The Top 51 Places to Eat Near Am Mahrbach
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Rank 1. Am Mahrbach
Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred farm restaurant tucked into the mountains where the chef and her partner grow, raise, and forage pretty much everything on your plate. The former stables seat maybe sixteen people across four tables in front of an open kitchen, all wood and stone and floor-to-ceiling meadow views. There's one surprise menu, and the crowd is whoever was organized enough to book. It feels less like dinner service and more like someone invited you over and actually meant it.
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Rank 2. Lilli Fine Dining
Contemporary, Regional Cuisine
A Michelin-starred fine dining room tucked into a small Austrian town, which is either charmingly surprising or exactly what you'd expect from this corner of Styria. The set menu runs four to six courses built around serious regional sourcing, and the kitchen clearly knows what it's doing with local fish and produce. In summer, the glass wall opens up and the whole room feels like a terrace. The crowd dresses up, but not uncomfortably so.
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Rank 3. Geschwister Rauch
Classic Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred sibling act tucked into a sleepy village above Bad Gleichenberg, Geschwister Rauch is the kind of fine dining spot where the pigs are raised out back and the tasting menus still manage to feel genuinely exciting. The crowd leans well-heeled and unhurried, the kind of people who also book a cookery class while they're at it. The vine-shaded terrace in summer is deeply unfair to everyone eating indoors.
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Rank 4. Malerwinkl
Contemporary
A laid-back restaurant in the Styrian countryside where the chef also happens to sculpt and paint, which somehow makes the food taste more interesting. The menu leans hard into regional ingredients, landing somewhere between comforting and quietly refined. The wine list is proudly Austrian, with solid options by the glass. Sit on the terrace if the weather holds, and wander the garden after, where the art is genuinely worth a look.
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Rank 5. Saziani
Seasonal Cuisine, Creative
A Michelin-starred country house restaurant tucked beside a celebrated winery in the rolling Austrian countryside, which tells you pretty much everything about the vibe. The cooking is seasonal and quietly confident, the kind of food that makes you realize the chef knows exactly what he's doing without needing to show off about it. The sommelier running the room knows the wine list cold. Grab a terrace table when the weather cooperates and stay the night if you can.
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Rank 6. Lilli Wirtshaus
Regional Cuisine
A cozy regional tavern on Fehring's main square that somehow pulls off both a hearty Wiener schnitzel lunch and a proper fine dining set menu at dinner, with reservations required for the latter. The team keeps things grounded with local ingredients and honest cooking, while the space blends old bones with modern design. In summer the glass wall opens onto the garden, and suddenly everyone looks like they planned to eat outside all along.
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Rank 7. Gasthaus Haberl
Regional Cuisine, Modern Cuisine
A family-run country inn tucked into the Styrian countryside that somehow manages to be two restaurants at once, a cozy tiled-stove room for regional classics and a sleek modern dining room for the tasting menu crowd. The Styrian wine list is genuinely worth your attention. Between meals, the terrace cafe does homemade ice cream, and the little deli up front means you won't leave empty-handed.
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Rank 8. Gasthaus Csencsits
Contemporary, Seasonal Cuisine
A tucked-away upscale restaurant near the Hungarian border that somehow pulls off both refined and genuinely relaxed. The husband-and-wife team run a tight ship: he cooks seasonal five-to-seven course menus rooted in Pannonian tradition over a wood-fired oven, she runs the room with real warmth. The crowd drives out from the city on purpose, and you'll understand why after the first wine pairing. The covered terrace on a summer evening is the whole point.
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Rank 9. Krispels Genusstheater
Contemporary
Part restaurant, part winery, and entirely the kind of place you'll be talking about on the drive home. The team here pulls off something genuinely tricky, serving proper regional cooking alongside fine dining options, all backed by a wine list running over 600 labels. The organic pork from their own woolly pigs alone is worth the trip out to Straden. Sit in the courtyard if the weather plays nice.
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Rank 10. echt JAN AIGNER
International, Regional Cuisine
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Rank 11. Der Luis
Creative, Seasonal Cuisine
A family-run creative restaurant in a small Austrian town that quietly punches well above its weight. The chef puts out a four-to-seven course surprise menu built almost entirely from local ingredients, and the cooking is genuinely ambitious without being fussy. It draws the kind of crowd that books weeks out and talks about the meal on the drive home. If you want something more casual, their Wirtshaus next door has you covered.
