"Vienna's first vegan tasting room took a Michelin star in 2026, butter-free. Book it for a first date."
About JOLA
Jonathan Wittenbrink opened JOLA at Salzgries 15 in March 2022 as Vienna's first vegan fine-dining room; the 2026 Michelin Guide Austria gave it a star. The format is a single surprise menu, around ten plates for €155, built from regional harvests and rewritten constantly. Larissa Andres, his partner and co-founder, runs the compact dining room while the open kitchen works in near silence. The menu is printed on plantable seed paper. Two blocks from the Danube canal and the Schwedenplatz crowds, it is the most quietly radical kitchen in the Vienna dining guide's first district.
The Kitchen
Wittenbrink cooks vegetables with the discipline of a classical tasting-menu kitchen and none of its dairy crutches. The set menu runs about ten courses and changes with what arrives each morning; Michelin's inspectors singled out a raviolo of aubergine ragout with courgette, toasted pine nuts and an intense tomato essence, and that plate is a fair portrait of the house style: Mediterranean warmth, Austrian produce, no imitation meats anywhere. Ferments, smoked roots and nut creams do the work butter normally does.
The cellar is the second argument. Roughly 220 positions lean toward natural and Austrian growers, and the alcohol-free pairing is engineered with the same seriousness as the wine list, which makes JOLA one of the few starred rooms in Vienna where the non-drinker is not an afterthought. Wittenbrink and Andres opened the restaurant in March 2022; the star arrived with the 2026 Michelin Guide Austria, confirming what the city's cooks had been saying for two years. For the movement it belongs to, see our ranking of the best vegan fine dining in the world.
The Room
The room is compact, modern and deliberately relaxed: pale wood, an open kitchen you can hear working, lighting kept low enough to flatter and bright enough to read the seed-paper menu. Sound stays at a conversation-easy hum even on full nights because the space simply does not hold a crowd. Tables sit closer than in the grand Innere Stadt dining rooms, nearer a Copenhagen counter than a Viennese salon. There is no dress code beyond the city's default smartness; sneakers and a good jacket are both at home. Service, led by Andres, is first-name warm and runs the ten courses over roughly three hours, Wednesday to Saturday from 18:00.
Best for a First Date
Book JOLA for a first date because the format does the conversational work for you: ten small surprise courses arrive as shared talking points, the hum of the room never forces raised voices, and €155 a head reads generous without intimidating anyone. A plant-based menu also quietly solves the most common dietary mismatch in modern dating. The 18:00 Wednesday-to-Saturday seatings leave time for a canal walk afterwards. If the evening calls for old-school grandeur instead, our Vienna first-date ranking covers the marble-and-silver alternatives.
Not for
Skip JOLA if you need to choose your dinner: there is no à la carte, the ten-course surprise menu is the only format, and the kitchen accommodates allergies, not preferences.
Frequently Asked
Is JOLA in Vienna worth it?
Yes, if you take tasting menus seriously: JOLA is the rare kitchen where vegan is a discipline rather than a restriction, and the 2026 Michelin star confirms it. At €155 for around ten courses it undercuts most starred tastings in the first district. Sceptical carnivores tend to leave converted; diners who measure value in protein density do not. Compare it against the city's other counters in our Vienna dining guide.
How hard is it to book JOLA?
Plan two to four weeks ahead for a Friday or Saturday; midweek tables move faster. Reservations run through the restaurant's own site at jola.wien, and the room's small size means weekend slots vanish quickly after each menu change. Cancellations do appear, so checking a few days out is worth the effort. The 18:00 start is the easier get; later seatings carry the demand.
What is the dress code at JOLA?
There is none enforced. The room reads stylish-casual: most guests wear smart everyday clothes, and a jacket is never required. This is the relaxed end of Vienna's starred dining, closer in spirit to a natural-wine bar than to silver-service rooms like Amador. Comfortable over formal is the right call, especially for the three-hour menu.
How much does dinner at JOLA cost?
The surprise menu is €155 per person for roughly ten courses; recent seasons have priced up to €165. Wine pairings from the 220-position, natural-leaning cellar or the alcohol-free pairing add to that, so a full evening for two lands around €450. There is no à la carte and no shorter menu, which keeps the kitchen's focus absolute.
Is JOLA really fully vegan?
Yes, entirely plant-based: no dairy, no eggs, no honey anywhere in the ten courses. It was Vienna's first vegan fine-dining restaurant when it opened in March 2022, and the kitchen builds richness from nuts, ferments and smoke instead of imitation products. Vegan diners can book any date on the calendar without a single substitution. For sibling kitchens worldwide, see the global vegan fine-dining ranking.
Reserve a Table
Reserve at JOLA
Books out two to four weeks for weekends; Wednesday and Thursday move faster.
Affiliate disclosure: Restaurants for Kings may earn a commission when you book through our reservation links, at no cost to you. Our scores are editorial and never paid for.
Practical Information
AddressSalzgries 15, 1010 Vienna
NeighbourhoodInnere Stadt
CuisineVegan tasting menu
Price€155 ten-course menu, ex-drinks
Dress CodeNo rules · smart casual fits
SeatingCompact room · open kitchen
ReservationDirect · jola.wien
