sorry johnny
The corner of Haidhausen where the Sorry Johnny coffee bar is located may not be quite as picturesque as the rest of the area. At the latest, however, when you enter the small shop, in which the color of the portafilter machine matches the moss-green tiles on the wall behind the counter, you quickly realize that the café run by three friends, Katrin Brüggemann, Johannes Rühl and Florian Vogt, is one which will be visited more often in the future.
On the one hand, this is due to the breakfast menu, which includes, among other things, good French toast made from homemade brioche with whipped ricotta and jam or Eggs Florentine. The latter are finest Julius Brantner bread with sautéed spinach, waxy eggs, and topped with Mornay sauce, which is a cheesy twist on the well-known béchamel sauce. But it is also down to the three operators, who know their trade and ensure that guests leave their café completely happy, either behind the counter, at the table or in the kitchen.
sorry johnnyPreysingstrasse 42, 81667 Munich
The Maria
A visit to the Maria is recommended for everyone who wants to feel completely removed from the hustle and bustle of everyday life in Munich. With mint tea or Arabic mocha, many hours can go by very quickly on the journey through the Orient. As long as you stand up to the devout looks of the Blessed Mother, who hangs on the walls of the café in a wide variety of manifestations.
The Maria in the Glockenbachviertel is best known for its breakfast. Here you can choose between different variations: “Maria in Marrakech” combines spicy shakshuka, organic eggs and spinach. “Maria in Isfahan” has Persian herb frittata with barberries and cream cheese. And when Maria is “lucky”, she eats pistachio pancakes with marinated cherries and mulberries. Those who like to share can order “Maria in Love” and are now served pastirma: organic beef that is matured and prepared on site. But there is also something for vegans at Maria.
What is also special: The breakfast trip goes daily until 5.30 p.m.
The MariaKlenzestrasse 97, 80469 Munich
Lohner and Grobitsch
Down-to-earth cuisine with a good pinch of nostalgia: Alexander Grobitsch from Munich ran a grocery store in the Westend for 42 years, until Kerstin Lohner persuaded him to take his well-deserved retirement and turned the place into the café that still bears their two names today: Lohner and Grobitsch.
For breakfast you can choose from more conventional combinations: “Der hefty Alex” includes different types of sausage, a boiled egg, bread, butter and homemade jam. Alternatively, there is also cheese. Anyone who asks for “sweet Fritz” gets three pancakes with fruit and syrup and freshly squeezed orange juice. And if you don’t get enough of it, you can order “paraphernalia” to go with it: eggs, muesli or yoghurt. Sounds easy, and it is.
Lohner and GrobitschSandtnerstrasse 5, 80339 Munich
lost weekend
The Lost Weekend in the university district is furnished in a rather minimalist style. More spectacular is the frequently changing art on the walls and in the shop window of the café, as well as the wide range of books of all kinds. Just as minimalistic and yet spectacular: the completely vegan breakfast menu. And because the Lost Weekend is primarily attended by students due to its close proximity to the faculty buildings of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University, it doesn’t only happen in the mornings, of course.
In addition to delicious wraps, paninis with vegan mozzarella and soy schnitzel rolls are offered here. There are also vegan pretzels, croissants, cakes and biscuits. The coffee here comes with oat, coconut, vanilla or almond milk, and many of the teas and spritzers are homemade.
lost weekendSchellingstrasse 3, 80799 Munich
Cafe Franca
A place where you can read a book in peace, where not everything is deliberately perfect, but made with love. This is what the Café Franca in Schwabing stands for. How much love goes into breakfast is already clear from the decoration of the dishes. An artful interplay of chopped apples, grapes, passion fruit, raspberries and strawberries is served with muesli and yoghurt.
But the café’s long-standing bestseller is the elaborately garnished avocado bread with cherry tomatoes, pomegranate seeds, cucumber pieces and a hint of chilli flakes. Also recommended are the roasted grain bread with burrata and caramelized tomatoes, as well as various scrambled egg variations, for example with feta and tomatoes or – a little more unusual – with dates and herbs. Optionally there is lemon and pepper ham. If you prefer something sweet, choose the breakfast croissant or a piece of homemade cake. Incidentally, it is baked exclusively with spelled flour.
