With plates and cups in hand, the service bustles back and forth. It’s busy at Café Mio this morning. The eatery only has a handful of tables, but there’s room for a few guests on the patio. However, walk-in customers hardly come by in this quiet corner of Bogenhausen. The operator Daniel Wandinger has many regular guests. People who work in the surrounding offices would also like to come to the café; there are several consulates in the area.
Wandinger is also an actor, for film and television, as he says. For example, he has acted in TV series such as “Der Alte” or the series “Der Bergdoktor”. But he had also worked in gastronomy for a long time and, in addition to acting, wanted to fulfill his dream of opening his own café. “Mio” – Italian for “My” – has been written in curved letters on the gray facade of the corner building since 2016. Wandinger’s Mio is a colorful restaurant that combines casual big-city chic with the charm of an alpine hut.
When the sun is shining, it’s most beautiful on the terrace, which is framed by flower pots. There you can also sit on a bench under a big tree. A cozy place, not only during the day, but also in the evening when the café offers an aperitivo on Thursdays when the weather is good. But even if it rains, you can sit outside, in front of the restaurant there is a small wooden hut with benches and a table. In winter, Wandinger places two ski gondolas on his terrace.
A large window front, walls painted in rich green, a white-tiled counter, music that is a bit too loud: Inside, the basic equipment, as you know it from some hip Munich cafés, meets a few unexpected elements. If you not only look at your plate, but also look up, you will not only discover a few deer antlers, one of them with a police hat.
There are only a few tables in the café, but the counter is well stocked with cakes, sandwiches or tramezzini.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
The cozy terrace is not only suitable for breakfast, but also for a beer after work.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
The decoration also includes leather pants hanging from the ceiling.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Decoration also includes a bicycle and leather pants dangling from the ceiling. Wandinger not only hung vintage metal lamps, but also an old painted milk can that also serves as a lamp. The beer mugs, which serve as flower vases, or the small screw-top jars with holes in the lid, with salt and pepper in them, also go well with the thrown-together furnishings.
What is there and how much does it cost?
It has long been a classic in Munich: the avocado bread. A small chapter with the heading “Avocado…” on the breakfast menu is also dedicated to him in Café Mio. It is served, for example, with tomatoes, crunchy baby spinach and parmesan slivers (10.90 euros). For 1.60 euros more you get a fried egg. You can also order an avocado bread variation with beetroot hummus, rocket and fried egg or one with feta, salmon and fried egg.
We also recommend the scrambled eggs, for example the one with goat cheese and rocket (9.50 euros). The egg is fluffy and the cheese is intense. If you prefer something sweet in the morning, order a homemade Bircher muesli with fruit or a bowl with granola and fruit. You can have breakfast until 11 a.m. However, the sandwiches are available again after a half-hour break, between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Café Mio is also ideal for lunch. The weekly menu features changing hot dishes and salads. The cakes on and in the counter are also tempting, such as the juicy carrot cake (EUR 4.50), decorated with flowers and with cream cheese in the middle. You can also find focaccias or tramezzini there. All dishes are available to take away.
The cakes are also available to take away.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
The coffee beans are roasted in Italy.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
“Some say that we offer one of the best coffees in Munich,” says Daniel Wandinger. He gets the beans from Italy, where they are roasted. Café Mio also serves classics here, from espresso (2.20 euros) to cappuccino (small 3.60 euros, large 4.10 euros) to milk coffee (4.60 euros). You can get oat, coconut or lactose-free milk for an extra 50 cents. But the restaurant also offers a few special features when it comes to coffee. For example, the cold coconut milk with espresso is refreshing (7 euros). For colder days, the drink is also available in a warm version. Various smoothies are also on the menu, but also lemonades or a beer after work.
The service is busy but friendly. If you want, you can while away the waiting time with a magazine from the shelf. But once the order is placed, food and drinks are quickly at the table. Café Mio is closed at the weekend. You can then book it for events.
cafe mio, Lamontstr. 22, 81679 Munich, opening hours: Monday to Friday 7.30 a.m. to 6 p.m.