The Vienna sausage stand is more than just a snack stall. Now it has a UNESCO heritage recognition

The Würstelstand, which tin present constituent to a past going backmost generations, is much than conscionable a root of greasy gastronomic satisfaction.

Hot sausages get prepared astatine a accepted sausage basal (Wuerstelstand), which are named arsenic intangible taste practice by the Austrian UNESCO Commission, successful Vienna, Austria, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo)

The thoroughfare basal is known for bringing radical of galore classes and backgrounds unneurotic and has its ain distinctive vocabulary.

Meet the “Haasse,” a coarse boiled sausage, and besides the “Käsekrainer” — a smoked instauration infused with food that oozes out, besides sometimes known arsenic the “Eitrige,” oregon “suppurating” sausage. There is besides the “Oaschpfeiferl,” a spicy peperoni, and the “Krokodü,” a gherkin.

“Sausage stands person a agelong past successful Vienna,” said Josef Bitzinger, whose Bitzinger Würstelstand is located adjacent to the Albertina depository and conscionable down the Vienna State Opera.

“Originally it was conscionable a bucket with blistery h2o successful which the sausages utilized to swim,” helium said. They were sold from “small carriages drawn by dogs and bigger ones drawn by horses, aboriginal by a VW autobus oregon a tractor to their spot.”

A vendor serves a blistery canine astatine a accepted sausage basal (Wuerstelstand), which are named arsenic intangible taste practice by the Austrian UNESCO Commission, successful Vienna, Austria, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo)

The contented goes backmost to the pre-World War I days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, erstwhile erstwhile soldiers acceptable up mobile cookshops to marque a living. The city’s longest-lived stall successful a fixed location, Würstelstand Leo, has been serving up sausages since 1928. The stands developed into a bigger instauration aft wider-ranging support for fixed stalls was granted successful 1969.

It was past that the griddle was introduced and the cheesy Käsekrainer invented, Bitzinger said. “Today that’s already a classic.”

Customers devour blistery sausages astatine a accepted sausage basal (Wuerstelstand), which are named arsenic intangible taste practice by the Austrian UNESCO Commission, successful Vienna, Austria, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo)

The UNESCO designation “honors the tradition, the hospitality and the diverseness of our city,” Mayor Michael Ludwig said successful a statement.

“This rubric is simply a designation for each those Viennese who, with their warmth and their charm, marque the sausage stands much than conscionable a snack spot — a gathering spot wherever joie de vivre and civilization travel together.”

Bitzinger said that “we person been warring a agelong clip for this.”

“The peculiar happening astir it is that it’s a signifier of gastronomy everybody tin afford,” helium said. “Here the wide manager and, during the opera ball, a personage stands adjacent to a idiosyncratic and the thoroughfare sweeper who conscionable finished cleaning the street. That unites people.”