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Rank 12. Thaller - Restaurant
Seasonal Cuisine, Modern Cuisine
A Michelin-starred spot in a centuries-old building across from a Baroque church, which sets the tone nicely. The chef runs a seven-course seasonal menu built almost entirely around what's growing in the garden out back, and it manages to feel modern without losing its roots. Couples who take wine seriously fill the room, and Manuela's house-made vermouth is the right way to start. The terrace overlooking the garden is genuinely lovely.
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Rank 13. Thaller - Gasthaus
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A proper Austrian gasthaus sitting across from the village church, where lunch means honest country cooking built around what's growing in their garden or swimming in their fish pond that week. The wood-fired stove does the heavy lifting, and the seasonal menu shifts accordingly. It's the kind of room where locals outnumber visitors, nobody's in a hurry, and the person explaining your food actually grew it.
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Rank 14. ZeitRAUM
Creative, Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred tasting menu tucked inside a sleek wellness hotel in the Austrian hills, where the chef personally delivers each course and hands you a little card explaining the story behind it, which is either charming or a lot depending on your mood. Seven courses of creative, seasonal cooking with a vegetarian lean, and the desserts alone are worth the drive. The wine list runs deep on regional bottles, and the team actually knows them.
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Rank 15. Die Weinbank
Creative, Seasonal Cuisine
A two-Michelin-starred restaurant in the wine country south of Graz, where creative seasonal cooking meets one of the most serious wine programs you'll encounter anywhere. There's no menu to agonize over, just a surprise tasting in two lengths, which suits the quietly confident crowd here just fine. The sommelier knows every one of the 35,000 bottles in the cellar personally, or at least acts like it.
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Rank 16. Zur Goldenen Birn
Modern Cuisine, Austrian
A Michelin-starred restaurant inside a grand old hotel in Graz, where the kitchen uses Habsburg-era recipes as a jumping-off point for something genuinely modern and precise. The set menu changes with the seasons, and the chefs bring the dishes out themselves, which either feels charming or slightly theatrical depending on your mood. The crowd dresses up, the room looks the part, and the whole thing takes itself seriously enough to deliver.
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Rank 17. Genießerei am Markt
Modern Cuisine, Creative
A Michelin-starred dinner inside a rustic market stall is exactly the kind of thing that sounds like a dare but turns out to be the best meal of your trip. By night, the chef runs a long tasting menu built almost entirely from what was sold at the market outside that morning, with dishes that are quietly, almost annoyingly good. The room is small and relaxed, full of people who look pleasantly surprised to find themselves somewhere this special.
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Rank 18. Triad
Regional Cuisine, Innovative
A countryside restaurant in a genuinely quiet rural village, Triad is the kind of place that makes you wonder why you ever eat in cities. The team runs it with real care, growing herbs and vegetables out back and balancing traditional Austrian cooking with something a bit more creative. Locals tuck into classic braised meat dishes at lunch while visitors let the kitchen surprise them with a set menu they won't see coming.
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Rank 19. Artis
Creative, International
Artis earned a Michelin star for creative tasting menus that pull ingredients from across the globe and turn them into something genuinely surprising. Pick four, six, or eight courses and let the kitchen decide the rest, which is exactly the kind of controlled chaos that suits the dark, sleek dining room. The crowd tends to be dressed-up couples and curious food people who actually like not knowing what's coming next. Book the chef's table if you can.
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Rank 20. Schlosskeller Gourmetstube
Modern Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred tasting menu tucked inside a centuries-old listed building near Leibnitz, with a summer terrace that earns its reputation the moment you see the view. The chef runs a tight ship, sending out five or seven surprise courses built on local produce with the occasional Asian detour that somehow makes perfect sense. The crowd skews couples and serious food people, dressed just smart enough to feel like the room.
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Rank 21. Rauch & Rebe
Farm to table
A cozy neighborhood restaurant just outside the Old Town where the food punches well above the price, which is probably why it earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand. The menu roams confidently between European and Asian flavors, and the whole thing feels looked after rather than just staffed. Lunch is a genuine bargain, and on a warm evening the sheltered terrace fills with locals who clearly have a regular table already claimed.
