Demel was once the Royal and Imperial pastrycook's. Now it is the choicest and most expensive cafe in Vienna. All cooked dishes and cakes are prepared by hand to traditional recipes. In the kitchen machinery is hardly used at all. Even Emperor Franz Joseph sent for cakes and pralines from Demel during his tête-à-têtes with his lover, while his unhappy wife Sissi was addicted to their legendary violet sorbet.
The age-old battle between "Sacher" and "Demel" for the right to describe their own Sachertorte, which is exported throughout the world, as "the real thing" is still unsettled. The firm's unmistakable trademark are its waitresses, known as "Demelinerinnen", made famous in a song by Helmut Qualtinger, and who always wear modest black dresses with lace collars and still address the customers very formally with "Haben schon gewählt ?" (Has Madam already made her choice?). The over 200-year-long history of this illustrious establishment began in 1785 when it was founded by the Württemberg confectioner, Ludwig Dehne, by the Danube.
His heirs gave the business to the apprentice Christoph Demel, whose family acquired the Stadtpalais and made it the first house on the square. In 1917 it was taken over by the ignominious Anna - she had divorced a Demel to marry his brother soon afterwards - who ran it successfully for four decades. Her successor, Klara Demel, married a Baron Berzeviczy who showed little interest in the traditional firm and sold it following the death of his wife. From 1972 Udo Proksch ran it and established the notorious Club 45 before the "Lucona" affair which resulted in his being put behind bars for the rest of his life for six murders following the sinking of the freighter. In 1993 it was sold to the German Günter Wichmann who swore an oath of disclosure forcing the confectionery into bankruptcy and into the hands of its creditors. Despite continual rumors of closure visitors can still enjoy their coffee, strudel, sachertorte or hearty snacks at the inviting marble tables of this noble emporium of pastries.
Opposite the Demel cafe stands the Grosses Michaelerhaus with its attractive courtyard built by the Barnabites around 1720. The poet Pietro Metastasio (1698-1782) lived and died here and Joseph Haydn lived in the attic for several years. Today the Royal and Imperial pastry cook's sells its delicious produce in "Vis-à-Vis"; the adjoining restaurant's specialty is seafood.
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