Julius Meinl Am Graben

Store

Graben 19
Wien, 1010
Austria

+43 1 5323334 | map
meinlamgraben.at
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.41
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
7
pDev:
19.65%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews.
Photo of drtth
Reviewed by drtth from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev +12.3%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4 | service: 3.75 | selection: 3.5
(Review based on notes taken during an extended visit to Wein a few years ago.)

As noted in earlier reviews, this is a great place to visit even if you don't buy anything. If you are tourist visiting Wein you should visit this place just for the experience.

Being right on the central "square" sort of guarantees a premium on prices but the quality of some of the items on offer is also high.

The beer section is a good place to find standard high end offerings (e.g., the Chimay Red, White and Blue) but don't expect to find anything particularly rare or unsual. That’s simply not what the regulars will be shopping for when they come here for groceries (and yes there are people living within easy walking distance of Meinl Am Graben who rely on this place for stocking their kitchens, etc.)

Service is fine and unobtrusive in that assistance is offered if asked but there is no pressure.
Feb 27, 2015
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.86/5  rDev +13.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5
Don't go to Julius Meinl for the beer, go for the experience. It's an interesting, upscale food store that's fairly beautiful to look at, and has some really interesting items (as well as customers).

The cold beer is pretty much straight ahead a few feet after you enter and then directly to your right. I recall that there's about 12 feet of cooler space, but only about 3 of that has any really good beer to speak of. If you then follow that back around to where you were coming in straight from and continue on that route there's another 12 or so feet of warm beer. Keep your eye out though, because they'll also make up end caps of specialty beers.

Price-wise I was not too shocked. I saw what I thought was about a 20 to 25% mark-up in comparison to what I'd seen elsewhere, and given the atmosphere, that's about what I thought it might be. With that said, I only bought one beer. My wife, on the other hand, felt the need to spend €20 on Chocolate that we could have bought almost anywhere else.
Jan 28, 2014
Photo of sunrisesolara
Reviewed by sunrisesolara from Austria

3.55/5  rDev +4.1%
Meinl am Graben is a different experience than any other supermarket in Vienna. There is an atmosphere of antiquity mixed with blue-blooded snobbishness. The aisle dedicated to beer is a bit larger than the average store, with a slightly more varied mix. However, there are only a few unique brews that warrant the prices being asked. Core, flavored with pumpkin seed oil and Orval are two which readily come to mind. However, much of the oddities can be found in other outlets for much lower prices, such as Chimay, which I buy from a beer store just around the corner (the same store that supplies Meinl, btw) for half the price. Meinl is an experience, though, and people who shop there are not looking at the prices. I enjoy looking, but not buying.
Mar 14, 2010
Photo of allboutbierge
Reviewed by allboutbierge from Austria

2/5  rDev -41.3%
Apparently, Meinl used to have a better selection, because from what Ive seen over the past two years it is far from even being worthy of being listed on BA. With the crowd you have no chance of getting any service whatsoever.

You have a couple bottles of Chimay Blue at rediculous prices. Other than that you can find EVERY selection they have at an Interspar for less than half of what they charge. I promise that I am not exaggerating.

A scam that only plays to Viennese who have too much money to spend or tourists who simply do not know any better.
Jun 24, 2009
Photo of Arkman
Reviewed by Arkman from Austria

2.85/5  rDev -16.4%
I was expecting a lot more when I went into this store. They waste a lot of shelf space on crappy imports (like Becks) and Austrian beer you can buy at any grocery in town. They do have some spendy Belgian imports, but I did not try them. I did find Schlagl Bier, which is hard to find in Vienna. However, most of their hard to find Austrian beers aren't that good or different from the typical Austrian brewing styles. It is disappointing to see such an average beer selection when their wine cellar is huge. Save your money and go to a supermarket.
Jun 05, 2009
Photo of Nickls
Reviewed by Nickls from District of Columbia

3.9/5  rDev +14.4%
(From notes)

Pretty easy to find within Inner City Vienna, and definitely don't have to go far out of your way. This place is actually a very fine/high-end grocery store with a ton of great looking food, huge wine selection, and a pretty respectable selection of brews for Vienna.

Quite a few decent imports, and a quite varied selection of Austrian brews, which was great since that I was looking to sample some. Picked up a nice Pils, and could have easily picked up quite a few other nice brews had I not had to cart them around all day.

Didn't ask for any service, but by no means was offered any even though several employees walked by me. But hey, that's what I expected when in Vienna.

The prices did seem a bit high, but I also went in expecting that as well. Doesn't make it right, but just more tolerable.

Overall, a worthy stop when you're in Vienna.
Apr 23, 2009
Photo of Globetrotter
Reviewed by Globetrotter from Virginia

3.85/5  rDev +12.9%
Julius Meinl is THE premium grocery store in Vienna. They pride themselves on a wide selection of everything, and charge accordingly. The beer selection is head and shoulders above the competition anywhere in the city, with a wide range of Belgians, a smattering of unusual products from places like Germany, Greece, Argentina, Finnland and Canada, and an eclectic selection of Austrian brews, including a surprising variety of hempen ales. They have stuff I've never seen elsewhere in the city. On the downside, the stuff they have that is available elsewhere is at least 50% more expensive here. So choose carefully. Service is passable, certainly not prone to take the initiative, but that's Austria for you.

There is a restaurant upstairs with very good food and a couple of rotating selections on tap. You pay for that privilege, too.
Sep 14, 2008
Julius Meinl Am Graben in Wien, Austria
Place rating: 3.41 out of 5 with 7 ratings