Melk may be a small town most people give just a day, but Wachau food hides things worth knowing about. The Wachauer Marille apricot is the star of the region, noticeably more intense and sweet-tart than apricots grown elsewhere, and it turns up in sweets, jams, schnaps and premium gifts that Austrians themselves take home. Alongside it sit classic Austrian dishes and Wachau white wines that rank among the world's best.
#1 Marillenknödel (Apricot Dumplings)
The most special sweet in the Wachau and one of the foods you have to try in Austria. Semolina or potato dough is wrapped around a whole Wachauer Marille apricot, boiled until cooked, then rolled in fresh buttery toasted breadcrumbs and sugar. Cut one open and you find the whole apricot inside, its sweet-tart flavour rushing out with the steam — an experience nowhere else does quite like the Wachau, because the local apricots are far more fragrant and intense.
- Only available June to August, when the Wachau apricots ripen. Out of season, places use frozen apricots, which taste very different.
- You can order it as a main course at lunch — Austrians happily eat a sweet dish in place of a savoury meal.
- Good spots in Melk include Gasthof Goldener Stern and the cafes in the old hotels in the town centre.
#2 Apfelstrudel
The most distinctly Austrian sweet and something you can find in every cafe in Melk. Paper-thin pastry wraps a filling of fresh apple with raisins, sugar, cinnamon and breadcrumbs, baked until the crust is golden and crisp and the filling is warm. It comes with whipped cream (Schlagobers) or Austrian vanilla cream (Vanillesoße), with a rounded sweet-tart flavour, not over-sweet. It pairs well with a Wiener Melange in the afternoon, and you have to eat it fresh from the oven — once it cools the pastry softens and tastes very different.
- Always order it warm (warm bitte) — hot strudel tastes far better than cold.
- Good Austrian cafes make their own strudel pastry every day rather than using frozen ready-made dough. You can ask whether it is hausgemacht (homemade).
- Eat it with a Wiener Melange (Austrian coffee with foamed milk) — the most classic pairing of all.
#3 Wiener Schnitzel
Austria's national dish — eat it in Austria and you understand how different it is from anywhere else. A real Wiener Schnitzel has to be made from veal (Kalb), not pork, pounded paper-thin, coated in a light breadcrumb crust, and fried in lard or vegetable oil until it is golden and the crust ripples and lifts off the meat. It is served with lemon slices, potato salad (Kartoffelsalat) or pickled cucumber. In the old Gasthof of the Wachau it is often cheaper and tastes better than in Vienna.
- Check whether the menu says Kalb (veal) or Schwein (pork) — if it just says Schnitzel it may be pork, which is cheaper.
- A good crust ripples slightly and lifts off the meat rather than clinging tight; a flat crust means it was not fried correctly.
- Squeeze lemon all over before eating — the tartness cuts the richness and is a key part of the experience.
#4 Wachau Grüner Veltliner
Austria's best white wine, and the one that made the Wachau famous worldwide. Grüner Veltliner from the Wachau is fresh, with a slight note of white pepper, a rounded body and a long finish — different from Grüner grown in other parts of Austria. The loess soil and granite of the steep slopes above the Danube give it a particular minerality that puts this wine on the international map. Drink it cold at 8-10 degrees with seafood, fish or Schnitzel for a perfect pairing.
- Taste Smaragd (the top tier) and Federspiel (the middle tier) side by side — Smaragd is far more intense and complex.
- The Vinothek Wachau in Dürnstein gathers wines from dozens of producers to try in one place.
- You can buy bottles to take home from wine shops in Melk for 12-25 euros each, cheaper than in Vienna or the airport.
#5 Wachau Apricot Jam
The best thing to bring home from Melk and the Wachau is handmade apricot jam from local fruit. The Wachauer Marille apricot (called Marille in Austria, unlike Aprikose in German) holds an EU protected status and has a more intense sweet-tart flavour than other varieties. Jam made by farms in the valley uses no added colour or sugar and tastes completely different from supermarket jam. Eat it with dark Bauernbrot bread for an Austrian breakfast.
- Look for the Wachauer Marille g.g.A. or g.U. label, which guarantees the source and meets EU standards.
- Small 100-150 gram jars cost 4-7 euros, light enough to make an easy gift and not held up at customs.
- Fresh apricot season is June to August, and farmers' markets sell fresh fruit far cheaper than back home.
#6 Kaiserschmarrn
A sweet that Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria loved, and which became a symbol of Austrian food. A pancake of beaten egg whites is baked fluffy in butter, then deliberately torn into uneven pieces, dusted with powdered sugar and served with Zwetschkenröster (plum sauce) — or in Melk it often comes with Wachau apricot sauce, a special pairing the locals are proud of. Soft and sweet, it works as a dessert or a light afternoon meal.
- Kaiserschmarrn is filling, so you can order one to share between two — the portion is bigger than you expect.
- Ask for extra Wachau apricot sauce if the place does not bring it; the tartness cuts the sweetness very well.
- This dish takes 10-15 minutes to make and has to be ordered ahead — it is not something kept ready and waiting.
Where to stay in Melk for this trip
A well-located hotel means less commuting and more sightseeing. Here are real, top-rated stays in Melk — compare Agoda · Booking · Trip.com in one click.
Hotel Restaurant zur Post
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Pension l'Etage
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Hotel Wachau
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Wachauerhof Melk
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Tours, tickets & activities in Melk
Day tours, attraction tickets and travel essentials for Melk — book ahead on Klook with mobile e-tickets.
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Before You Pack
Restaurants in Melk close fairly early — many shut at 20:00 and some close on Tuesdays — so plan to finish dinner before 19:30. The best restaurants are usually in the old hotels along the main street, not the places by the station that cater to tour groups.