IFS2008's Profile
Which Are Some of the Greatest German Cuisine Restaurants in Germany?
Most of the answers on the history of German High-End Dining can be found on my blog High-End Food (see my profile)
Berlin: Margaux is surely among the best places in Germany. It is at three star level - Michelin needs to catch up. Many knowledgable friends went in the last couple of months and were absolutely stunned. My experience is also on High-End Food.
Reinstoff is a new venture of former Amador staff - modern and with a witty take on regional products. Clearly a must!
Only a short train ride from Berlin we find Aqua in Wolfsburg where Sven Elverfeld does great things, inspiring modern interpretations of traditional German dishes. Simply wonderful.
Stuttgart - Wielandshöhe is maybe closest to German cuisine. Alos, thry Gasthaus zur Linde in Pliezhausen. Definetely worth a visit.
Enjoy!
Vegetarian in Copenhagen and Amsterdam. Help!
we had many many vegetarian dishes on my latest visit of noma (see my blog for details). Surely a pure vegetarian menu can be arranged. Geranium has one which is truly memorable.
I could use a really good meal in Berlin
Go o Michael Hoffmann at Margaux - it's terrfific. Amazing and unique herbal and vegetable creations, unique in its own way... See my blog High-End Food for a latest reference...
Avoid MA - it was very dissapointing there...
where to dine in wiesbaden?
It's Nassauer Hof - well the Restaurant Ente within the hotel is a classic, gradually modernized by the young chef Michael Kammeier - the duck is indeed worth a visit. Bsides that try Restaurant M
Ghent- Please help
If you into modern food try c-jean it is like In de Wulf or De jonkman and offers wonderful dishes at reasonable prices: http://www.c-jean.be
Good Restaurants in Hannover, Germany?
Weinstube Biesler is the best one in Hannover, quite traditional but on a very high level. Die Insel is more fine dining but lacking the precision of a Michelin-starred place.
Hannover is a hard place but in Wolfsburg near-by Sven Elverfeld does some fantastic things at the aqua: www.restaurant-aqua.de
Vegetarian in Copenhagen and Amsterdam. Help!
Can only give some tips about Copenhagen - the best include noma**, Geranium*, MR*, Sellered Kro*, The Paul*, Paustian* and formel B*. Most of them also offer also vegetarian menu option. Must try is clearly noma, Geranium, MR if you are into modern food with Danish background.
Amsterdam - must eat is Ciel Bleu**, not sure about vegetarian places, though...
Visiting friends in Germany
So you referring to Baden (a part of Banden-Württemberg). Indeed, Bareiss and Schwarzwaldstube are two 3* restaurants in the Black Forest, about 1 hour away from the airport Karlsruhe-Baden. Very traditional french cuisine maybe a lttle bit boring if you are more into modern cuisine.
Lunch reservations should be no problem these days...
I would strongly recommend to do Raub's restaurant in Kuppenheim - in any case this is my home turf so if you more specific I could be of help.
Juan Amador*** in Langen near Frankfurt
Again at Amador, again a fantastic meal:
After he received the third star last year Juan Amador stated that work would actually begin as it is hard to keep that high quality and be creative on the other hand. Within this very year he and the whole brigade have worked very hard and are more and more elaborating a very distinct Amador style. Yes, in the beginning there are still some “molecular” elements but they are clearly in the background when it comes to the real menu. Subtleness and complexity have increased without over-doing it. It is just brilliantly balanced.
The Amador style is close to Sergio Herman but with Spanish influence (and not Asian) and with more variations in the composition of dishes - complexity, subtleness and the main themes of the individual courses change and all together it is just an amazing ride. Clearly some newer dishes need refinement and someone like Juan Amador takes on risks in putting out new dishes and then he constantly refines them in a meticulous process up to perfection (the carabinero and the pigeon dishes are a good examples).
The reason for visiting this treasure is not to expect technical break-throughs but it is a very unique emotional cuisine with outstanding products and ingenious ideas of combining the non-combinable (hey, techno-emotional in the best sense). That’s what Juan Amador should be praised for! A must-eat on every foodie landscape!
The whole report on High-End Food: http://highendfood.wordpress.com/2008/11/24/amador-subtle-emotional-brilliant/
Michelin Germany 2009
Have to say three stars for Sven Elvereld are well-deserved! He is really unique in his way of modernizng some old German Classics. It is really playful and a must for everyone interested in modern and outstanding cuisine!
