Thitid Tassanakajohn
Guest Chef December 2024
Guest Chef July 2020: Marco Müller
Chef Marco Müller was born and brought up in Potsdam. From an early age, he was used to eating fresh vegetables from his grandfather’s garden and spending time in nature. After catering training in Potsdam from 1986 to 1988, he cooked in Berlin for many years, acquiring his trade in a number of locations, collecting ideas and developing the foundations for his very own cooking style. His professional career path led him to the Schlosshotel Gerhus in Berlin-Grunewald in 1990 and the Grand Slam restaurant of Johannes King in 1994. He went as Sous Chef to the Imperial at the Castle Hotel Bühlerhöhe (1997) and as Head Chef to the Harlekin restaurant (1999), where he was awarded “Rising Star” by Feinschmecker magazine in 2000, before moving again as Head Chef to the restaurant Windspiel at the Castle Hotel Hubertushöhe (2003).
In 2004, Marco Müller succeeded Ralf Zacherl as Executive Head Chef of Berlin’s Wine Bar Rutz. His accomplishments were huge. The newspaper Die Welt awarded Rutz, where Marco Müller had advanced to manage the whole restaurant, the title of Restaurant of the Year 2007. He received his first Michelin star in the same year, following it with a second in 2016 and scoring 17 out of 20 points at Gault Millau. Today, Marco Müller counts as one of Germany’s most creative and innovative chefs. In 2017 he was Best Newcomer among Germany’s 50 Best Chefs and in 2018 he became Chef of the Year in the Rolling Pin awards.
Chef Marco Müller remains true to the success formula of the early years but has added a new ethos of sustainability and authenticity as well as craftsmanship. He has devoted himself to “The Rescue of German Cuisine” with his passion for re-inventing German food as a cultural asset that creates its own identity. At Rutz with its pleasantly relaxed atmosphere, natural materials and a summer patio, he sees regionality, the seasons, natural aromas and heritage varieties not as a restriction but a challenge. Foraging on river banks, in woods and meadows provides inspiration through leaves, buds, shoots, roots, berries, bark and resin. Everything in the kitchen is ultra-fresh and its origin known. Chefs! magazine called Marco Müller a “Pioneer of German regionality”. His menu includes chanterelles, cherry and chicken skin; perch, pea dashi and gooseberry with summer savory; grilled pigeon, redcurrant and mushrooms; blueberries and spruce with Amazake.
Chef Marco Müller invites you to savor his lateral thinking and highly developed cooking style in a light and well-balanced cuisine which is composed of contrasts, aromas, regional produce and expressive stocks at Restaurant Ikarus in July 2020.
Each month at Salzburg’s two Michelin-starred Restaurant Ikarus, a different top international chef creates the menu. For this globally unique concept, Hangar-7 executive chef Martin Klein visits the cream of the crop, takes a look behind the scenes of haute cuisine, and is let in on some exciting culinary secrets. “Culinary Heights at Ikarus” offers a unique glimpse into the world of high-end cuisine and provides an interesting portrait of each guest chef, their culinary philosophy, and the food culture of their country.