite coffee shop in Vienna. Why? Because I loved the attention to detail, the range of coffees, the warmth of the space and, above all, Martin’s generous hospitality.
He was approachable, happy to share tips and clearly deeply invested in the craft. Yes, I can imagine it becoming very busy, and rightly so, but it is exactly the kind of place that makes a coffee trip memorable. If you want something sweet to go with your coffee, you can choose from a selection of pastries too.
So, if you visit Vienna and care even remotely about great specialty coffee, I would definitely recommend adding this café to your list.
Wild Kaffee, 6 Pilgramgasse, Vienna .
From Coffee With Love 