Where the palpitations are at home … at the Living Hotel Das Viktualienmarkt

With its warm ‘Nice to have you here’ philosophy, the hotel, which is built on Munich’s old city moat, combines metropolitan lifestyle and a particularly fine interaction between guest and staff in the most beautiful harmony. Here, guests will find what is already hidden in the hotel’s Living name: lean luxury, liveliness and a great deal of genuine hospitality. The Living Hotel Das Viktualienmarkt is a wonderfully relaxed anchorage for the soul, within whose walls you feel welcome even far away from home and like you are in 7th hotel heaven above the rooftops of the city.

Purist architecture, clear forms, discreet design and a listed façade characterise the exterior appearance of the hotel. Urban, modern living in a tangibly beautiful atmosphere – this approach is fulfilled down to the last detail in the 83 rooms: 40 fine hotel rooms and 43 newly designed serviced flats with kitchenettes and their own dining and working areas for long-stay guests. Living Hotels owner Max Schlereth is largely responsible for the interior design. The rooms have been furnished according to his ideas in tone-on-tone colours with accents in the choice of materials and textures and, very importantly, high-quality beds for an all-round restful night’s sleep.

The large wallpapers with emotionally expressive images of the Viktualienmarkt hustle and bustle of the 1920s and 1930s, which come from the archives of the State Library, form a well-rounded bridge between then and now, with the aim of bringing the beautiful outdoors inside and vice versa. And the individual, personalised service for guests can be felt throughout the hotel. Always with a smile from the team led by hotel manager Daniel Döscher.

A place of really good taste – in the morning in the conservatory & in the evening in the new St. Ribs Restaurant

However, the heartbeat does not stop in and with the rooms, but continues for all house guests, visitors, day and night owls in the public areas, which are entirely dedicated to the colourful guest interaction and enjoyment. From morning until after midnight. Indoors and outdoors. In seating areas, lounge tables, on velvet benches at the table, on bar stools and in the open or covered conservatory, depending on the season and temperature.

If you want, you can start the day here with the in-house ‘Breakfast as its best’: breakfast with carefully selected products that all fulfil the criteria of regionality, freshness, quality and sustainability – and are always calculated in such a way that (as good as) no food waste is produced.

‘Our aim is to offer our guests the best value for money. For us, that doesn’t mean choosing from countless products. We focus on the essence and honest quality when selecting products,’ says Daniel Döscher ’We have tested what we offer our guests ourselves and found it to be the best possible. Especially with regard to sustainability and regionality, we focus on reducing transport routes and try to avoid (packaging) waste wherever possible.’

And so that guests always know what is being served at the Living Hotel Das Viktualienmarkt, the partners are clearly named: For example, the hotel sources its bread and baked goods from the Grimminger family bakery, which has been baking according to its own recipes for four generations. The banana bread comes from the BEBANANAS bakery, which turns bananas that are no longer in perfect condition and would otherwise be thrown away into a delicious treat. The fruit and freshly prepared juices are also saved from the organic waste bin. The hotel’s partner Querfeld supplies crooked fruit that would otherwise be discarded due to its naturally grown shape. Sustainable chocolate creams come from Grashoff, while the secret of Faller jams lies in their preparation: stirring by hand and cooking in an open copper kettle preserves the natural flavour of the fruit. Anyone who loves salmon will be delighted by the smoked salmon trout from Die Räucherei and need not have a guilty conscience due to long transport routes. Meat and sausage products are available from the quality butcher Magnus Bauch, whose products are regularly honoured in competitions and unannounced inspections, and so on.

The day at Das Viktualienmarkt starts as deliciously as it ends here. In the new St. Ribs Restaurant, which moved in just over a year ago and has been full house most of the time ever since, because here spare ribs are staged, celebrated and served as soul food in an exceptionally beautiful ambience and it’s simply about more than ‘just eating well’. Spareribs of all kinds in classically modern creations and interpretations. Pork, veal and beef are served in a wide variety of preparations, specially developed recipes and spice blends. Butter-tender and so sinfully refined that the meat almost falls off the bone on its own. The classic St. Louis Cut, Baby Back, Teriyaki Veal or Prime Beef Short Ribs. Or in new creations such as Pinsa con Carne or as Spareribs Cheese Balls.

Why ribs? Why meat? ‘Spareribs have so far been treated lovelessly in the catering industry. Just bones, no meat, yet they are a real culinary highlight,’ says St.Ribs COO Magnus Schwartze. ‘What we were missing was the theme of good meat as a delicacy, in the context of treating yourself to something and all in a great ambience. And so we spent 36 months together developing our own recipes for various cuts on the menu in dozens of test series. At St.Ribs, we celebrate and pay homage to this special meat treat in our own way, show how good spare ribs can taste and how meat can be enjoyed in a contemporary and really tasty way: less often but better, just like a Sunday roast.’ PS: for all non-meat eaters, there are of course also (vegan) treats on the menu. And a very special personal tip is the spaghetti ice cream served at the table – a marvellous spectacle … with heart palpitations guaranteed.

Personal conclusion:

My stay at the Living Hotel Viktualienmarkt was simply wonderful. I was greeted warmly as soon as I arrived and immediately felt welcome. The super friendly staff made me feel like a valued guest and the feel-good factor was huge from the moment I arrived. The atmosphere is warm and inviting – just the right place to relax and enjoy your time. I didn’t just feel like a guest here, I almost felt at home. A hotel I would definitely like to come back to!