Overall a surprising edition especially when it comes to the two star rating. Christian Jürgens is very good to excellent and bears the most potential for even another star. My review here:
http://highendfood.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/restaurant-uberfahrt-a-fresh-breeze-at-the-tegernsee/
I will visit Becker's soon and report back...
Restaurant in Hamburg for anniversary dinner?
In Hamburg Thomas Martin at Louis C. Jakob would be my choice for that occasion. Spectacular view over the Elbe, a warm and welcoming hotel. Just very good.
Barcelona on a Monday....any ideas?
Do Gresca, one of the most promising bistronomique restaurants...
FrankFurt/ Helsinki Trip
Sorry to say, but all the places around the Römer are tourist traps. Not a single Frankfurter will go there. Better go to Sachsenhausen and try some traditional Applewine places like Wagner oder Das gemalte Haus oder Fichtikränzi.
Well, the best place is Amador*** in Langen about 20 minutes from Frankfurt - be sure not to miss that. All the Michelin starred places in Frankfurt itself have a poor price-quality ratio.
switzerland - food / wine tour?
My clear favorite is Gerard Rabaey in Montreux. Traditional world, world-class products impeccably prepared. He spezializes in sweatbreads, pigeon and puff pastry. A feast. I am not sure about cooking classes there.
Tatjana Gandits has taken over at Bruderholz in Basel and cooks interesting cross-over dishes with some Asian influence. Definitely a must if in Basel.
In Zurich, go to the Dolder Grand and experience Heiko Nieder's beautiful modern inspiring cuisine.
Guten Tag Berlin Oct '08
Sorry, but the average quality of food in high-end restaurants is much above San Francisco (if you focus on the city only). There is a lot going on at the moment - be sad that you missed it;-) Paris is ahead, of curse, but I am not so sure of London especially when it comes to fine dining...
Guten Tag Berlin Oct '08
Tim Raue won "chef of the year" of Gault Millau in 2006/7 to be precise;-)
His curent style at Ma seems to be very different from the 4 times - more Asian influences, but I will be there soon and report back...
Germany - Schloss Berg - Christian Bau***
Try Amador - you won't regret it. Will send you me contacts...
I have experienced Ali when he was at Lerbach in Munich, but I reckon that he has developed...
Guten Tag Berlin Oct '08
I would strongly recommend Christian Lohse who got his second star last year. He specialises in sea food at Fischer's Fritz.
Very unique using herbs in new and surprising ways Michael Hofmann at Margaux is as good as Lohse, sometimes better. A maybe candudate for a second star this year.
And, maybe Tim Raue at Ma - have not been there yet, but reports have been positive..
To be sure, it won't be stellar or "eyebrow" food - Berlin is catching up but Amador, Bau, Erfort, Wissler, Henkel are by far better!
Germany - Schloss Berg - Christian Bau***
Will try - thanks. Alwayss good to know;-)
Germany - Schloss Berg - Christian Bau***
Dear girobike,
of course I tried Josef Baur's fabulous cuisine (10+ times as my second home is near by) but have recently found that there's no real development going on... High standard, but the surprise menu is boring and repetitive. One of the few restaurants I do eat ALC...
Munich Restaurants?
I have to second the Tantris endorsement, but Christian Jürgens at the Tegernssee just 45 minutes away is much better in my opinion. Just reviewed him on my blog...
In Munich, try Terrine which is a more modern restaurant which received its first star this year and does also belong to Eichbauer's kingdom (owner of Tantris and Terrine). http://www.terrine.de/
France/Alsace reviews: Au Tilleul, Le Strasbourg, L'Arnsbourg
ARNSBOURG
A Crement to accompany all the savory courses?? Sorry, but this seems a bit strange too me. I have been to Arnsbourg several times and know the food quite well....
Re wine prices - I never had a problem of finding a reasonable priced Riesling, Gewurz or Pinot Gris from Alsace, the non-Alsace stuff is indeed overpriced.
It is a magical place, the interior is just beautiful and, for me, a benchmark, where I can relax and enjoy. The food is present but you can very well have other conversations than food... The strength of Klein is clearly his unique way of composing a menu, the single dishes vary in quality, but the whole experience is awesome. During my last vist I experienced some deficiencies in product quality and execution, but this was only once in numerous visits...
Food Destinations for Euro Honeymoon?
