Balthasar

Review

Espresso instead of Bresse

For exactly 27 years, Otto Bayer ran a hotel and restaurant in Niederndorf near Kufstein, where he was regarded as one of the experts in French cuisine and therefore received much praise and the odd toque.
Then he received an attractive offer from a commercial enterprise for his property, and because he didn't really want his hotel and restaurant in the vicinity of a business establishment and 27 years in the catering trade is no laughing matter anyway, he sold with plaster and stems. That was in 2007, and since then Bayer has advised catering businesses and, above all, had the time to focus more intensively on the subject of coffee, which had become a concern of his over time. For example with that of Leonhard Wild in Garmisch, probably one of the most interesting small roasters in Germany, who is extremely active in researching new aromas, qualities and harmonies. "If coffee, then only in Vienna," he thought to himself, which makes us happy, because there are other cities that come to mind. And because he wanted to be "on the front line" again anyway, he took over an old video store in Praterstrasse. The fact that his wife is an interior designer was a perfect match for the project. Balthasar, which opened last week, is extremely spacious, plays with space and, for a change, has a very different, chic flair to most other contemporary coffee shops in the city, where a certain nerdy purism is cultivated. Not here. As soon as you enter, you're greeted by a well-staged "Strada" by La Marzocco, probably the best espresso machine you can currently get on a regular basis, designer armchairs and tables, a generously proportioned and beautifully mosaic-covered counter and a lovely wooden floor. Everything is very tasteful and high-quality. "I just didn't want the hundredth shabby chic coffee boutique," says Bayer, and the scraped walls behind him, revealing old murals, and the counter made from wine crates and an old Euro pallet are just about forgettable. The espresso - a blend from Brazil, Nicaragua and Ethiopia, which he created together with Wild - is first-class (€1.90), the cappuccino even better. You can also get coffee from the filter jug or the siphon machine, at least when Otto Bayer is no longer alone at the machine. His sister-in-law bakes muffins, an impeccable Gugelhupf and a pretty good, crumbly Madeira almond and lemon cake. And if you don't want coffee, you can also get white wine, an Alsace rosé crèmant (€ 5.80) or champagne from Pol Roger (€ 8.90). A very nice new place for a quick or slow coffee. To sum up: the coffee boom is leaving the niches and entering the lifestyle league. But that doesn't make the espresso at Balthasar any worse. Balthasar 2nd, Praterstr. 38 Tel. 0664/381 68 55 Mon-Sat 7.30am-7pm

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