Munich, Germany in winter is magical; like visiting the inside of a snow globe. I know, I know…don’t fret about the Oktoberfest chicken dance, there is vegan food for you in Munich. Munich hosts one of the several Veganz all vegan grocery store franchises, as well as several vegan restaurants. I’m a vegan food snob, and the Gratitude Organic Eatery Restaurant is a special gem inside that beautiful German snow globe city.
Gratitude had a line out the door, and the weather was -1 Celsius. It’s hip, it’s in the happening part of town, and the food is amazing. It’s all vegan, with some raw vegan options. They had three pages of food on their small, German-only clipboard menu, followed by pages and pages of spirits—the largest list of alcohol I’ve ever seen at a veg* restaurant. Now because you won’t really know what you’re ordering unless you speak German, this is probably not a place for special orders or diets. They do seem to know what is in each dish if you ask. Also note that I think they change the menu either daily/weekly/seasonally. You can do what we did and try to use your Google Translate, but really it’s a nice place, so you might feel like a super nerd trying to debug a menu with your iPhone camera app in a romantic restaurant. Maybe they enjoy watching everyone try to translate the menu? I’ll have you know I blinded the romantic couple sipping wine next to me just to get these menu photos for you! One of my guests was a carnivore engineer from Romania, so my other challenge was to fill him up with vegan food he would enjoy.
For an appetizer, we had the Gratitude Tapas…thumbs UP. Hey, we can never go wrong with hummus, olives and bread, right? Romanian engineer guy LOVED the hummus. Yay!
The bread was olive bread. The Kelp Nudel Salat was super gingery and yummy with fried tofu in there too. The Tabouleh had more couscous than greens.
Then I had the Geschmorte Miso Aubergine. If you like eggplant, this is a noteworthy dish. Eggplant grilled with miso, dressed with tahini and cashew cream covered in pomegranate seeds. Best ever. That alone was a very exciting small dish!
Next was to choose an entrée. Easier said than done. The waiter made a recommendation when I asked for “not spicy”…he said something about fennel and mushrooms so I agreed and that became my entrée choice; the Kitchererbsen Farinata. Outstanding dish. I don’t totally know what it was, but it looked like a pizza with a salad on top, topped with mushrooms and fennel, grilled baby artichoke on the side, and the bottom tasted like polenta. Looking at the menu again now, I suppose the sauce was hummus. It was exceptional, very unique, and DELICIOUS!
Romanian engineer guy had the Tempeh Chili, which was awesome and filling. He got really full and really liked that it was spicy. Win!
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No room for dessert so I took cakes to go—the Cashew Kuchen. It looks like cashew cheesecake with chia pudding on the side. No ice cream to go. The to-go boxes were stunning too. The meal was so filling that dessert was unnecessary. I’m sure some just visit Gratitude to get drinks and dessert, (or just drinks!)
I was there in the evening and the following day I read more of the restaurant reviews. Great to know I wasn’t alone in not being able to read the menu. But really that just added to the adventure. People agree this is THE place to go in Munich. This is not an everyday eatery. If you have special order needs try to call ahead and ask about the menu (you can probably choose something suitable but I don’t think they are staffed to customize any one dish).
There were two very helpful and hardworking waiters but they could have many more. They had few tables and remember, the wait line literally poured out the door. Make sure you have a reservation. Those locals wait because it’s totally worth waiting!
Wear something nice—this is not a jeans and T-shirt place. Not formal, but not like you’re going to the beach 🙂
The patrons were hip and dressed up. Like most vegan restaurants, Gratitude attracts all the beautiful people. Move over pretzles, this food is breathtaking! Guten Appetit!
Image sources: Bar and Outdoor Shot | Gratitude Facebook Page
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