New head chef at The Florentin in Frankfurt

FRANKFURT AM MAIN. Max Dahlinger is taking over as head chef at The Garden, the all-day restaurant at THE FLORENTIN by Althoff Collection. His cuisine focuses on high-quality, seasonal produce, plays with flavours and also draws on influences from Japanese cuisine. His arrival marks a further evolution in The Garden’s culinary profile: light, flavourful dishes and seasonal vegetables characterise the current menu. In addition, Max Dahlinger is also responsible for the catering provision for in-house meetings and events.

Max Dahlinger joins us from 959 in Heidelberg, where he most recently served as head chef. Prior to that, he completed the master chef training programme at the local hotel management school. The 35-year-old gained international experience during a three-year stay in Los Angeles, where he worked as head chef and operations manager at a sushi restaurant. Further roles took him to the Karlsruhe and Mannheim areas. His professional career began with an apprenticeship as a chef at the “Gasthaus Gutenberg” in Karlsruhe.

A new culinary signature at The Garden

“The Garden is intended to be a vibrant place throughout the day – for our hotel guests as well as for the people of Frankfurt. Max Dahlinger brings the right mix of technical precision, a clear understanding of the ingredients and his own distinctive culinary style to achieve this. His international experience and influences are breathing new life into the restaurant,” says Boris Messmer, General Manager of THE FLORENTIN.

Max Dahlinger focuses on high-quality, deliberately uncomplicated cuisine: “It’s important to me to work to the highest standards of craftsmanship and to handle top-quality produce as simply as possible. I enjoy playing with flavours; many of my influences come from Japanese cuisine. However, I’m not interested in classic Japanese dishes, but rather in my own interpretation of them.”

Three-course tasting menu

This signature style is already evident in the current seasonal menu at The Garden. Light, flavourful dishes are paired with seasonal vegetables and fruity notes. To introduce diners to his cuisine, Max Dahlinger has been offering a three-course menu for 89 euros per person daily from 7 September 2026, between 6.00 pm and 8.30 pm. The meal begins with an aperitif from Schloss Vaux: Grand de Vaux Rosé from the Rheingau. This is followed by watermelon tataki with burrata, jade sauce and colourful tomatoes; Kikok chicken with Albufera sauce, charred miso leek, Roscoff onion and creamy polenta; or an onsen egg with Koshihikari rice, miso foam and chanterelles. To round off the meal, the menu features a yuzu cheesecake with matcha, coconut and pink grapefruit.

Cuisine is a central feature of THE FLORENTIN. With the two-star restaurant the dune, The Garden, The Florentin Bar and the Cigar Lounge, the hotel offers a variety of dining concepts for both hotel guests and the people of Frankfurt. As an all-day restaurant, The Garden caters for its guests from breakfast through to business lunches, evening drinks and dinner – all whilst overlooking The Garden Courtyard.