Grilling has experienced a very special kind of hype in recent years. This does not mean the concerted air pollution on the Flaucher, which is increasingly stinking to the residents and Hellabrunn animals. Rather, what is meant is the cult of meat, the right cuts, grilling and cooking methods, temperatures – and and and. Well-groomed meat consumption is above all a man’s thing, as you can see not only from the presentation of the relevant meat trade magazines or countless YouTube channels on which meat connoisseurs of all kinds cavort.
Instead of talking about cars at the regulars’ table, more important questions are now being discussed, whether gas or charcoal is better, whether you should grill backwards or cook more, and whether you would rather stick a digital or an analog meat thermometer in your heifers belly.
A science can be made of anything. But you can also have it much easier and less stressful – for example, by leaving the grilling and cooking to the professionals, sitting down, enjoying and trusting the skills of the chefs. In this respect, the Asam Schlössl in Thalkirchen is no longer an insider tip. Last September, Barbara and Shane McMahon reopened the restaurant that the former landlady Birgit Netzle had run for 26 years before she retired.
The Augustiner brewery renovated the baroque property, which is a real gem inside and out: rich frescoes on the facade, discreet and comfortably furnished guest rooms and a magnificent baroque hall that can be rented for festivities. The Wirtsgarten is a popular destination in summer.
Quality from the region can and should have its price
The new hosts are still known from Shane’s Restaurant in the Dreimühlenviertel, which was a place to go for friends of upscale fine dining for ten years. At the Asam Schlössl, Shane McMahon is now pursuing a different concept: Bavarian cuisine and the finest barbecue. And you can now watch the Irish-Austrian cook, whose career stages Königshof and Tantris should not go unmentioned here, on the “Big Green Egg”, how meat goes. The Big Green Egg is a monstrous ceramic charcoal grill that many chefs swear by because it is versatile.
And we were enthusiastic about the results, be it the super tender beef fillet from Black Angus beef (32 euros, 200 grams) or the slightly heartier rib eye steak from Bavarian pasture ox (35 euros, 350 grams), each of which is perfect Wish were cooked. Admittedly not a cheap pleasure, especially since the side dishes also wanted to be paid for. Sauces cost 2.50 euros extra (we tried the Café de Paris Butter), the other side dishes such as French fries or grilled vegetables cost 4.90 euros uniformly. But: Quality, especially from the region, can and should have its price.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung’s restaurant review “Tasting” has a long tradition: it has been published weekly in the local section since 1975, and for several years also online and with a rating scale. About a dozen editors with culinary experience from all departments – from Munich, knowledge to politics – take turns writing about the city’s gastronomy. The choice is endless, the Bavarian economy is just as important as the Greek fish restaurant, the American fast food chain, the special bratwurst stand or the gourmet restaurant decorated with stars. The special thing about the SZ tasting: The authors write under pseudonyms, often with a culinary touch. You go undetected to the restaurant to be tested about two to three times, depending on how long the budget set by the editorial team lasts. Iron basic rules: a hundred days grace period until the kitchen of a new restaurant has settled in. And: Never get caught working as a restaurant critic – so that you can describe food and drink, service and atmosphere in an unbiased manner. SZ
We will dare to try the other steaks on our next visit.
Another delicate delicacy was the grilled octopus on ox-mouth salad with a vinegar dressing and croutons (22.50 euros). Of course, the regionality propagated by the landlords is no longer far off with such dishes, the octopus will not have been caught in Lake Starnberg. Speaking of fish: A look at the menu of the day is also worthwhile here. We enjoyed a crispy roasted char fillet on champagne foam and potato and leek vegetables (19.50 euros) and a confit salmon (18.50 euros) with fregola sarda vegetables and – ui, great again – champagne foam .
The heart of fine dining can also beat in the beer garden. The refreshing cucumber cold bowl with freshly grated horseradish (6.50 euros), the asparagus salad (16.50 euros) and – meatless highlights – a tartar made from the spicy carrot (13.90 euros) and a Bavarian one were also refined Burrata (14.90 euros) with aromatic, sweet oven tomatoes and basil pesto.
Of course, we also had to order the roast pork in a Bavarian restaurant (15.90 euros the really large portion with two potato dumplings and coleslaw) which was good, but a little lost in taste compared to the grill specialties. Because there was still room for dessert in the stomach during a visit, we also tasted the Bavarian cream (7.50 euros) and a strawberry cake (4.80 euros), which, unsurprisingly, also impressed.
To wash it down there was of course Augustiner on tap (4.10 euros), those who don’t like beer are well served with a well-stocked selection of international wines, the open ones are available from 5.90 euros for 0.2 liters. You cant complain. One can only wish the landlords that Corona does not thwart their plans again. Because we like to come back – not least because of the extremely professional and cheerful service staff.
Address: Maria-Einsiedel-Straße 45, 81379 Munich, phone: 089/780167790, opening times: daily from 12 a.m. to 10 p.m., www.asamschloessl.de