This Artsy Neighborhood in Munich Exhibits a Totally different Facet of Germany’s Beer Capital

Simply minutes from Munich’s Oktoberfest discipline, the economic neighborhood of Schwanthalerhöhe is likely to be finest identified to vacationers for its breweries. It’s the place most of the Bavarian capital’s iconic beer homes — together with its oldest, Augustiner-Bräu, which moved from its unique downtown location in 1884 — are positioned.

However lately the neighborhood has morphed past beer tents. At the moment it’s dotted with espresso outlets and galleries, family-run groceries and stylish eating places, all anchored by a convivial ambiance. 

“In the summertime we have now beer and pizza on the road and get to know the neighbors,” says Martino Hutz, an up-and-coming architect who opened his apply in Schwanthalerhöhe in 2020. 

The 280-key Roomers Munich, Autograph Assortment has playful interiors — like beds raised on spherical platforms. The Nineteen Sixties-style bar serves far-out cocktails just like the Kissaten, which blends matcha sake and mint with gin, crème de cacao, and white-chocolate mousse.

Just a few streets over is the Area by Schoenbuch Gallery, which carries Bavarian-made objets d’artwork, like cast-glass bookends modeled on the open areas inside letters of the alphabet. Idea retailer Heißeliebe sits a block east and sells quirky-cool wares, like bomber jackets upcycled from couch materials by Cologne style label Watt and colourful stationery from Spanish model Octaevo. 

At clothes retailer Lena Schokolade, founder Anna Liedtke provides a number of on a regular basis fundamentals, like pleated trousers and printed tees. Liedtke additionally works with Kenyan tailors, and a part of the gathering is sewn in Nairobi. In the meantime, Goodbois Gallery is the place to go for sporty silhouettes, like oversize pants, ball caps, and crewneck knits.

Schwanthalerhöhe’s restaurant scene is on the upswing, too. Chef Johannes Höcherl serves pan-European dishes at Das Kulinariat, the place the weekly menu might characteristic a salad of beans and grilled mushrooms in a kimchi-butter sauce or poached trout with wild-herb risotto. The shop Wir 2 Lieben Wein shares solely pure wines from Austria’s Burgenland. Its bestsellers — and crowd favorites on the month-to-month tastings — are pét-nats.

A block south is the family-owned Korean restaurant M-A-T. The minimalist menu highlights conventional dishes like tteokbokki, a spicy rice cake served with fried fish. 

Two streets over, Stray Espresso Roasters makes a speciality of single-origin beans with taste profiles like blueberry and rose hip. The house owners repeatedly companion with companies within the neighborhood, like ceramist Maria Cepissakova, who makes their cups. “This space is coming into its personal,” says Stray’s cofounder Ilan Bachl, “and we’re so glad to be part of the method.”

A model of this story first appeared within the December 2024/January 2025issue of Journey + Leisure underneath the headline “Mad About Munich.”