The Best Krapfen in Vienna

Curious to know what’s the best krapfen in Vienna? The truth is – it’s all a matter of preference. 

Krapfen are fried stuffed donuts usually filled with apricot marmalade or a chocolate/vanilla creme sprinkled with powdered sugar on top. They are most popular around the Fasching carnival season, symbolizing the indulgent celebratory event before the Catholic fasting period of Lent. 

It’s adorable that on Faschingsdienstag (the Tuesday before Lent), the kids in Vienna dress up in costumes – similar to dressing up for Halloween – and eat these delicious fat bombs.

But if you’re worried you won’t be able to find krapfen after the season ends – don’t worry. Like all treasured Austrian pastries, krapfen can be found in most bakeries in Vienna all year round. However, they offer the most unique and fancy flavors in February.

Best Krapfen in Vienna Experiment

Is there a krapfen in Vienna that is the best? I became inspired by Falstaff’s Krapfen review and decided to do one myself. It was a month-long journey of trying and testing (oh, what a hard job!) that brought some interesting results.

Each krapfen was rated by: dough type, filling flavor (apricot only), price, and overall taste. 

Keep in mind that these ratings are subjective and according to my taste. The results and observations can be used as a reference, but not as an absolute! After all, it’s more fun for you to taste test krapfen and decide for yourself!

Felber Krapfen

The dough was thick, plump, however, a bit dry. The marmalade was perfect – nice and sweet for my taste! It was priced at €1.10 – overall, I liked this donut.

Hofer Krapfen

A very large-sized krapfen, with good dough, but it wasn’t fresh. There were lots of sweet apricot filling inside, and the donut was only 55 cents. Overall this is a good purchase if you want a nice-tasting Krapfen at a low price.

Oberlaa Krapfen

While the dough was soft and fresh, the filling was — according to my husband — a ”catastrophe.” Oberlaa’s donut lacked a lot of filling. This krapfen also had a higher price tag – €1.90.

Demel Krapfen

The dough was spongy and fresh, and on the inside was a light, even layer of sweet filling. Despite the higher cost of €2.20, I couldn’t get enough of this krapfen. It was excellent.

Groissböck Krapfen

US Americans may be familiar with fried dough at country festivals – well, Groissböck’s Krapfen tastes JUST like that. The dough has a unique depth of flavor and fluff, unlike the other Krapfens I tried. The filling, interestingly enough, had a slight hint of alcohol to it. The price was reasonable – €1.30. Overall I was so impressed I went back the next day and ordered a vanilla krapfen, which was fantastic and thick with vanilla creme inside.

15 Suesse Minuten Krapfen

A much loved bakery, 15 Suesse Minuten’s krapfen were large, doughy, and delicious. For €2.20, I do wish there were more filling inside. Overall though, it was very tasty. 15 Suesse Minuten is also known for its rose marmalade krapfen – a Polish specialty. Check them out!

Winner of the Best Krapfen in Vienna

As I’ve mentioned before, people have their preferences for krapfen. Although for me, deciding on which one was the best krapfen in Vienna was a struggle. I kept going back between Demel and Groissböck, as both donuts were great in fluffy texture and flavor.

Although if we have to pick only one krapfen to win on American in Vienna, Groissböck would be the winner! It was excellent in the dough, overall quality, and price!

Learn more about Krapfen

• Carnival in Austria
• We found Vienna’s Best Krapfen

Cover photo by Leon Ephraïm on Unsplash