14. December 2010: Restaurant Bellevue @Hotel Maritim

Awesome! That’s pretty much the word which describes my dining experience at the Restaurant Bellevue at the Hotel Maritim in Cologne the best. Bellevue is French for “nice view” and – although the emphasis has to be laid on the dishes – I have to mention this point in advance: The interior is basically a “cupola” with glass windows. When you get a table next to the window, you have a marvelous view all over Cologne – you can see the “Kölner Dom” in its full beauty as it’s enlightened and you can also see the river Rhine from there. Truly amazing!

Talking about the most important part though, the dishes, I must admit that the dishes you get served are truly great. As an Amuse Bouche (greetings from the kitchen) I got served a “deer terrine with cream cheese ice cream” which tasted delicious. Honestly, I never thought that something cheese-like could be tasty when you make ice cream out of it, but believe me it is. It has the taste of cheese somehow but has the icy consistency of ice cream – delicious. Also, the Hirschterrine was very well-made. The taste was pretty interesting.

The saffron almond foam with king prawn tatar and cilantro was delicious – too. The slight taste of saffron and the more intense taste of almonds made the combination highly tasty. The king prawn tatar was even more delicious. The crusty wrap was getting cooked in the hot soup until it was not crusty anymore. A true revelation (EUR 13.00).

The Nebraska beef filet was very tender. The vegetables which accompanied the meat – a mixture of olives and pumpkin – was great. The combination of both in your mouth ended up in a great tasty mixture. The beef was cooked to the exact point ordered and the sauce (pancetta jus) finished it perfectly. Only the bechamel potatoes were pretty disappointing as they were too hard and the bechamel sauce didn’t really taste like anything (EUR 42.00). But still, the beef filet and the vegetables as a combination were outstanding.

As a desert I enjoyed a selection of five different kinds of cheese. As you were able to choose the different cheeses from a little trolley the selection I’ve chosen ranked from pretty intense cheese to quite regular one. The offer on the trolley was great though (5 pieces of cheese, 14 EUR).

Also, the wine selection is pretty nice, and the prices are decent. A glass of white wine Chardonnay Alto Adige costs (2 dl) costs EUR 7.90. A bottle of red wine Barbera d’Alba Terre Antiche costs EUR 29.00. Also, the Chardonnay Grappa from Gaja costs only EUR 4.50.

The waitresses are really polite, very correct and extremly helpful. They are there whenever you need them but do not bother you by standing around you when you don’t need them. For Germany, the prices are pretty high but for what you actually get, the prices are okay.

All in all, the Restaurant Bellevue at the Maritim Hotel is worth going for several reasons – the view at night is marvellous! The dishes are very tasty and rich in flavor. The service is close to perfect. The only two little shortcomings are the interior design and the prices as they’re pretty high for Germany. Otherwise, right nothing to complain about!

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Bellevue @Hotel Maritim

Heumarkt 20

50667 Cologne (D)

Tel.: +49 (22) 12 02 78 65

Fax: +49 (61) 51 90 57 60

E-Mail: info.kol@maritim.de

Homepage: http://www.maritim.de

About the Author: Sven

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.