Munich (München) is Bavaria's dynamic capital, blending world-class museums, royal palaces, beer gardens, and Alpine landscapes into one of Europe's most liveable cities. The city anchors southern Germany with a population of 1.56 million and serves as a gateway to the Alps, Oktoberfest, and centuries of Bavarian history.
Munich's food scene centers on hearty Bavarian cooking — roast meats, dumplings, white sausage, and litre glasses of locally brewed beer. However, the city also supports a sophisticated international dining landscape with over 15 Michelin-starred restaurants, strong Italian influence, and a growing vegetarian/vegan scene. The traditional Weißwurst breakfast (before noon, never after!) remains a Munich ritual.
Top restaurants
Handpicked picks for the best dining experiences.
Hofbräuhaus
This is the big tourist beer hall in the city center, all vaulted ceilings, brass band, and long communal tables under the Platzl's painted arches. The kitchen turns out heavy, salty Bavarian standards built to go with the beer rather than stand alone, and the room is loud and crowded most evenings.
Known for: World-famous royal beer hall dating to 1589; Hofbräu München house beer served in 1-litre Maß steins
Platzl 9, 80331 Munich
Tantris
A long-running fine-dining address known for its 1970s interior — sunken orange-and-black dining room, low lighting, a look the restaurant has kept rather than modernized. The kitchen works in the modern European tasting-menu register, precise plating built around seasonal produce rather than Bavarian tradition.
Known for: Iconic two-Michelin-star restaurant in a striking 1970s design building
Johann-Fichte-Straße 7, 80805 Munich
Wirtshaus in der Au
A traditional Gasthaus in the Au district, known locally as the home of the Dampfnudel — a steamed, slightly sweet dumpling served with vanilla sauce that draws people across the city. The rest of the menu runs through solid Bavarian comfort food in a wood-paneled, old-Munich dining room.
Known for: Munich's most celebrated Wirtshaus; awarded Best Knödel in Munich by local critics
Lilienstraße 51, 81669 Munich
Spatenhaus an der Oper
Set right by the Bavarian State Opera, this is a smarter, more formal take on the traditional Munich restaurant — white tablecloths and a menu that leans toward pre- and post-opera dining rather than a beer-hall crowd. The cooking sticks to classic Bavarian and Austrian plates done with more polish than the average Wirtshaus.
Known for: Classic Bavarian restaurant opposite the National Theatre; popular with opera-goers
Residenzstraße 12, 80333 Munich
Biergarten Chinesischer Turm
The beer garden beneath the wooden Chinese Tower in the Englischer Garten, one of the largest and most central in the city, with long benches under chestnut trees and a brass band playing from the tower on weekends. Food comes from self-service stalls around the perimeter rather than table service in most of the seating.
Known for: One of Munich's largest beer gardens beneath an ornate pagoda tower in the English Garden; bring your own food if desired
Englischer Garten 3, 80538 Munich
Der Pschorr
A large Bavarian beer hall and restaurant built into the historic Pschorrhaus at the edge of the Viktualienmarkt, with a rotisserie visible from the dining room turning out roast pork through the day. The setting is grander and more restaurant-like than a typical beer hall, with high ceilings and market views from some tables.
Known for: Modern Bavarian beer hall adjacent to the Viktualienmarkt; Hacker-Pschorr brewery beer
Viktualienmarkt 15, 80331 Munich
Augustiner-Keller
Popular Bavarian restaurant in Munich.
Known for: Munich's oldest brewery (1328); 5,000-seat beer garden under chestnut trees; known for serving beer from traditional wooden barrels
Arnulfstraße 52, 80335 Munich
Zum Franziskaner
A traditional restaurant just behind the Residenz, known chiefly as one of the classic places in the old town for a proper Weißwurstfrühstück — the white sausage breakfast eaten before the town hall's noon bell in old Munich custom. The dining rooms are wood-paneled and old-fashioned, closer to a formal Wirtshaus than a big beer hall.
Known for: Traditional Weißwurst breakfast served until noon; a Munich institution for 150+ years
Perusastraße 5, 80333 Munich
Restaurants by cuisine
Browse picks grouped by cuisine type.
Bavarian
Halali
A long-standing Bavarian restaurant near the Englischer Garten built around game and hunting-lodge cooking, with taxidermy and dark wood paneling setting the tone. The kitchen leans traditional and hearty, built for cold-weather dishes rather than light eating.
Known for: Classic hunting-themed restaurant; best wild game menu in Munich
Schönfeldstraße 22, 80539 Munich
Nürnberger Bratwurst Glöckl am Dom
A traditional Franconian-style tavern right next to the Frauenkirche, specializing in the small Nürnberger Rostbratwurst rather than Munich's own larger sausages. The interior is dark-wood and traditional, built around long communal-style tables for a classic beer-hall feel.
Known for: Rustic tavern attached to the Frauenkirche; Munich's go-to for the small Nürnberg-style grilled sausages
Frauenplatz 9, 80331 Munich
Georgenhof
Known for: Beloved local pub in Schwabing with spacious beer garden; a favourite with university students and professors
Friedrichstraße 1, 80801 Munich
Schneider Bräuhaus
The city-centre tap room for Schneider Weisse, Bavaria's best-known wheat beer brewery, set on Tal just a short walk from Marienplatz. The menu is solidly traditional Bavarian, built around roasts and braises meant to be eaten alongside the beer rather than a showcase of refined technique, served in a wood-panelled beer-hall room with long communal-style tables.
