Wine and Food

Weinbar Rutz, Restaurant, Berlin, Germany

8 points

There’s really not much more for me write about Marco Müller and his restaurant Weinbar Rutz in Berlin? Or is there?

Last November, Rutz joined the very exclusive circle of Michelin two-star restaurants in Berlin – and with that, Marco is to be counted among the best chefs in Germany. I recently tasted his current menu and am, once again, as enthusiastic about his culinary artistry as I am impressed by his enthralling creations. He certainly engages with the “regional” trend, while managing to avoid the excessive dogmatism of some others in Berlin, such as Einsunternull (Einsunternull, Restaurant, Berlin) – right around the corner.

One is simply amazed at the combinations he comes up with: unripe strawberries with sturgeon, pork roll with gooseberry, sour milk and mackerel. (They call the dish: air-dried miso-bread, gooseberry and egg yolk).  And some particularly rare cuts of meat – like pork chin, which is served along with Marco’s graphic description: it is now customary in almost all slaughterhouses that animals are cut into two sections, the heads generally being disposed of right away.

However, there are delicious parts to be found here – such as the chin, which is covered with a thin film of fat, a bit like the pork belly, though it’s more tender, finer and lighter. And to combine this with juniper, a really terrific idea.

After each course, you find yourself wondering how someone comes up with these ideas at all. Marco Müller seems to have been endowed with a remarkable talent: to not only imagine precise combinations of the tastes and smells of wildly varying ingredients, but also to somehow be able to predict the taste beforehand.

medow milk, mackarel and beforehand a tomato tea

Like a composer, who can hear the music from the notations in his head. How many hours would you need to practice? Probably quite a few. However, every last hour has proven its worth: the two Michelin stars attest to this. The real proof comes, however, when you experience his menu for yourself. Not speaking about the beauty of each creation.

Of course, the quality also derives from his thoroughly high-end ingredients, some of which are cultivated or raised exclusively for Rutz.One example is the trout, combined with sheep’s whey, possibly the best trout I have ever eaten.

In Berlin, particularly, there is fierce competition regarding the so-called regionalization of cooking; many places (some are reviewed here on my blog) use this popular movement (or is it even a kind of crusade?) as a promotional tool for their restaurants. At Rutz the food simply stands on its own. And that is what’s so good about it. One of the most remarkable dishes is called “Eight-hour beetroot, beer malt & dill”. This dish is truly beyond description. A very basic vegetable, malt, dill…but the result is fresh, tender and just incredibly tasty.

Neu Mürtz lamb

Rutz is famous also for its wine list; this restaurant, after all, is also a wine bar. Following two previous and rather prominent sommeliers, their third, Alexander Seiser, now selects and serves the wines. I enjoyed his selection – more classical than overly experimental, a fitting and true accompaniment to the food. Though perhaps I would have enjoyed something a bit more surprising – more rare or unabashed.

Please see my past reviews of Rutz here: Weinbar Rutz, Berlin and Weinbar Rutz, Berlin (2. report) & “Hans”, Pinot Noir, Marlborough

And here is the webpage of Rutz: http://rutz-restaurant.de/