"The Art Of Taste" at Ox&Klee

COLOGNE - A new era of culinary staging has begun at Cologne's Michelin-starred restaurant Ox&Klee. With "The Art of Taste", chef Daniel Gottschlich is taking his two-star cuisine to a new artistic level - beyond classic fine dining conventions. The concept combines cuisine, art, sound and technology to create an immersive overall experience that touches all the senses.

The inspiration for the further development of the previous "Experience Taste" concept comes from Rome: during a scholarship at Villa Massimo, the renowned German Academy in Rome, Gottschlich underwent a creative transformation - from the role of chef to artist. The result can not only be read in his new cookery book "Grazie Roma" (DuMont Verlag), but can now also be experienced at Ox&Klee - in a format that combines the art of hosting and the creative avant-garde.

Three journeys, one experience

Guests can choose between three culinary journeys at Ox&Klee:

• Petit Journey: 6 appetisers, 4 courses, 2 greetings
• Mid Journey: 6 appetisers, 6 courses, 2 greetings
• Great Journey: 6 appetisers, 8 courses, 2 greetings

Optionally bookable: the Kitchen Experience, an exclusive course directly in the kitchen. The new "The 5th Element Bar" is always the grand finale - a poetic finale with petit fours and signature drinks inspired by the five elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether.

But the experience begins at home: with an artistically designed booklet, a personalised welcome video and a key that symbolically and physically opens the menu when you visit - embedded in a digital art installation.

Culinary art as a medium of artistic expression Each course at "The Art of Taste" tells a story - inspired by emotions, memories or personalities.
emotions, memories or personalities. Examples:

• "Lobster - A tribute to Anthony Bourdain" - served with a lobster cappuccino whose foam bears the portrait of the great culinary storyteller.
• "Spaghetti ice cream" with Manchego - an ironic and playful look back at childhood summers.
• "P2 Oyster" - a poetic vision of the sea, expressively staged on the plate.

The six sensory taste qualities that have characterised Ox&Klee from the very beginning are retained - but are now visualised using colours instead of symbols. The focus is on people and their perception - in keeping with the biographical roots of the concept. "We create the best culinary experience of a lifetime." - This guiding principle is engraved above the cooker at Ox&Klee - visible, perceptible, tangible.

Art, sound and cuisine

What you taste at Ox&Klee is just as curated as what you see and hear. Works by Leon Löwentraut, Igor Paasch and a specially created installation by restaurant manager Yuriy Apelyushynskyy characterise the space. The evening is accompanied by a dramaturgically composed soundtrack by musician Philipp Sutter - not a loop, not a song,
but a changing soundscape.

New The 5th Element Bar: bar art in speakeasy style

The new bar is not just part of the menu - it is an experience in its own right. Cuisine and cocktail culture merge here. The signature drinks are composed, not mixed - using techniques such as smoking, spherisation or sous-vide cooking.
The bar is also open to external guests - accessible exclusively via a WhatsApp number, which interested parties can view on the Instagram page @the5thelementbar.

"The Art of Taste" is not a new beginning - but the consistent further development of a vision that began at Ox&Klee and is now finding its next artistic expression. Alongside head chef, owner and visionary Daniel Gottschlich, restaurant manager Tanja Herzig and sommelier Stefano Angeloni are also shaping the experience. Together, they create a place where culinary art, hospitality and sensory staging merge at the highest level.