2024-07-28 21:36:28
The Austrian capital Vienna welcomes an influx of tourists in the hot summer days. All around the city center, groups of visitors take pictures in front of local landmarks, and in front of traditional Viennese cafes, people often queue for hours to get a table and respite from the heat.
That is why cafes in Vienna’s “First District”, covering central parts of the capital, are increasingly introducing “time slots” in order to accommodate as many guests as possible. The names of the famous cafes appear in almost every tourist guide to Vienna. The fact that a coffee there costs more than 6 euros is not an obstacle for tourists who want to try an original Viennese melange (equal parts of espresso and milk with milk foam), reports BTA.
For many of the establishments, the COVID-19 pandemic was a severe challenge. At least in the city center, however, most have already managed to return to the number of visitors from 2019, and interest in them is unlikely to decrease in the future. To cope with the large number of customers, more and more cafes are introducing time slots – tables can only be reserved for a certain period of time and then have to be vacated for the next guests.
This service method was originally introduced by restaurants. In recent years, “slot” bookings have become more and more common, as businesses believe that this ensures more efficient use of the available tables. Now the cafes are following suit, or at least the ones that have queues constantly snaking out the door.
For Wolfgang Binder, head of the café department at the Vienna Chamber of Commerce, it is also a way to offset the significant increase in fixed costs. Most establishments in the center of the Austrian capital do not have space to put more tables and increasing attendance is a way to avoid raising prices. Some Viennese restaurants now offer three time slots per evening and serve three “series” of guests at each table in the establishment.