Naturkost St. Josef

I live next door to this shop, lovingly referred to in our household as "the little crunchy store next door," which also has a great lunch buffet. I've eaten there only a handful of times, but it was pretty good each time. I frequently buy produce there, or a liter of milk, et cetera. It's a bit pricier than other local stores for groceries, but since everything is definitely locally-grown, etc (and it's super convenient, for me), the price is okay. I'd say I do about 15-20% of my grocery shopping here.

As for the lunch buffet, my fiancé and I are always meaning to eat there more often (one day he bought me a *vegan* "kebab" (as they're known in Vienna) to go.) As a hardcore meat-eater, even he liked it.

I cannot understand the great reviews. Are vegetarians' expectations so low when they eat out? :-P

I've tried it for lunch to break the pattern of stelze, schnitzel, spare ribs and kebab that usually establishes when you eat around wien as a tourist (showing my parents around the city). We had pasta al forno (ok), rice-chickpeas-vegetables soup (pretty good), a falafel plate (loads of cous cous and not enough falafel and vegetables) and a vegan pastry (pretty bad). It was fairly expensive, but not as much as the shop they run in the front.

So here is my review... a mediocre "OK". You won't regret setting foot in the establishment, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go there either.

I am glad I discovered this bio-vegetarian-restaurant, with a bio-shop in/behind it! I can't believe I've never heard about it before, for you wil find high quality food, healthy and tasty, for a very fair price.
Here, you'll have to queue (but not for long) and order at the bar.
There is only one menu, which varies daily (for your own pleasure!) and offers a nice combination of flavours and influences. The Thai noodles served with cabbage salad and a baked banana was definitely a highlight! A "small" plate costs 8.30€, a large one 9.50€.
You can also order soup (3.50€ a bowl), some salad at the salad bar (quite a wide choice, and you'll pay according to the weight), or go for a vegetarian or vegan kebab (5.20€) or a baked dish of the day (such as vegetarian lasagna).
You can buy some beverage as well (with some surprising drinks!) or simply have water (for free, you just have to help yourself!).
You will then pay when you are done eating (Austrians are so trusting it always amazes me!).
It goes all very quickly, so it's perfect for a lunch break!

It was a curious and yet nice experience, I would recommend this restaurant to any vegetarian or health concerned food-lover!