Known for: Munich outpost of the renowned Schneider Weisse wheat beer brewery; excellent Weizenbier selection
Tal 7, 80331 Munich
Gaststätte Zum Wirt (Wirt am Gasteig)
Known for: Unpretentious neighborhood Wirtshaus next to the Gasteig cultural center; loved by locals
Am Gasteig 1, 81669 Munich
Italian
Eataly Munich
The Munich outpost of the Italian food-hall chain, housed in the Schrannenhalle, a restored 19th-century market hall near Viktualienmarkt. Inside it's a mix of counters and small restaurants — a pasta bar, a pizzeria, a market selling Italian products — rather than one single dining room, so the feel is closer to a covered market than a traditional restaurant.
Known for: Italian food marketplace inside a beautiful 19th-century iron-and-glass market hall
Schrannenhalle, Blumenstraße 4, 80331 Munich
Vinaiolo
Known for: Top Italian restaurant in Haidhausen; owner-run with a curated Italian wine list
Steinstraße 42, 81667 Munich
L'Osteria Munich Marienplatz
A branch of the German-founded Italian chain, a few steps from Viktualienmarkt, known nationwide for its oversized pizzas. It's a casual, high-turnover trattoria-style room aimed at quick, filling meals rather than a refined Italian dinner, and the Marienplatz location means it draws heavily on foot traffic from the old town.
Known for: Munich-born Italian chain famous for its oversized pizzas; central location for a casual meal
Viktualienmarkt 6, 80331 Munich
European
Café im Lenbachhaus
The café inside the Lenbachhaus art museum, known for its Kandinsky and Blue Rider collection, with a menu of lighter modern European dishes aimed at museum visitors rather than a destination dinner crowd.
Known for: Museum café inside the Lenbachhaus; perfect for a post-Blaue Reiter lunch in stylish surroundings
Luisenstraße 33, 80333 Munich
Volkshaus München
Known for: Social enterprise restaurant with community ownership; excellent value seasonal European cuisine
Boschetsrieder Straße 15, 81379 Munich
International
Brenner Grill
A large, high-ceilinged brasserie just off Maximilianstraße in a former riding hall, with an open kitchen built around a wood-fired grill and oven. The menu is grill-and-pizza focused rather than fine dining, and the room stays loud and busy through service.
Known for: Stylish wood-fire grill restaurant housed in a former royal stables building on Munich's glamour boulevard
Maximilianstraße 15, 80539 Munich
Park-Café
A café-bar set in the park strip near Königsplatz and the Pinakothek museums, with a large outdoor terrace under trees that fills up as soon as the weather turns warm. The kitchen runs an international, bar-food menu rather than Bavarian cooking, and the space doubles as a daytime café and an evening bar.
Known for: Lively café-bar near the Alter Botanischer Garten; popular for after-work drinks and weekend brunch
Sophienstraße 7, 80333 Munich
Bavarian Pastries
Café Rischart am Marienplatz
The Marienplatz branch of Rischart, a Munich bakery institution, set right on the main square with views toward the Rathaus. It functions as both a stand-up bakery counter and a seated café, serving classic Bavarian baked goods rather than a full restaurant menu.
Known for: Munich bakery institution since 1883; rooftop terrace overlooks Marienplatz
Marienplatz 18, 80331 Munich
Café
Maximilianeum Café
Known for: Café inside the Bavarian State Parliament building with views over the Isar; open to the public
Max-Planck-Straße 1, 81675 Munich
German
Ratskeller München
The traditional cellar restaurant beneath the Neues Rathaus on Marienplatz, with vaulted brick ceilings and painted arches typical of a German town-hall Ratskeller. The menu covers standard Bavarian and German classics aimed at a mix of tourists and locals wanting a formal sit-down version of beer-hall food.
Known for: Cavernous vaulted cellar beneath the Neues Rathaus; Munich's oldest restaurant in continuous service
Marienplatz 8 (cellar), 80331 Munich
Modern Bavarian
Brasserie OskarMaria
The restaurant inside the Literaturhaus München near Odeonsplatz, named after Bavarian writer Oskar Maria Graf. It runs as a proper brasserie with a market-driven menu that updates with the seasons, drawing a mix of the literary and cultural crowd who use the Literaturhaus alongside regular diners.
Known for: Literary café-brasserie inside the Literaturhaus (Literature House); elegant setting near Odeonsplatz
Salvatorplatz 1, 80333 Munich
Vegetarian
Tian Munich
A fine-dining vegetarian and vegan restaurant near the Rathaus, part of the small Tian group that also has a Vienna original. The cooking is built around multi-course tasting menus that treat vegetables with the technique and plating normally reserved for meat and fish in fine dining.
Known for: Michelin-starred fine-dining vegetarian restaurant; one of the best in Germany
Frauenstraße 4, 80469 Munich
Food tours & tastings in Munich
Eat your way through Munich with a guide.
Browse food experiences in MunichWe may earn a commission from bookings made through these links.
Street food
Local flavours at affordable prices.
Food markets
Where locals shop and graze.
Dining etiquette & tips
Navigate the local food scene confidently.
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Food budget guide
What to expect at different price points.
| Level | Price | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Budget | $5-15/meal | Street food, local eateries, and simple restaurants. |
| Mid-range | $15-40/meal | Sit-down restaurants with good service and varied menus. |
| Upscale | $40+/meal | Fine dining, international cuisine, and premium experiences. |