Enough space to discuss and engage in conversation. That’s why we asked some of the leading and most opinionated chefs, restaurateurs and journalists: where is 2019 headed in culinary terms? Are there any new trends and developments? Of course, in all this, the question of the personal highlights of the past year and an individual look at the new year may not be missing…
STEVAN PAUL
Best-selling author, journalist and this year several times a delightful travel companion: Hardly anyone kneels with such enthusiasm and expertise day after day in the most beautiful pages of the culinary arts as Stevan Paul.What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
I believe that the reduction, the reflection on the essentials, the focus, is a strong trend in many areas of culinary and gastronomy, which will continue. Asia will still be a strong trend in the coming year, after Japan and Vietnam, Korea and Thailand will receive increased attention. And the cuisine of the Eastern Mediterranean is also a lasting trend, that is not finished telling. My crystal ball tells me that maybe next year it could finally start with the cuisine of Eastern Europe, the Baltics, the Caucasian cuisine, especially Lithuania and Georgia are exciting culinary destinations for me!
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
Simple! Restaurant Geist, Chef Bo Bech, Copenhagen: Spinach. I quote from my notebook: “…the best vegetarian dish I’ve had the pleasure of tasting in recent years. Steamed spinach leaves with Gruyere cheese, sliced garlic, salty celery, toasted walnuts. Bam!”
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
This coming fall, my most comprehensive and personal cookbook to date will be published, m(a) standard work on cooking, in which I explain not only how, but also why we do certain things in the kitchen. 400 recipes in total, many everyday knowledge pages on kitchen techniques, aromatics, taste. But above all, this book wants to be an encouragement to cook freely, to discover the joy of cooking, individually, to trust your own taste and ability! That is my goal. If I actually succeeded in conveying this message with this book, that would be my greatest wish, that would be my joy.
BORIS KASPRIK
Boris is a true product fetishist. This is also reflected in the menus at Petit Amour, which are influenced by French classicism, but at the same time modern and light, always developing it a little further.What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
I do not really believe in food trends but rather believe in the tried and true. And craft which can certainly be modernized one or the other time! Positive is clearly to notice that in the young generation, after the vegan trend a turnaround to rare but good meat / fish is to see what many small high-quality producers more darseins justification gives! I wish that it is more about the final quality on the plate (or whatever) than about the story behind it! When I eat I would like to see a top product … the best in the best state of maturity / freshness best possible and craftsmanship processed only then I am interested in the name of the farmer! Mankind has discovered continents in search of spices … and now the lamb should come from the front garden? Where the Atlantic coast with the magnificent salt marshes provides the best quality !!!! I do not have to eat that every day, but if already the already !!! Which also does not mean that I have to eat strawberries in winter! But does not a unique quality ( and only this not the price or a disregard of the season ) justify a trip of the product or ourselves !!?? Negatively is unfortunately to see ( is not a direct food trend but important for our food culture ) that more and more small businesses especially in the rural region the artisanal work to close! In the past, there was a small baker and a butcher in every village or neighborhood, which is unfortunately long forgotten, we hope that the small restaurants and inns do not also happen! But that is an extra topic which digresses a bit here.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
In lalbenque after the truffle market I ate so many truffles that I got dizzy. Also at Jean-François Piege in Paris!
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
I wish for 2019 to find a way to focus more on cooking and less on administration and organization! That’s what I’ve learned about myself in the last few years of self-employment now I need to find a way to create more space in the kitchen ! Because that makes me happy!!!
FABIO HAEBEL
The steady and consistent development of the Tarterie in St. Pauli up to the Haeebel is unique in this form. The small restaurant has gained a firm place in Hamburg’s fine dining scene with regularly changing menus at a very good level and a nice atmosphere.What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
I don’t think there’s a big new trend coming. It’s more about consistency and maturing the existing (trend) concepts. This will also separate the wheat from the chaff. If anything, it’s African. But that will take a little longer.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
As a young dad, there wasn’t much in the way of going out to eat this year…. Beau Constantia Chefs Warehouse on end of year vacation in Cape Town 
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
Continue to grow healthily with my restaurant. Economics First. Celebrating a great first birthday with my daughter, traveling again and expanding our test kitchen.