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Rank 22. Sattlerhof
Creative, Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred family restaurant tucked into the vineyards of southern Styria, where the chef runs a creative six-course seasonal menu built almost entirely from what's growing nearby, including herbs from their own garden. The wine list is enormous and genuinely serious, with bottles from their own estate among them. It's the kind of room where everyone seems to know exactly what they're doing, and you feel it from the first pour.
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Rank 23. Schlosskeller Wirtshaus
Farm to table, Regional Cuisine
Tucked into a hilltop estate in wine country, this wood-panelled tavern is the laid-back sibling to the fancier restaurant next door, serving regional Austrian cooking that actually changes with the seasons. The terrace view over vineyards and forest is the kind of thing that makes people go quiet mid-sentence. Come hungry, because the apricot dumplings at the end will haunt you pleasantly for days.
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Rank 24. Mohrenwirt
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A neighbourhood hangout in the heart of Graz, tucked between an art museum and a church, with a terrace that puts you right in the middle of the old town's daily parade. The menu leans into Austrian classics done with a light, seasonal touch, the kind of cooking that feels hearty without being heavy. Regulars look like they come here on autopilot, which is usually a good sign. Book ahead or you'll be watching other people eat from the street.
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Rank 25. Arravané
Modern Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
Arravané is one of those restaurants that pulls double duty: a quick lunch spot for the laptop crowd by day, a proper modern restaurant by night. The open kitchen turns seasonal ingredients into creative plates that sound like they were assembled by someone with good taste and no fear of vegetables. The Austrian-leaning wine list is thoughtfully put together, and the pinsa is there if you need it.
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Rank 26. Steak Boutique
Meats and Grills
A proper steakhouse in central Graz that takes dry-aged beef seriously, sourcing cuts from both Austria and Nebraska. The menu is basically a lineup of serious cuts, cooked the way they should be, and the house-made steak fries are genuinely worth the detour. It sits inside the Boutique Dom Hotel, and the light-filled atrium with arched ceilings makes the whole thing feel a bit grander than your average meat-and-potatoes night out.
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Rank 27. Restaurant Scheucher
Farm to table
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Rank 28. Stammtisch am Paulustor
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A polished regional restaurant tucked into a centuries-old chunk of Graz's city wall, right near the Hauptplatz. The vaulted ceilings and medieval bones sit surprisingly well alongside the sharp modern fit-out, and the crowd, local professionals mostly, seems comfortable with the contradiction. The kitchen leans into Styrian classics, good schnitzel, grilled steaks, solid seasonal cooking. The inner courtyard terrace in warm weather is genuinely lovely.
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Rank 29. Schmidhofer Im Palais
International, Austrian
Tucked into a beautiful old palais near the Graz Museum, this is the kind of airy, high-ceilinged restaurant where you could easily lose a whole afternoon. Grab a window table to watch the Sackstraße crowd drift by, or the courtyard terrace when the sun cooperates. The menu swings between solid Austrian classics and international plates, and the Wiener schnitzel is genuinely done right. The staff are warm without being hovery, which is rarer than it should be.
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Rank 30. Restaurant SCHLOSSBERG
Seasonal Cuisine, Austrian
The view is genuinely the whole point here, a panoramic sweep over Graz from a hilltop restaurant that earns its perch. Floor-to-ceiling windows mean every table gets some of the action, though the ones right up front are the ones worth waiting for. The food is seasonal Austrian, solid and unfussy. You can hike up or take the funicular, which honestly sets the tone nicely for a relaxed lunch or a slow dinner.
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Rank 31. Starcke Haus
International, Mediterranean Cuisine
Perched on the side of the Schlossberg with a view over Graz that makes you feel like you've earned something just by showing up, Starcke Haus is a cozy, old-school dinner spot where everyone gets the same surprise tasting menu, five or seven courses, starting at 7pm. The couple running it, front of house and kitchen, keeps things personal and warm. Get there early to claim a spot on the terrace before the sun goes down.
