La Loupe Kitzbühel No. 2 Summer Edition

CHRISTIAN WINKLER’S

CHRISTIAN WINKLER’S WORDRAP Classic or creative cuisine? Both. Used to be more creative, increasingly classic. Ambition and perseverance … are what make a good chef. When something goes wrong, what helps is … starting from scratch. My stuffed chicken, rice with meat or schnitzel … are things I could always eat. The most underestimated vegetable … depends on the person. came to my restaurant after having worked in only two places after his apprenticeship. But on the whole we’ve been working very, very well together and I don’t think either of us can imagine it being any different now. Back in 2000 we both started in the kitchen because we are both chefs. That was in Söll, at the restaurant Schindlhaus. The team was very small, we spent the entire day in the kitchen and didn’t see much of the guests. Because of a sort of emergency situation, which must have been in 2005, my brother starting working in service. He jumped in at the deep end and even did a sommelier course later. We quickly figured out that that really is his thing. Nowadays he only does service and I am the man behind the scenes. That works out really well and we don’t really have any points of friction. The biggest advantage: when we fight, it’s always about the business, we never fight about private matters. There may be a short altercation but a short while later everything is back to normal. L.L. Can fights be about guests? C.W. If something goes wrong the best guests are those that say: “Christian, something went wrong and I don’t think that’s how you wanted it.” That the sort of criticism someone in gastronomy can work with. And we as siblings can deal with that sort of criticism well, too. It’s normal that things go wrong and through my brother I hear what goes on in the restaurant, too. 138 L.L. Kitzbühel is known for its numerous gourmet-restaurants. What is the difference between them and Winkler’s? C.W. We provide extremely high-quality but sell it to the guests in a very comfortable and low-key way. I personally am not into all the frills. From where I stand excellent cuisine and excellent service have nothing to do with jacket and tie – or spending 300 euros per person. We used to do this for years but when you’re self-employed you notice how difficult that actually is.

In that case you start thinking about what you want and what you can do. I want to provide haute cuisine but I want to be accessible for the guests. Kitzbühel has great guests but not everyone feels like fine dining for four hours. We have really nice guests here who might not want to have four courses but maybe just one. That’s a fact that is often underestimated and we’ve noticed that. We have cut back to three courses, that’s a proper meal. Because people actually want to be full after eating the main course. That’s why our concept works so well. Kulinarik & Genuss L.L. Do you have a specialty of the house? C.W. Our style is traditional, modern and creative. We have small regional producers and suppliers whose products aren’t available anywhere else. I only use big suppliers for basic foodstuffs. For us it’s important that people see where they are when they spend time with us. In many cases the big award-winning restaurants are rather exchangeable as far as their menus are concerned, it doesn’t matter if you eat in New York or Paris. The top class keeps copying from each other and has the exact same style. Only few restaurants offer something completely new. We have waved this idea goodbye and now we serve dishes that our grandmothers used to make. And if the guests like them, that’s a great compliment. I always say: “Only two people are allowed to be better than us: mum and gran”. L.L. Who is a kitchen pioneer for you? C.W. I would say the Dutchman Sergio Herrmann, who used to be best rated chef up until a few years ago. When I visited his restaurant that really was an experience I had not known until that point. Alain Ducasse in France also is a good example. And so is Ferran Adrià with his molecular cuisine. Of course, that special kind of cooking also is a matter of personal taste, but it was something completely new. We as young chefs tried to copy that and we soon noticed what a long development phase and just how much creativity is behind that kind of success. L.L. You started offering cooking classes in May. So now we have the unique chance of cooking together with you. What sparked that idea? “From where I stand excellent cuisine and excellent service have nothing to do with jacket and tie – or spending 300 euros per person.” “Kitzbühel has great guests but not everyone feels like fine dining for four hours.” “I always say: ‘Only two people are allowed to be better than us: mum and gran’.” “I really enjoy cooking with others and passing on my knowledge. Many participants are regulars at the restaurant or they become regulars.” 139