From the pizzeria to the Caffè del Gianni

At the beginning of the 1970s and after several holidays in Italy, Caffè del Gianni founder Johann Niedermayer noticed that Viennese people were actually very Italian-loving when it came to food, but that the range of Italian restaurants in Vienna at that time was very modest.

After a few years in his parents' tobacco shop, he decided to switch from tobacco enjoyment to culinary enjoyment and opened the first real wood-fired pizzeria in Vienna in 1974, where he developed over time into Vienna's very successful yeast flatbread baker.

The pizzeria “Grado” – named after his then-dream destination – soon became a hotspot for connoisseurs of Italian cuisine.

IMAGE: JOHANN NIEDERMAYER AT THE WINE TASTING - 1980s

founding a winery

Since physical well-being is not just limited to food, Niedermayer devoted himself more and more to the variety of flavors of wine and in 1984 founded a winery for Austrian wine as well as an import wine shop for Italian wine.

With a lot of enthusiasm, they succeeded in bringing good and enjoyable wine to its lovers.

At the "Vinitaly" in 1986, Niedermayer was the first Austrian wine producer to present high-quality domestic wine - his courage was rewarded.

Over time, more and more journalists and wine lovers became aware of him and named his wine shop one of the best in the country.

Awards from Falstaff magazine and the award as Austrian Salon Winner for Wine Selections were the reward for his commitment.

First Coffee Contact

However, with Austria's accession to the European Economic Community, consumer behavior changed and Niedermayer had to, with a heavy heart, close the business, which had grown to include three wine shops.

From this time on, he devoted himself to the wholesale wine business in order to bring the enjoyment of special specialties to the gastronomy sector. During this time, as bizarre as it may sound, Niedermayer met an excellent coffee roaster with his delicious coffee at the wine fair in Verona.

His heart was immediately drawn not only to wine, but also to coffee. Coffee was quickly added to the sales program and supplied to restaurants in Vienna and the surrounding area.

Image: Johann Niedermayer - today

sale of the winery

The success was not long in coming and with a few employees and 5 trucks, 200 restaurants were soon being supplied. In 2002, the Semmler winery was also set up in Hohenruppersdorf, producing beautiful, easy-drinking white wines (Supremus) and smooth red wines (Optimus).

Unfortunately, in 2008, due to his advancing age, it simply became too much and he sold his customer base and shares in the winery.

However, he never gave up his search for pleasure. To return to his roots, he bought a restaurant in Vienna-Döbling. In the "Cantinetta di Gianni" he tried to successfully convey his experience in terms of taste and pleasure to his guests.

It was a wonderful time with many cheerful anecdotes that Niedermayer experienced as a chef with his lovely wife in service.

Of course, coffee was always a big topic during this time, as the coffee wholesale business was lovingly continued in parallel.

Image: in the coffee roastery

beginning of coffee roasting

In 2014, Niedermayer met coffee roaster Luigi Mardegan from Noventa di Piave and his family-run wood-fired coffee roastery. Fascinated by the quality he achieved with his "coffee roaster" with a beechwood fire, he decided to start roasting coffee himself, following the Venetian coffee roasting school.

And fortunately, this decision was also the right one! Because the coffee from “Caffè del Gianni” became increasingly popular not only in the catering trade, but also among many private coffee lovers.

"So I have always remained true to my principle of spreading pleasure and thus well-being." - Johann Niedermayer

Image: Johann Niedermayer with Alexander Klim

Online Shop & Succession

At the beginning of the 2020s, the Caffè del Gianni online shop was successfully launched. From now on, private customers had the convenient opportunity to experience our unique Italian coffee enjoyment in their own four walls, even outside of the catering industry.

While looking for a successor, Johann Niedermayer met Alexander Klim from Vienna, who returned to Austria after spending several years abroad and was looking for a new challenge.

Impressed by the high quality, the unique taste and the tradition of wood fire roasting, Alexander Klim and his company Kaffeestudio Spezialitäten have taken over the Caffè del Gianni private customer segment as well as the online shop in 2023.

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