The Park Hyatt Vienna is a relatively new luxury hotel in an early 20th-century former bank, just a 6-minute walk from Hofburg Imperial Palace and a 7-minute stroll from St. Stephen’s Cathedral. If you have a weakness for imperial living and the kind of treatment Franz Josef must have received, this is your kind of place. A discreet entrance leads to soaring public spaces and plush rooms and suites that mix contemporary with traditional Viennese décor. Free Wi-Fi and coffeemakers, along with flat-screen TVs, minibars and designer toiletries are de riguer. Amenities include a ritzy cocktail bar and an elegant, wood-paneled whisky/cigar lounge. The luxe spa has a heated indoor pool and a fitness center, and there’s also a refined tea room and a business center.

But what draws us back to the Park Hyatt Vienna is their palatial restaurant, The Bank, located in the historic cashier hall. Now festooned with crystal trees and marble columns, this is a room of poetic beauty only rivaled by the cuisine. Whether you choose breakfast, lunch or dinner here, prepare for innovation and supreme quality. We feasted on goose liver, tender catfish, tangy steak tartare, exotic snail fricassee and smoked eel. On another visit we indulged in classic wiener schnitzel, zander and chocolate cake. The quality of the food at Bank is on the highest level and the service is as friendly as it gets. A large selection of wines complements the scene. The very attractive Monique Dekker runs this hotel as if she was conducting a Mozart symphony. Visit http://www.vienna.park.hyatt.com/en/hotel/home