Loca Casual Fine Dining

Review

Eat yourself fit, eat yourself smart!

I have to be honest and say that I'm not comfortable with the idea of eating something to be smarter, prettier, faster or fitter. It's almost like having drinks just to regulate your isotope standard or to get away from reality as quickly as possible (depending on what you drink); or having sex just to reproduce. All a component of the whole, of course, but in my personal list of priorities, they are at the bottom of the list. A week ago, Andreas Kurz opened Loca in the former "Ein Wiener Salon", now painted white, but where the aim is to cook in such a way that you should "listen to your gut feeling and choose the menu carefully according to the effect of the ingredients". A diagram uses gray ("Active Ingredience"), red ("Vitality"), yellow ("Concentration") and green ("Mood") dots to explain which combination of magnesium, vitamin A, calcium, quinoa, beef and tomatoes leads to "balance", "strength", "well-being", "smile" and other effects. I don't know. Andreas Kurz, who had his slow-food-inspired "Kurz" just around the corner a few years ago, explains that the idea came from a partner who wanted to remain in the background, an advertiser who started triathlon and nutrition a few years ago, and that a few neurologists and nutritionists contributed their experience. Eh. Because I don't think a chef would come up with something like that without being forced to. In any case, his task now is to transfer this completely nonsensical concept into the green realm of palatability without resorting to "junk" (sugar, refined carbohydrates, industrial fats, preservatives, flavour enhancers and meat from "unconscious" breeding). Beef roulade with a difference, for example, were three maki-like rolls of raw beef filled with a somewhat indifferent root vegetable, yellow dots, "Concentration" (€ 13.20). The chicken soup with lots and lots of ginger and a little too much paprika was not bad, red dot, "Vitality" (€ 4.90); the octopus crumble with sweet potatoes, celery, peas and mint tasted just a little "healthy", but was really good, red and green dot (€ 18.90). And the nicely oriental-spiced lamb butter cutlets would perhaps have been even better with a slightly stronger puree than the one made from cauliflower. Red and green points (€ 17.40). We should perhaps also point out the excellent wine selection, which somehow led to a little happiness much more immediately and despite the damaging effects of the neurotoxin alcohol. In summary: a new restaurant that wants to redefine "eating well" as a functional drug that nevertheless provides happiness. Loca, 1st, Stubenbastei 10, Tel. 01/512 11 72, Mon-Fri 12-24, www.bettereatbetter.com

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