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May 2005

Fresh from the gourmet scene

It’s bad news for caraway fans. The new man at the helm of the Lenbach restaurant (Ottostrasse 6) is banishing the pungent spice to the back of the kitchen cupboard. Unlike his predecessor, Ali Güngörmüs, who, as well as having three umlauts in his surname, managed to win an impressive 16 points from Gault Millau while at Lenbach, newcomer Maik Haltenhof hates the spice. “I won’t be going anywhere near it,” he says. “My dishes will be a lot fruitier and sweeter.” Caraway or not, Haltenhof should know his stuff—he’s already worked at Munich gastro temple Acquarello and was most recently sous-chef at Lenbach.

From new faces to new places. One of Germany’s culinary “wild young things” (Die Junge Wilden), Holger Stromberg, has opened what he promises will be a “true hotspot” with G-Munich Restaurant / Bar / Lounge at Geyerstrasse 52. It’s all stylish stuff—as well as his culinary genius, with extensive Michelin-starred experience under his belt, Stromberg has appeared in Glamour, Marie-Claire and Playboy. And he’s got a very nice, erm, Website. Take a look, there’s so much on there you wonder if there’s anything this boy hasn’t done…

Here’s something different: Germany’s first vegan restaurant is due to open in Munich at the end of this month. Zerwirk, at Ledererstrasse 3, will be offering a full range of what it describes as “socially acceptable” plant dishes and doing away with all animal products, including eggs, milk, meat and fish. And because a restaurant alone would be too much to expect in this era when more is more, Zerwirk also includes a club and concert / literary hall, both of which opened for business last month. The project is the brainchild of Sandra Forster (Hit the Sky and Netzer) and Michi Kern (Pacha and Zoozie’s). For more details, see www.zerwirk.de.

Michi Kern has been busy. He’s also behind the renovation of one of Munich’s most popular 1980s bars, Iwan, where he himself odd-jobbed as a dishwasher, 17 years ago. Now the bar on the corner of Sonnenstrasse and Josephspitalstrasse has been gutted and renamed Peter und Paul. Kern hopes the bar will appeal to both a gay and straight public, with primarily vegetarian cuisine, sushi and a host of events, including a series of gay tea dances.

Anyone in the habit of driving when they go for a night out will know only too well how long it can take to find a parking space in town. So why not let someone else do it for you? Barysphär food club at Tumblingerstrasse 36 has launched a valet-parking service. For € 4.50 a chauffeur will take your keys, park your car and return it at the end of the evening.

And, finally… a plea to all Munich bar-hoppers. Have you ever popped in somewhere for a drink and felt a need for some salty nibbles on the side? While the Italians lead the field in providing tasty morsels with drinks, the Germans are lagging badly behind. In fact in most places you can’t even get a few nuts or olives from the bar, which is strange, considering that in most cases they’ve clearly got the things in the kitchen… If you find a bar that bucks the trend and is top for titbits, let us know and we’ll share it with readers.

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