MUNICH: MALVA

Finally visited restaurant "Malva" in Haidhausen and tried their menu for dinner, as they offer to trust them with the selection just asking if you have any allergies and intolerances.

Huber and Fritz met in the kitchen of the "Broeding", a restaurant that happened to be the first fine dining spot I visited in Munich around 9 years ago. Of course, the focus on regionality and the quality of the products. They buy from friendly traders such as Caspar Plautz at the Viktualienmarkt or at various organic farms in the surrounding area, have created a culinary network with vegetable gardeners, hunters, fishermen, winemakers, herb gardeners.

Malva is derived from Malve, the healing flower. There is a menu: four courses for 79 euros, the wine accompaniment costs 39 euros as well as the non alcoholic pairing for the same price.

The menu changes approximately every three weeks. Today we’re having: skinned tomatoes, sweet onions from Franconia, plums and Shiso. Then nettle malfatti, forest mushrooms and fermented wild blueberries. As main course young deer Tagliata, Cannellini beans, spring onion and mole. Finally, figs, yoghurt and fig leaf ice cream. Optional: cheese from Paul Lerchenmüller with grape-cumin jelly. The jelly was a showstopper for me personally!

To the first course, the skinned tomatoes, the experienced Sommelière Marina serves a glass of Tuscan Nebula. The red, juicy tomatoes become a taste experience: a light vinaigrette of tomato water and fleur du sel, aromatic shiso leaves, the plums as sweet as they can be. A truly surprising plate, topped by a tempura onion ring. This dish wowed my senses even though it’s as simple as tomatoes with plums. Definitely cooking it at home!

The next glass for wine accompaniment is filled with a Riesling, 2022, sandstone from Seckinger. A small work of art on a boiled blueberry reduction with mushrooms to the point and surprisingly crispy nettle chips with hemp seeds. For me the combination didn’t work so well, as I am a big fan of cream sauce, white wine and shallots when it comes to mushrooms.

The main course, the young deer, which vegetarian guests can replace with eggplant topped with baba ganoush. Served with mole, a sauce cooked for hours, which can already consist of more than 20 different ingredients, including chillies, chocolate, cloves and pineapple. The deer was very tender, but sometimes a bit too chewy. Nothing too fancy: as my mom would cook for a family dinner on a workday.

Last but not least, another highlight as a palette cleanser: the celery sorbet with a dash of apple cider. Very refreshing! I don’t think I have ever tried celery in a sweet way.

Cheese course at its best:

And the dessert: yoghurt, fig leaves ice cream, figs and caramelised walnuts.