Café Sabarsky

Café Sabarsky occupies part of the ground floor of the Neue Galerie, the museum of early twentieth-century German and Austrian art and design that opened in 2001 in a Beaux-Arts mansion at Fifth Avenue and 86th Street. The museum was founded by Ronald Lauder and the art dealer Serge Sabarsky, after whom the café is named, and the room recreates a turn-of-the-century Viennese coffee house. It is furnished with period pieces: lighting fixtures by Josef Hoffmann, furniture by Adolf Loos and banquettes covered in a 1912 Otto Wagner fabric, while a Bösendorfer grand piano in one corner is used for the museum's cabaret, chamber and classical performances.

The menu follows Viennese tradition. Coffee is served in Austrian styles, and the cakes are the main event, with classics such as Sachertorte and apple strudel. For something more substantial, the kitchen also serves savoury Austrian dishes at lunch and dinner, and the full menu can be downloaded from the museum's website before you go. Prices reflect the setting and the Fifth Avenue address, so it is a treat rather than a quick coffee stop.

The café is open on Monday from 9am to 6pm and from Wednesday to Sunday from 9am to 9pm, and it is closed on Tuesdays. Hours can change on evenings when special events are held, and the café occasionally closes early for private functions, so check the Neue Galerie website on the day. Lunch is first-come, first-served for the general public, and queues form at lunchtime and on weekend afternoons, so arriving soon after opening or mid-afternoon on a weekday is the easiest way in. Dinner can be reserved online or by phone.

It suits couples, art lovers and anyone wanting a civilised break from the museums of the Upper East Side. The museum itself, home to Gustav Klimt's portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer, is open on Monday and from Wednesday to Sunday, from 10am to 6pm, and is also closed on Tuesdays. Visiting the galleries and then taking coffee and cake downstairs is the classic way to spend a couple of hours here.

The Neue Galerie is at 1048 Fifth Avenue, on the south-east corner of 86th Street, across the road from Central Park. The 86th Street station on the 4, 5 and 6 lines is about ten minutes' walk east. The Met is a few blocks south and the Guggenheim a few blocks north, so the café fits neatly between two Museum Mile visits.