Sein

Rating: 16
Author: Gault&Millau

Scheffelstraße 57, 76135 Karlsruhe, Germany

16/20
Remarkable Restaurant

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1 PHOTOS

Chef: Thorsten Bender
Cooking: French | Gastronomic | International | Vegetarian
Style: Casual | Elegant | Romantic

Gault&Millau's review 2025

Chapeau, one would like to shout, keep it up! Torsten Bender continues on his way courageously, tinkering incessantly with his creations, every plate is bursting with irrepressible passion, but is still presented in a clear and structured way. When you enter the small dining room, Karlsruhe becomes international - the ambience would suit any Scandinavian house, you immediately feel secure, in good hands and well cared for. The passion from the kitchen is wonderfully transferred to the guest room by the sovereign service team and serving chefs. A round dance of amuses starts, which at the same time reach the bare, beautiful tables in well-proportioned proportions - a real exclamation mark is set here. Immaculate craftsmanship meets pointed taste! We like to remember the golden egg with carrot, ras el-hanout and mint - here comes together what doesn't really belong together and unfolds a delicate aromatic drumbeat. Or the chawanmushi with beech mushrooms... that's exactly what amuses are supposed to be – tickle the palate and arouse curiosity. More than successful! Then the formidable fenugreek bread and the menu can start. The best products are in the foreground, the fish are mostly treated in the Japanese Ike-Jime style and you notice that – finely fleshed and powerful the salmon with spinach, yuzu, black garlic and macadamia – terrific. In addition to the products, Bender's sauces are in the foreground, here he seasons courageously and sometimes unconventionally internationally, you can feel the passion in the wonderful depths of the aromatic graduation – classic, but with a certain twist and acidity that allows a nice lightness to flow through the menu. The desserts are also on the same level away from the usual uniform sweet temptations – rice milk harmonizes with nutmeg, Meyer lemon and thyme or Koshihikari rice with cherry, malt and blue vanilla. All in all, a highly sovereign and precise performance that leads to even higher consecrations – we are convinced that this development will continue. In the meantime: let's go to Karlsruhe and enjoy!