Chef Patron Helmut Thieltges is true to his motto: “The produce is the star in the kitchen”. The gifted and skilled Chef prefers to stay in his kitchen rather than to be amongst his guests, he is old-style and his cooking is classic French, but his creations, of perfect balance, flawless techniques and flavours to die for are anything but dated.
Waldhotel Sonnora is a restaurant hotel in Germany less than an hour’s drive from Luxembourg. The Thieltges family built the property in 1978, and it is located in a forest close to the town of Dreis. Helmut Thieltges was born in Dreis in 1955 and it did not take long for him to get involved in the restaurant business since his parents, Vincent and Maria, had the inn Pension Elisabeth. Helmut’s parents encouraged him to become a chef like his father and he had his first apprenticeship when he was 15 years old at Hotel Römischer Kaiser. Back then Helmut was not convinced of becoming a chef, but his culinary career took off for real in 1973 when he started to work at Schlosshotel Pontresina in Saint Moritz. Helmut continued to Düsseldorf and Breidenbacher Hof and later on to Restaurant Bastei in Cologne before he built his Waldhotel Sonnora in 1978. