Gerda and I were partaking of the traditional Viennese jause, when the entire city seems to stop for late afternoon coffee and cake. It is similar to the British teatime, but much sweeter, lusher, and decadent. No mean little cucumber sandwiches for the Viennese--they'll take a slab of Sachertorte, and don't hold the cream! To this day, I believe that if you ask a Viennese to draw their idea of our USDA's Food Pyramid, it would consist of dessert, cigarettes, and wine, maybe with some boiled beef thrown in.

Last month, I spent two glorious weeks in Vienna, Budapest, and Prague researching my new book (Kaffeehaus, to be published in 2001 by Clarkson Potter) on the grand cafés of these cities and their desserts. I nibbled, sipped, sniffed, chewed, sighed, slurped my way through the Austro-Hungarian Empire. I also walked--so much that I lost 10 pounds during the trip, in spite the spike in my calorie and fat intake!

It's impossible to say which café is "The Best." Each one has its own specialties, particular ambiance, and quirky clientele. and the desserts are truly spectacular. The days are gone when the literati would linger for hours over their newspapers, nursing a single coffee. While the Viennese do frequent cafés, many places rely on the tourist trade to provide the bulk of their business. Don't be afraid of any language barriers. Just point to what you want in the display case, and get ready to indulge in some of the best sweets the world has to offer. The following list is in alphabetical order:

Cafe Central, Herrengasse 14: One of the most grand of all the Viennese cafés, with an impeccable history linked to such luminous customers as Trotsky and architect Adolf Loos. Located in the luxurious Palais Ferstel, near the Hofburg, it has gorgeous vaulted mosaic ceilings that make you feel pretty royal, too. The pastries are sensational, but this is the place to try some of the more unusual warm desserts, like Kaiserschmarren (a raisin pancake-omelet). Across the street, at Herrengasse 17, you'll find their takeout shop, where you can grab a quick slice of cake in the midst of your sightseeing (although part of the café experience is to sit down and relax).

Demel, Kohlmarkt 14: Once the bakery to the Emperor himself, Demel is really not a café, but a konditerei--a bakery with a more formal feeling than a café. Everything here is top class, from the flaky strudel to the rum-soaked punschtorte. (Punschtorte is one of my favorite cakes--yellow cake soaked with orange juice and rum "punch",cloaked with pink fondant.)

Café Diglas, Wollzeile 10: At Diglas, you can have one of the many homemade desserts or repair your hunger with one of their warm sandwiches or egg dishes (most cafés only serve sweets, so this is a bonus). They have a full bar, so this may be the place to sip a fiaker (a tall hot coffee with rum and whipped cream, named for perennially chilled and thirsty drivers of the old city's horse-drawn carriages).

Oberlaa, Neuer Markt 16: One of the newer konditerei, with absolutely perfect cakes, pastries, tortes, and strudel. If you are in the mood for something savory, order their vegetable strudel. Their kipferl (croissants) are unsurpassed--flaky, buttery, crisp yet moist. By the way, there are many historians that believe that the croissant was originally a Viennese invention, created to resemble the crescent on the Turkish flag. By eating a crescent roll, you were nibbling away at the Turkish enemy (the Turks a constant threat to the Viennese in centuries past).

Sacher, Philharmonikerstrasse 4: A chocolate-lover's pilgrimage. There aredecades-old debates about who makes the best Sachertorte in Vienna. The cake's inventor, a Sacher, went to work for Demel in the 1850s, and took the recipe with him, so its provenance is muddled, to say the least. The only way to find out is to go to the Sacher and try some yourself, then maybe test the competition. (The major argument concerns the amount of layers in the cake--one or two?--although the proper combination and quality of chocolates in the glossy icing is also a matter of contention.) I highly recommend sitting in the coffee house and savoring every bite of the intensely chocolate cake with whipped cream. Once I bought a cake on the run to snack on the train to Geneva, and what a mistake--Sachertorte is an experience, and not a snack! And don't skip the cream, as it is an integral part of the ritual, and you may complain that the cake is somewhat dry without it.

Cafe Savoy, Linke Weinzeille 36: After taking in the sights at the Naschmarkt (the city's fascinating outdoor market)or the Secession art museum (my favorite Viennese building, and I'm not alone), you might wander into this venerable café. Stick to the coffees--the dessert list is short and unmemorable. But the decor is High Café, with enormous old mirrors that could do some serious damage if they fall (like one of the chandeliers recently did during its daily dusting). At night, it becomes a gathering place for gays and lesbians, but there's little evidence of the clientele change during the day.