Shadow book celebrates its 15th birthday

AMTZELL. the Schattbuch restaurant is celebrating its 15th anniversary. Originally opened to cater for employees and customers of the company fpt robotics in Amtzell, the Schattbuch has developed into one of the country's top restaurants in a decade and a half. The gourmet restaurant has successfully defended its Michelin star for eight years and aims to continue to delight its guests with unconventional concepts and a warm welcome.

Special concepts are created when you think outside the box. This is how, 15 years ago, a combination of technology and enjoyment was created in the Amtzell industrial estate that is possibly unique in this form: the Schattbuch restaurant. A gourmet restaurant in the halls of an automation company, which also functions as a company restaurant for its employees.
The vision that gave rise to the restaurant is as unconventional as the Schattbuch. Owner and initiator Hermann Müller recognised the daily need for customer catering at his industrial company fpt robotics. At the same time, the workforce was growing. "After all, if you work a lot, you have to take a break," says Müller. As a result, the public restaurant and event centre "akademie.amtzell" was established as part of fpt robotics in 2009. A few years later, the academy became the Schattbuch and made a name for itself far beyond the borders of Upper Swabia. The Michelin Guide's restaurant testers also found that the concept was a success, awarding the Schattbuch its first star in December 2016.

From that moment on, every gourmet wanted to get an idea of what it was like, and it was almost impossible to book a table at the Schattbuch at that time. "The fact that the public appreciates this platform just as much as the customers and staff is a great success," says Hermann Müller, adding: "To keep a restaurant at this level, it only makes sense to make it accessible to the public and therefore to as many guests as possible."

The team led by Hermann Müller, head chef Sebastian Cihlars and restaurant manager Christian Marz has made a name for itself with its innovative cuisine, which is always good for a surprise, as well as service with a high entertainment value. For what is probably the most unusual meat tea in the world, a tea bag made from Japanese Wagyu meat is labelled with its own label - or initially the cheese board is transported to the table with rolling noises imitated by the service. In the early years of the restaurant, there was simply no opulent cheese trolley, as is now the case. When the Schattbuch first joined the ranks of Michelin-starred restaurants, Christian Marz ran the service with just one apprentice, and the kitchen team was also unusually small for a Michelin-starred restaurant.

In the meantime, the Schattbuch team has grown to 20 employees and is looking to the future with confidence despite the rather unfavourable economic situation. The team works hard, menu after menu, year after year. "On the one hand, the star is a great motivation to continue pursuing the path with determination. On the other hand, it reminds us to remain humble and curious. Because a star like this is always the result of a fine interplay between cuisine and service, creativity and quality," explains Müller.

The exclusive anniversary promotion proves that the Schattbuch team never runs out of ideas: to celebrate this special milestone, the restaurant will host an anniversary party on 12 October, where some of the most popular dishes from the last 15 years as well as new interpretations by head chef Sebastian Cihlars will be served. There will also be lots of little surprises for guests to celebrate this special occasion in style and, above all, to say thank you. "The biggest part of our success is down to our wonderful and loyal guests, whom we delight and who enable us to pursue our passion day after day," emphasises Christian Marz.

Whether gourmets, wedding parties or CEOs: the Schattbuch is a place to meet, enjoy, chat and celebrate. The backdrop of the futuristic industrial hall, which is directly connected to the restaurant, creates an inspiring atmosphere for this. When the weather is fine, guests sit on the terrace surrounded by blooming water lilies, garden herbs and fine wine. The success of the concept shows that professionalism on the one hand and enjoyment and joie de vivre on the other are not mutually exclusive, but complement each other wonderfully.