Re Frankfurt: discover youself! Frankfurt has one of the top three restaurants near-by (amaodor in Langen - rather save some money and then go there or in Tasca in Wiesbaden the secon restaurant of Juan Amador), lots of traditional Applewoi (apple wine) places to discover and two very interesting restaurant in the Coocoon club - lots more. I would strongly recommend the Rheingau, Rheinhessen and Mosel if you are interested in wine.
Germany - Schloss Berg - Christian Bau***
Sorry to contradict, dear girobike - there is a lot to discover: Bau, Wissler, Amador, Erfort, Elverfeld are all perfect, unique in their very distinct own way and imho among the best European chefs. Wohlfahrt, Thieltges and Lumpp present classic cuisine at highest quality, more traditional but surely not to be missed!! More reviews to come - maybe they will be help the foodie community to fully appreciate the New German Cuisine...
Germany - Schloss Berg - Christian Bau***
Last week I had the best meal of my life at Schloss Berg where Christian Bau has made significant progress in modernizing his cuisine. It was amazing!
Some excerpts from my blog report (http://highendfood.wordpress.com):
"Looking back, I always had great dinners at Schloss Berg but my recent experience clearly exceeded my high expectations by far. All in all, previously it was a classic french cuisine ingeniously delivered, beautifully assembled with an emphasis on creating a unique broad flavourful picture. In January this year we still had some variations (of langoustine, foie) which had been delicious but sometimes too complex and overloaded. What a difference now...
(...)
Overall
What can I say? I have to admit I really like Christian Bau's intelligent way of cooking and I see him on track to the absolute top among European chefs. Compared to my recent experiences at Oud Sluis and Hof van Cleve (which I both praised) Bau is on par - the whole experience is closer to Goossens in style but equally fun and enjoyable as Sergio Herman's cuisine. More importantly whereas Herman and Goossens have only gradually developed their cuisine further in the last two years I experienced big leaps at Schloss Berg, especially from January to August this year.
Christian Bau is on the quest, surely, and he gradually modernizes his cuisine by getting rid of unnecessary elements (as Klaus Erfort, as Christian Jürgens) and reducing his plates to maximum taste. I particularly like the idea of having some typical dishes like the crab, the turbot & langoustine, the sole which he tries to vary improve continuously. His most important strength is an ingenious touch for pairing of flavours in a more conventional way than Juan Amador in a good sense. Together with his strong foie dishes and the patisserie it simply makes him a great chef!
Moreover, I sense that there is still some potential unlocked and dare say that if this is unleashed then only the sky is the limit;-)
Good eating in Frankfurt?
Hard to find in Frankfurt, erica! Try Mikro at the Cocoon club but it is not that central, modern and fancy. A solid Italian place is Isoletta in the Westend, French-> La Cigale in Bockenheim, International -> Holbeins in Sachsenhausen. Or you could do some traditional Apfelwein (apple wine) in Sachsenhausen, e.g. Wagner...
restaurant Bareiss
As I am living in Germany and can put both Bareiss and Schwarzwaldstube into a (German) perspective, some comments are in order:
At both restaurants go for the degustation menu if you are first timer - they have two a large and a small one priced pretty similarily. It will take you about 3-5 hours depending on your choice but that includes some amuse, pre-dessert, petit four etc. Portion sizes are rather big, but you ask for smaller plates up-front if you want (not sure whether you get a discount.) Setting is ridiculous in my opinion, old-fashioned and outdated in the Bareiss, Schwarzwaldstube is a bit better. In the latter I feel more at home especially because serviceis sol relaxed and refreshing compared to the rather stiff staff at Bareiss.
Style-wise Lumpp is more traditional, Wohlfahrt more refined, simplistic and ingenious. Last time at Bareiss (when it had two stars) I was rather dissappointed but Lumpp is perceived to get rid of the pressure after he got the "announced" third star - so I may return. Schwarzwaldstube is surely perfect, but Wissler and especially Christian Bau (see my latest review on http://highendfood.wordpress.com) are on par and much more interesting and modern.
Overall, it is good to read that you regard those restaurant at least on the level of Paris - so Germany is worth going!!
Traditional German in Frankfurt
Avoid Brückenkeller, Wagner is too touristic but Feuerrädchen is quite nice.
Copenhagen - any tips?
Well, there is plenty to explore: Noma, The Paul, Paustian, etc. Amazing modern nordic cuisine...
Berlin in August - looking for a couple places to round out my food itinerary
Don' t do 44 any more. Try Michael Kempf at Facil that is creative and fun. Lohse at Fischers Fritz and Margaux are also quite good. Have not yet been to Tim Raue...