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Rank 32. KABUFF
Creative, Modern Cuisine
A tiny, minimalist bistro on the Lendkai where the cooking is quietly ambitious, mostly vegetarian, and built around combinations that sound puzzling on paper but land perfectly on the plate. You can share the tasting menu or order à la carte, and the sourdough alone sets the tone for the whole meal. Natural wines and house-made non-alcoholic drinks round things out nicely. Weekends bring a calmer breakfast crowd, which is a different vibe entirely but just as good.
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Rank 33. Weinkehr
Austrian
A low-key modern restaurant in the wine village of Gamlitz where the cooking is honest, careful, and deeply Austrian. The team behind it clearly love what they do, and it shows in things like the house-made pork crackling dumplings and a proper goulash with a handmade roll. The crowd is locals and visitors who know how to spend an afternoon. In summer, the shaded terrace makes that afternoon very easy to extend.
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Rank 34. Wirtshaus Kogel 3
Farm to table, International
Perched among vineyards and rolling hills outside Leibnitz, this countryside restaurant earns its views honestly, with floor-to-ceiling windows and a tiered terrace that make you feel like you stumbled into someone's very stylish dream. The seasonal menu leans contemporary without being precious, the wine list is genuinely excellent, and the service is warm rather than stiff. The kind of crowd that drives out specifically for a long Sunday lunch and doesn't regret it.
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Rank 35. Broadmoar
Seasonal Cuisine, Contemporary
A Michelin-starred country house restaurant tucked down a narrow lane, surrounded by woods and paddocks, that somehow manages to feel cosy rather than stuffy. The cooking is seasonal and quietly inventive, with the chefs bringing dishes out themselves and the sommelier running the room with calm authority. It draws the kind of crowd that plans the trip around the table. Grab a terrace seat if you can.
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Rank 36. Der Schrenk
Regional Cuisine
This old-school village inn has been around forever, and the courtyard terrace alone is worth the detour. The kitchen keeps things rooted in the region but isn't stuck in the past, turning out honest, carefully made plates that feel fresh without trying too hard. The regulars know to ask what's on today's specials, and so should you. Farmers, families, and anyone sensible enough to drive out from the city fill the room.
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Rank 37. Gaumenkitzel
Modern Cuisine, Creative
A Michelin-starred tasting menu tucked inside a nature hotel in the Austrian countryside, which already sounds like a punchline but is actually just lovely. The kitchen gardens basically write the menu here, and the whole thing comes as a tight set of courses that feel genuinely rooted in the region rather than performing at it. The room is warm, the all-Austrian wine list earns real attention, and the crowd leans relaxed and unhurried, the way people get when they've already checked in.
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Rank 38. Harald Irka am Pfarrhof
Creative, Seasonal Cuisine
A Michelin-starred creative kitchen tucked inside a centuries-old rectory in the rolling vineyards of Styria, which is already a pretty good start. The chef pulls off dishes that mix local and international ingredients with real precision, and the sommelier clearly knows his wines. It draws the kind of crowd that books a tasting menu and then stays the night, because yes, the old stables are now guestrooms.
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Rank 39. Kupferdachl - Das Edelsbrunner
Modern Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
Fine dining in a small, dark room with gold-lit walls south of Graz, where the chef personally brings your food to the table as if daring you to admit you love it. Kupferdachl runs a single set menu in short or long form, built around seasonal regional ingredients that actually taste like somewhere specific. The crowd is small by design, the wine list leans local, and the whole thing feels genuinely considered rather than performed.
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Rank 40. Kupferdachl - Wirtshaus
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A proper Austrian Wirtshaus where the third generation is running things and clearly paying attention. The cooking is rooted in the region and whatever's in season, so the menu shifts with the calendar rather than sitting still. The covered terrace looks out over a garden with a koi pond, which is either charming or deeply relaxing depending on how many glasses of the excellent local wine you're on. Worth knowing: a more ambitious tasting restaurant shares the building.
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Rank 41. Lieperts
Modern Cuisine
A Michelin-starred surprise tasting menu tucked into a quiet corner of the Austrian wine country, Lieperts pulls off the rare trick of feeling genuinely relaxed while still being serious cooking. The chef sends out a multi-course menu that changes on you, which is either exciting or terrifying depending on your personality. A few guestrooms mean you can lean into the wine list without making any tough decisions afterward.
