Everybody's Darling

Review

The quarter jib

A restaurant is always also a statement, saying what the owners/operators consider to be good and desirable. For some, it is the preservation of tradition, for others it is making a quick buck by minimizing their investment, for others it is minimal friction losses through the seamless pursuit of current mainstream trends, while others have the vision of a better, fairer world in mind. And, of course, the realization of a sentimental lifelong dream (this often happens and usually goes wrong). So what, one wonders, do the operators of a new restaurant that is called "Everybody's Darling", in which a few hundred thousand euros have been invested, which has a man in the kitchen who is mainly known from cooking shows and whose prices are based on Fabio's a few doors down? Apparently, they believe that in future there will still be plenty of members of the moneyed elite for whom a hundred euros for a quick lunch is no problem at all. And the people behind Everybody's Darling (who run the Volksgarten Club full-time) are probably right about that. On the other hand, the various gastronomic million-dollar diggers in the immediate vicinity - Aï, which opened three years ago, was open for just nine months, Mustard Grill lasted a year and a half, an American burger chain is soon to move into Graben 30 and Tuya, which opened a year ago, is still open - have shown that expensive exclusivity is not the last word in wisdom. But okay, Everybody's Darling is undoubtedly pretty in some ways. The stone floor, the beech wood walls, the gray velvet on the seating furniture, the many designer lamps - this is how you imagine the cabin of a sheikh's luxury yacht. As the restaurant is a day bar, all kinds of cocktails with a low alcohol content are mixed, such as "Watermelon meets Sake" with watermelon juice, prosecco, yuzu sake and lots of ice cubes, about one per euro (€13). For the time being, chef Alex Kumptner is offering a few attractive small dishes, but from the fall onwards, the restaurant will be offering real fine dining. Ceviche of red wild prawns is interpreted in such a way that three prawns are seared on one side and placed in a fruity marinade with cucumber and avocado tartare. Delicious, but definitely not ceviche, but no matter, it sounds good (€ 19). Kumptner's truffle egg, on the other hand, is a small bowl of spinach cream decorated with ears of corn and a poached egg with a generous sprinkling of summer truffles, also very tasty and not exactly a bargain (€ 21). Espresso is available for just three euros. In summary: a new daytime bar that may not be located in the Goldenes Quartier, but it is there in terms of style and price. Everybody's Darling, 1st, Tuchlauben 22, tel. 0664/105 05 50, Mon-Sat 10am-1pm,

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