Carinthian tavern culture: new perspectives and 100 members in sight

Carinthian tavern culture: new perspectives and 100 members in sight

The Carinthian tavern culture is an integral part of regional gastronomy and celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Among the many host cooperations, the Kärntner tavern culture (KWK) is the longest and looks back on impressive growth. "25 new members have been added this year," reported the supervisors Kathrin Zollner and Gerfried Hopf. But not everything is going smoothly: In the past few months, three member companies have had to close, and one was confronted with bankruptcy.

The challenge of sustainably operating the companies is additionally reinforced by the low profit margin. "The craft can support with regional products to optimally process all the ingredients," said Hopf, who himself runs an inn in Villach. An example of such products is the Carinthian Gansl, which is of great importance there.

new inn leader and revised cooperation

To present the tavern culture even better, there will soon be a new logo that can come up with a cutlery design. A own tavern guide will be published in February of next year. In this, among other things, the slow food snails are highlighted, which are intended to underline the common philosophy and the gourmet experience. For this purpose, partnerships with restaurateurs from neighboring regions were launched for the upcoming Alpe-Adria weeks.

Another pleasant aspect of reorientation is the cooperation with the Hirt brewery, which replaces the previous partnership with the Villach brewery. A new table wine that knows Cuvée will also be offered in the future on the menu of the KWK farms. Winner Georg Lexer explained that the new wine should not only convince in terms of taste, but should also be attractive in terms of price. Among other things, this requires the decision to use a screw cap to keep the costs low.

Despite the challenges, the association is optimistic about the future. "The next 30 years will not be easy. The successor and the handover of the companies will present us with great tasks," said Zollner. The innkeepers hope for political support in order to better master the challenges such as increasing prices, high wage costs and lack of employees.

The anticipation for the upcoming Christmas parties also brings a positive mood among the hosts. "Many reserved months ago," said Zollner. Even if large company celebrations with over 100 participants have become rare, there are still space for smaller events and festive gatherings of the departments.