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Rank 42. Wirtshaus im Weinkitz
Austrian, Regional Cuisine
A cosy Styrian restaurant in the Austrian countryside where the cooking feels modern without trying too hard about it. The chef keeps things clean and regional, letting local trout, Alpine cheese, and veal do the talking. The host runs the room with an easy warmth that makes the whole thing feel genuinely welcoming rather than performative. There are boutique rooms upstairs if you need a reason to stay for another glass.
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Rank 43. Kehlberghof
Seasonal Cuisine, International
A short drive out of Graz takes you to this friendly hilltop restaurant with a terrace view over the city and surrounding meadows that does most of the talking. The kitchen leans seasonal and regional, with an à la carte menu alongside a six or seven course surprise menu if you're feeling adventurous. The crowd tends toward locals who know the drive is worth it, which is usually a good sign.
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Rank 44. LILLI & JOJO
Farm to table, Classic Cuisine
A farm-to-table restaurant perched above the vineyards of Styria's wine road, this place earns its setting. The chef keeps things seasonal and local, the service feels genuinely warm, and the regional wine list is the kind you actually want to linger over. In summer, the terrace is the whole point. Couples and hikers who cleaned up nicely fill the room, happy to have found somewhere this good tucked into the hills.
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Rank 45. Wörgötter - Fine Dining
Creative, French
This Michelin-starred fine dining room in the small town of Ligist is the kind of place that makes you question why you ever eat in cities. The family has been at it for three generations, and it shows: the chef turns out creative, French-leaning tasting menus that feel genuinely considered rather than just ambitious. The room is elegant without being stiff, the wine pairings are solid, and the service is warm enough that you'll linger long after the last course.
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Rank 46. Gasthaus Fuchs
Farm to table
A proper village gasthaus in the heart of Burgenland where the chef came back after cooking at serious places and quietly made his family's restaurant into something worth driving out for. Classics like schnitzel and Tafelspitz sit alongside more ambitious plates, and it all works. Tasting menus at dinner, a shorter set at lunch, terrace in summer. The crowd is locals and people who did their homework.
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Rank 47. Wirtshaus Molzbachhof
Regional Cuisine
A cozy regional inn tucked inside a nature hotel in the Austrian countryside, where the kitchen leans hard on the hotel's own garden and whatever's in season. Think fried trout, local game, and proper Austrian comfort food done with care. The all-Austrian wine list runs about 200 bottles deep, and the owner works the room herself, which keeps things warm and unhurried. Hikers and weekenders fill the place, nobody's in a rush, and that's exactly the point.
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Rank 48. Wirtshaus Krainer
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A family-run inn, café, and hotel in the Austrian countryside that actually delivers on all three fronts, which is rarer than it sounds. The bright, glassy dining room fills with locals who know the seasonal regional cooking is honest and properly good, earning it a Michelin Bib Gourmand. There's even a fine dining option in the evenings if you want to dress it up a bit, and don't skip the cake buffet.
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Rank 49. Wörgötter - Wirtshaus
Regional Cuisine, Seasonal Cuisine
A proper Austrian inn on the market square, the kind that's been around forever and still earns it. The kitchen leans into regional classics with just enough modern thinking to feel current without being clever about it. Seasonal produce, hearty plates, the whole thing. Regulars fill the room and they fill it fast, so book ahead. There's also a separate fine dining side running a surprise tasting menu a few nights a week if you're feeling ambitious.
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Rank 50. Terra
Seasonal Cuisine, Modern Cuisine
A sleek modern restaurant tucked into the basement of an old mill, with terrace tables right on the river that everyone quietly fights over when the weather cooperates. The kitchen runs two seasonal tasting menus, a four-course and a longer seven-course, built almost entirely on regional ingredients. The wine list leans heavily Styrian and Burgenland, which makes sense given where you are. Drop in at the bar if you just want a snack and a glass.
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Rank 51. Restaurant Krainer
Regional Cuisine, Classic Cuisine
A proper sit-down restaurant in the middle of a quiet Austrian village, where the kitchen takes regional classics seriously without getting stiff about it. The chef reinterprets familiar dishes using produce from nearby farms and their own garden, and the four or six course set menu gives you a real sense of how that comes together. The room is polished and the service genuinely warm, the kind of crowd who dressed for the occasion and are glad they did.