MARCEL GÖRKE
With Heimatjuwel, Marcel has not only shown courage in founding his own business, but above all has enriched Hamburg with an excellent address for regional dishes and products. He regularly uses his free time to discover culinary hotspots around the world and expand his horizons.What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
It is noticeable that, especially with regard to sustainability, more and more people are thinking about food, products and their quality and origin. I find this trend very positive and hope that we as restaurateurs, who have long since come to terms with it, can thereby awaken in our guests an even better understanding of the price-performance ratio. Basically, it’s nice to see that good food is becoming more and more popular.
I think the kind of restaurants with open kitchens and associated chefs’ tables (e.g. Chambre Séparée, The Table, Restaurant 212, Ernst) will become more and more common. On the one hand, as hosts, we want to show our passion directly and immediately to our guests and be closer to them; on the other hand, we have to deal with the personnel situation more than ever. Especially in rural regions, it will become increasingly difficult to find skilled workers.
Authentic Asian cuisine will also come more and more in the coming years. Product-based, healthy and light cuisine such as ramen, bibimbap and sushi are becoming more and more popular.
Concepts such as Poké Bowls, burger restaurants, pizzerias will remain marketable. Starred restaurants will continue to exist, although the trend here is increasingly away from the classic, rigid concepts and towards a more relaxed, casual atmosphere.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
This was definitely the non-alcoholic beverage accompaniment at Horvath Restaurant. I have rarely had such harmoniously matched non-alcoholic drinks with my dishes – this was truly a delicious experience, all very well thought out.
The visit to The Jane was a great desire and has more than exceeded my expectations both in culinary terms and the overall atmosphere – who else but Sergio Herman/Nick Bril manages to establish a restaurant concept of the extra class in a former church and to see the individual guest even at full capacity.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
I wish that my team and I continue to be successful with my restaurant Heimatjuwel and the philosophy of honest and good regional cuisine. I would like to increase the awareness of the Heimatjuwel, also beyond the borders of Hamburg.
I have resolved to put my heart’s desire into practice – I want to write my first cookbook.
TIM RAUE
In 2018, Tim Raue and his eponymous restaurant entered the sensational league of 19.5 points (out of 20) in Gault & Millau. After two stars in the Guide Michelin and a sensational 37th place in the World’s Best Restaurants List, he is the media figurehead of German fine dining. And besides all that, always a guarantor for corners, edges and pointed statements…What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
I abhor trends with all my heart and prefer to work on constantly developing our cuisine and delighting our guests.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
As a chef & restaurateur, I find it elementary to be a guest of colleagues. That inspires me again and again. The greatest joy I have is when I get to try new dishes in my restaurants. Surprising culinary discoveries I had in a seafood restaurant south of Bangkok terrific Snowcrab with green chili & lime. And a menu from Chef Soba at Soneva Fushi in the Maldives.
KEVIN FEHLING
With The Table, Kevin Fehling has brought three stars to Hamburg and put the Hanseatic city on the foodie map, especially internationally, from which the local gastronomy as a whole can benefit. With his complex dishes, he has shaped his very own signature, not always without controversy but at the very highest level of craftsmanship. For the current year, the internationalization of the brand is then on the agenda. We are excited to see where the journey leads!What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
We do not follow trends or products that may be a food trend. We try to evolve in our own way on the plate. Of course, there are always surprises to discover new products and experiment with them, but it is important to us not to look left or right and to continue to develop our signature on the plate.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
At Akari in London this year, we got to experience Japanese perfection.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
We are opening a restaurant abroad in October. On the one hand, concept will be a challenge, but also to put our imagination and passion into practice.