Cafe FrancaHiltenspergerstrasse 24, 80798 Munich
Café Frischhut
The Café Frischhut is a Munich legend. And if long-time residents claim they’ve never been there, they probably only know it by its nickname: “the Schmalznudel”. The traditional yeast pastries simply taste better here than anywhere else in the city. Just like only grandma can do.
If you sit at one of the rustic wooden tables inside, you can even watch how the homemade dough pieces are freshly fattened. In addition to lard noodles, there are tube noodles with varying fillings, Striezerl and donuts. Everything to take away.
Café Frischhut, Prälat-Zistl-Strasse 8, 80331 Munich
Om Nom Nom
Meat was sold here in bulk 50 years ago, but today only plant-based products are sold over the counter: The only thing that now suggests that the Café Om Nom Nom in Sendling used to be a butcher’s shop is the light-colored tiles on the wall. The main focus, however, is on a delicacy that fully corresponds to the modern zeitgeist: vegan cheese.
Recently, it has even been made in the in-house factory and can be eaten on site or taken home, depending on your preference. The “Cheeze-Plate” combines varieties such as cashew camembert and blue mold with fig mustard and bread. The “Grilled Cheeze Sandwich” is also popular: two crispy slices of white bread with a vegan melted cheese mix and homemade tomato jam. Granola fans are served with the Acai Bowl, a delicious mix of bananas, berries, hemp seeds and nut butter.
Cafe Om Nom NomOberländerstrasse 24a, 81371 Munich
Faber
People queue up for breakfast at Café Faber in der Au and – that’s what really makes it special – it’s really worth it. Because the shop, which is simply but stylishly furnished, is run by a couple, Hannah Gratzfeld and Leon Hänseler, who have a sense of aesthetics and taste in equal measure – without ever being over-the-top.
The dishes that the two devise to match the season are not only eye-catchers, but also real treats for the palate and yet have simple-sounding names such as “poached eggs”, “semolina slices” or “tomato bread”. But if you read what is hidden behind said tomato bread – namely homemade sourdough bread with colorful tomatoes, blue cheese, tarragon and brown butter – your mouth will water just reading about it. And rightly so.
Cafe FaberZeppelinstrasse 5, 81541 Munich
Cafe Niu
A penchant for sweets and charming kitsch is absolutely necessary in order to feel good at Café Niu in the old town. Because everything you find here is just waiting to be photographed: walls with pink plastic flowers, waving cats and a cake counter that couldn’t be more colorful. If you sit down on the chairs upholstered in turquoise fabric and look for something savory on the menu, you will look in vain.
Instead, there is a – literally – dazzling selection of sweet food and drinks. The coffee here is decorated with edible glitter, and other milk and chocolate drinks can also be decorated with colorful cream and sweet pearls for an extra charge. The cakes – from the bottom to the creams – are homemade. And although they don’t look like it: according to the operator Ying Ting Huang, they bake with little sugar and natural ingredients.
Cafe NiuSendlinger Strasse 7/ at the corner of Oberanger 6, 80331 Munich
Cafe Ruffini
Breakfast at Ruffini is just like the café’s decor: simple but good. Apart from dark chairs and tiles, you won’t find much here, but it never feels cool. Because the atmosphere in the Ruffini is so warm and informal that you can feel a little warmer in your heart. Several partners have been running the shop in Neuhausen since the 1970s – like in an Italian cooperative. “Many Ruffinis remain their entire professional lives,” says the website.
From Tuesday to Sunday, guests have a choice of four variations at breakfast, all accompanied by a hot drink. If you just want to stop by, you can simply enjoy your coffee with a croissant, butter and jam. If you have more time – and this is recommended at Ruffini – choose the small cheese plate or two organic scrambled eggs with ham and bread rolls. And for those who prefer cake in the morning: The Ruffini offers a large selection, baked in its own pastry shop, from lemon tart to cheesecake.
Cafe RuffiniOrffstrasse 22, 80637 Munich