An evening at the restaurant like an invitation to someone's
“Everything I cook, I cook with total passion.”
From a twelve-course gourmet experience to the perfect sourdough pizza: with Winkler’s Cuisine, Christian Winkler has created a culinary concept that uniquely combines fine dining and down-to-earth enjoyment – right in the heart of Rattenberg, Austria’s smallest town. In this interview, he talks about passion, regional products, formative stages of his career, and why his Chef’s Table is like an invitation to his home.
Interview with Christian Winkler, Winklers Cuisine
ALEXANDRA GORSCHE: From a twelve-course gourmet experience to the perfect sourdough pizza. Christian Winkler, Winklers Cuisine, has created an exciting concept. And all this in Austria's smallest town, Rattenberg. How do you manage the balancing act between a twelve-course gourmet experience and the perfect sourdough pizza?
CHRISTIAN WINKLER: Dear Alexandra, it's quite simple. Everything I cook, I cook with total passion. Whether I'm making a pizza or a gourmet menu, no matter what – I always enjoy it immensely. That's why I always do it spontaneously. And when I have my Chef's Table, I'm naturally at the Chef's Table. When I don't have a Chef's Table, I'm downstairs making my pizzas.
What's special about your Chef's Table?
The USP that sets us apart from a classic restaurant is that you are fully present for the guest the entire time – four hours on average, sometimes five hours – and you don't do anything else. No orders, no other mise en place work, nothing like that. Instead, it's like a private invitation to your home. When you have guests at home, you don't go and do the laundry.
If you had one piece of advice for your 20-year-old self, what would it be?
Do exactly the same thing.
What is important to you when it comes to the dishes you serve your guests?
The most important thing is the basic product. Of course, we make sure that we source as much as possible from small producers in the region.
Do you have a signature dish yourself?
Yes, I have so many signature dishes. There are dishes that I have been making unchanged for twenty-five years.
An example?
An example: our Kirchbichler salmon trout with creamed spinach or our stuffed farm chicken, light bread stuffing with natural juice and always a little bit of vegetables or mushrooms, depending on what's in season.
How often do you change your menu?
Quite spontaneously. The best thing is when my suppliers, my small producers, call me and say, “Christian, I've got some more... Do you need a lamb? Do you need a kid? Chanterelles, cranberries, fresh apricots?” That's how I put my menu together.
The most important thing is the basic product. Of course, we make sure that we source as much as possible from small producers in the region.
“That's when I developed my passion.”
You have worked with some great personalities. Is there anyone who has had a particular impact or influence on you?
Yes, of course. The best known were certainly the Obauer brothers and Hans Haas at Tantris in Munich. My apprenticeship was also one of the most important stages in my career. I moved from Styria to Tyrol when I was thirteen. It was just great because so many different people from different regions came together. I wasn't an outsider or anything. And that was in 1988 at the Hotel Bär in Ellmau. For that time, it was extremely structured and precise in terms of gastronomy. We already had a time clock back then. That was definitely a time that had a big impact on me. That's when I developed my passion.
Why Rattenberg?
My wife is originally from Rattenberg. She was born here and never really wanted to come back. Many years ago, my father-in-law told me about this property, this project, and showed it to me. At the time, we were still in the Kitzbühel area and were looking specifically in the Kitzbühel area during the coronavirus pandemic. However, nothing came up that would have been economically feasible. That is a very important point for us. And I always had this property in the back of my mind.
You want to entertain like at home. How does that work?
Our Chef's Table is like a private invitation to our home, with the small difference that the guest pays for it. What makes it so special is that it's very personal, that we're very present, that you can ask me questions spontaneously at any time. Questions about the menu, the ingredients, or the preparation. You can lend a hand or chat with your partner all evening. It's totally informal; personality is what makes it special. There are deliberately very few staff members.
The most important thing is the basic product. Of course, we make sure that we source as much as possible from small producers in the region.
Photo provided