DANIEL ACHILLES
The reigning Berlin Master Chef 2018 closed his restaurant at the end of the year. “The story of ‘reinstoff’ will eventually be told. That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the work anymore. In 2019, we will continue with a new concept at a new location. It’s going to be exciting – and we’re keeping all our fingers crossed!What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
The Regio trend will definitely continue. More and more people want to know where their food comes from, how it is grown and processed. So in addition to the chef, the producers are also coming into the public eye. By the way, this applies not only to the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. Transparency is also more important than ever when it comes to meat. 8 to 9 percent of the German population now eats a vegetarian diet. And the trend is upward. Alternatives to meat are therefore playing an increasingly important role – even in top gastronomy.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
To be honest, I very rarely went out to eat in 2018. With reinstoff it was our last year and we really had a lot on our plate. Next year should be different again – there are a few restaurants on my list that I’d like to pay a visit to sometime.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
2019 will be exciting, that’s for sure. We start with a new project – whatever it will be, it will be exciting in any case, but also exhausting. Therefore, I wish for an extra portion of energy and verve for the coming 365 days.
THOMAS BÜHNER
The surprise closure of La Vie in Osnabrück this summer was a real shock. Not only for the team around Thomas Bühner, but also a great loss for our culinary landscape and the reduction to only ten restaurants in Germany crowned with three Michelin stars. Thomas Bühner has many new plans for 2019 – and who knows, maybe a new door will soon open in a new place…What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
What works? The over-the-top show on the plate as well as just arranging things rather than cooking them.
What remains? The product is the star on the plate and it doesn’t matter what it is. It doesn’t have to be a luxury product.
Where is FineDining heading? In my opinion, fine dining is still absolutely justified. Especially when you look beyond Germany. I am in Bangkok right now and had lunch at a 2-star restaurant today – it was fully booked. On a Monday. I had a similar experience in Milan, etc. recently.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
It’s hard for me to settle on one. But I was impressed by my visits to Andreas Caminada at Schauenstein Castle, to Jonny Boer at Restaurant de Librije, and also to Riccardo Camanin at Lido84 in Gardone.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
I would like to open a restaurant by Thomas Bühner internationally. And I continue to have great fun using my knowledge and experience as a consultant in the hospitality industry and in the industry.
VIJAY SAPRE
Recently Germany’s most relevant food magazine Effilee was able to celebrate its tenth birthday in illustrious company. In the TAZ, founder and editor Vijay Sapre just gave a nice summary of the changes in an industry he has documented with his magazine. He reveals to us his trends for the coming year….What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
I don’t see regionality as being at an end by any means, along with more concentration on the individual product and therefore fewer elements on the plates. The vegan movement, in turn, has probably passed its zenith.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
Fäviken. On the one hand, the decadently absurdly long journey, which on the other hand is more than made up for by the feeling of being totally in the here and now. And then, of course, the breathtaking quality of the products and preparations, which is sometimes overlooked in view of the setting.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
We want to make the climate catastrophe more of an issue, I mean, foodies have to lead the way. And if not now, then not at all.
JENS RITTMEYER
In the past year, Jens Rittmeyer has not only been able to further raise the profile of Restaurant No. 4 and establish a new farm-to-table format in the Alte Land – he has also launched his own new product line. His success proves him right: there is a market for high-quality sauces made by master craftsmen.What are the most important new trends for you in 2019 – where is fine dining heading, what’s coming, what’s going?
Back to nature, less “fuss” on the plate, more focus on taste and special products, personal attention, offering experiences, etc.
Where did you have your best/most impressive culinary experience in 2018?
In bianc. Very good craft, great atmosphere, highly professional. At least 2 stars, in my personal opinion.
What are your personal goals, ideas or wishes for 2019?
Further development into an even more North German oriented restaurant with many experiences and products from the Alte Land. In addition, the further development of special events to offer the guest something special. The motto here is “Just not everyday”. And, of course, further expansion of the sauce manufactory with many exciting refinements. A little more time for myself.
Many more voices and opinions will be added to this series in the coming days and weeks. Stay tuned!
