Meet the Ebner family, owners of Hotel Restaurant zur Post
Hotel Restaurant zur Post is a beautiful, historic hotel just steps away from Melk’s main square. Can you tell us a bit more about what makes it so special?
The hotel itself is family owned over 140 years now, so I think a lot of people enjoy authentic hospitality. In German we would say “Gastgeber” we give and receive so much back, this is what makes it interesting. I think a lot of guests enjoy just the warm hospitality. The hotel itself is so versatile, here in the front we have our “Poststüberl” which is very rustic and we have a lot of card players here, a lot of locals. In the back we have the finer restaurants (Barock, Weinlust, Donau), we have got the ice-cream parlour, the terrace with the view of the abbey. The house has so many different faces, but I think the main reason people enjoy their stay is just the warm hospitality and that there’s a family behind it.
How long has your family been running the hotel?
The building belongs to the Ebner family since 1892. It used to be a butchery, my father was a butcher, as well as my grandfather and great-grandfather and next door where the ice-cream parlour is now, it used to be where they sold all kind of meat and in the back was the whole production. In 1988 my parents had to close the butchery because of economic reasons and then they started to rebuild the hotel. Since 1992 it’s been a 4* hotel and we always try to improve it. I’m the fourth generation and I’ve been in the hotel since 2023 and I’m trying to make my way, including generational fights but it’s great and it has got a long history.
What do you think Inntravel guests enjoy most about their stay with you?
I think that it’s so central, that you have got everything around you. That you can see that not every single room is the same and that every room has its history and the different layout. The hotel has got so many different corners and stories to tell. In the back we have the breakfast with possibility to eat in the garden and here in the front the Poststüberl. I think people enjoy that it’s a hotel for everyone: we have business guests, we have culture guests, we have theatre guests. We have of course cycling and hiking guests. This makes it interesting for us because every day is new and we have different guests staying.
What can guests do from the hotel? Do you have a favourite walk or activity in the area?
My personal favourite, what I really like to do, as we’re close to the Danube and on the other side of Melk is Emmersdorf, it’s a side arm of the Danube and Luberegg and is almost like a lake. What I really enjoy is in the morning take one of our bikes, cycle there, do some yoga, swim and cycle back.For swimming in the Danube, is the current okay?
It’s not too bad so in Luberegg it’s almost like a lake, you wouldn’t think it’s the Danube. But of course we go into the Danube as well. There’s the Pillach Mündung and there are a lot of spots where you can jump in the Danube.And, in general, I think it’s got a lot of potential if you stay a couple of days and do different activities: there’s the abbey, then we have the Schallaburg castle which is close by and for example this year we have an exhibition about the 80s, it’s a renaissance castle not far from Melk. Of course, we have got all the cycling and hiking routes. If I want to do a quick walk in the afternoon I like to go to the Au, a forest just across here which is an instant stress-relief for me. A lot of guests enjoy doing this in the morning or in the evening. From the Danube you can also see the abbey from all different sides.
Wachau is renowned for its regional produce – does the hotel have a signature dish? What type of cuisine can guests enjoy?
Definitely traditional Austrian but with a modern twist. We have got international influences as well. For example, we like to experiment with Asian/Austrian cuisine because they’re very similar when it comes to herbs. In general, I would say that it also depends on the season. Right now, we have got a lot of asparagus, a few weeks ago we had the Bärlauch (wild garlic) we have strawberries and rhubarb and cherries. It’s always what nature gives us. I really enjoy that in autumn we have a lot of venison and goose in November. It’s a culinary calendar throughout the year.
Famous in the hotel is our 'Post Tapas' which we’ve done for a couple of years. It’s like Spanish tapas so small starters which you can share if you want a small starter instead of a large starter and maybe skip the main.
And of course, everything about apricots as well. Apricots season starts in July, a lot of people ask us “where is the apricot?” but it’s only in July so we have to wait a bit. One of the most famous dishes is the apricot dumplings “Marillenknödel”. It’s made of apricot and then a dough usually made of cheese or potatoes, our speciality is with potatoes. It’s served with sugared breadcrumbs, icing sugar, and our homemade apricot compote. Of course we have everything with apricot: apricot marmalade, juice that you can have at breakfast. We have a liqueur which you can enjoy as an aperitif, also called a Wachauer Bellini. We also have the apricot compote for breakfast but also in the ice cream shop for some of the ice cream cups. Apart from apricot, poppy seed is also one of our house specialities. We have got a poppy seed cake with poppy seeds from the Waldviertels, so north of here. This is also our house special.
Famous in the hotel is our 'Post Tapas' which we’ve done for a couple of years. It’s like Spanish tapas so small starters which you can share if you want a small starter instead of a large starter and maybe skip the main.
And of course, everything about apricots as well. Apricots season starts in July, a lot of people ask us “where is the apricot?” but it’s only in July so we have to wait a bit. One of the most famous dishes is the apricot dumplings “Marillenknödel”. It’s made of apricot and then a dough usually made of cheese or potatoes, our speciality is with potatoes. It’s served with sugared breadcrumbs, icing sugar, and our homemade apricot compote. Of course we have everything with apricot: apricot marmalade, juice that you can have at breakfast. We have a liqueur which you can enjoy as an aperitif, also called a Wachauer Bellini. We also have the apricot compote for breakfast but also in the ice cream shop for some of the ice cream cups. Apart from apricot, poppy seed is also one of our house specialities. We have got a poppy seed cake with poppy seeds from the Waldviertels, so north of here. This is also our house special.
I know that you’ve got different restaurants, is the menu the same for all four?
The menu is the same, it’s just the style, atmosphere which is different. Here in the front, you can see that we have got a lot of dark wood, a bit more rustic. In the back it’s a bit finer. We have got three rooms that they can choose from, and each room has got a different vibe.
One final question: any exciting plans for the future?
In the house? To renovate? Yes, we are planning to build a garden sauna in the back there’s a small garden which isn’t used much now. We’d like to do a little outdoor sauna with views to the abbey, so a secret garden. This is planned for next year, and maybe something in the rooftop. We’re trying to keep the style of the house, I wouldn’t try to renovate it and make it completely modern, I think this wouldn’t work. I think the concept of the hotel lives from its history and I wouldn’t want to delete that, just add new features.