Inside Publications, April 2003
By Peter Von Buol.

Southport gets a taste of Vienna

Special to Inside
An Old World tradition for 140 years, Vienna’s Julius Meinl Coffee Group has now opened the doors of its first North American cafe. Located in Lake View on the corner of Southport Ave. and Addison St., the Julius Meinl Cafe serves freshly-roasted-and-brewed premium Viennese-style coffee and pastries. In addition, the cafe’s menu also features tea, hot chocolate, soups, sandwiches, quiche, toast, and salads.

Viennese coffee, which has been a part of the Austrian capital city’s culture since 1683, is characterized by its smooth flavor and medium-roasts. According to legend, Vienna’s first coffee beans were brought to the city in 1683 by a Turkish army that had laid siege to the city. After the Turks were defeated by the Austrian troops and their allies, the first coffee house was opened by a Polish immigrant, Georg Kolschitzky. Fluent in Turkish, Kolschitzky had operated behind enemy lines during the siege and gathered military intelligence for the Austrian troops. Armed with his “inside information,” the outnumbered Austrians and their allies knew the weaknesses of the opponents and were able to defeat them. The Polish immigrant declined monetary payment for his services. As payment, he requested the vast stockpile of “camel fodder” that had been left behind by the Turkish Army.Soon afterwards, Kolschitzky opened the first Viennese coffee house using the “camel fodder” of the Turks.

Interestingly, in 1891, the Julius Meinl Group opened a coffee roasting plant on the very site the Turkish army is said to have left its stockpile of “camel fodder.” This site today continues to serve as company headquarters. At the Lake View cafe, just as in Viennese cafes, guests are served at their tables by wait staff. Coffee is served in a china cup and saucer that is placed on a silver tray and, as in Vienna, the beverage is accompanied by a small glass of water and a treat. The treat can be either a cookie or a piece of Swiss chocolate.

Realizing many Americans buy coffee for their morning commute, the cafe also has an express counter. Hot Viennese coffee is served “to go” in patented cups that do not require a cardboard jacket. Exquisite Viennese pastries and strudels, as beautiful to look at as they are good to eat, are prepared on site by local chef Ann Muller, formerly of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Pastries include Meinl’s Millennium Torte (a moist flourless chocolate torte); Mohr im Hemd (a made-to-order chocolate cake with a hot molten center and a cover of warm chocolate sauce. Its name means a Moor wearing a shirt!) and Apfel (apple) Strudel. Viennese pastries are generally lighter and not quite as sweet as their American counterparts. Located inside the first floor of a newly-constructed condominium complex that has been built on the site of a former gas station, the exterior of the cafe sports the company’s name and its venerable trademark, a baroque cherub wearing a Moorish fez.

Created in 1924, the company’s trademark has long been one of Central Europe’s most recognizable brand symbols. Meinl coffees, teas, jams, and honey are found on grocery store shelves throughout the region. Many of the company’s gourmet products line the wooden shelves at the Southport location.

The interior of the cafe was custom-designed and built in Vienna. Then it was deconstructed and shipped to Chicago along with a cadre of Viennese artisans who reconstructed the wooden cabinets and benches, bar stools and brass railings. Vintage photographs of “Old Vienna” document the history of the company and its hometown on the new cafe’s walls. Classical music has long been a tradition in Viennese coffee houses and Chicago’s Julius Meinl Cafe pays homage to great composers over the cafe’s sound system. In fact, the composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven were among those who were known to frequent Viennese coffee houses.

In the future, the cafe will feature live musicians. According to company executive Thomas Meinl, 66, the medium roasts and smooth blends that typify Viennese coffee are unlike the blends popularized by Seattle-based companies. “Our coffees are meant to be served throughout the day, even throughout the evening,” says Meinl, whose great-great-grandfather Julius founded the parent company in 1862.

Company founder Julius Meinl revolutionized coffee sales when he became the first store to sell roasted coffee to customers. Previously, green coffee beans were purchased by a customer and roasted at home. Not infrequently, coffee beans, which were expensive, were burned by the stove-top method. Throughout his lifetime, Julius Meinl was an innovator and, by 1891, he was one of the most successful businessmen of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Meinl says a successful coffee house must do more than simply sell a lot of coffee and make a profit. Real Viennese coffee houses are a crucial part of the neighborhood. Unlike places that serve alcohol, all ages are welcome. “The coffee house has always been, since it started in 17th Century Europe, a place where all people come and meet. One of the problems in today’s world are that there are not enough places where people can come and meet and sit to interact or read newspapers or listen to some classical music,” adds Meinl.

The Julius Meinl Cafe is located at 3601 N. Southport Ave.
For more information call (773) 868-1857 or visit their Web site at www.meinl.com/southport.html.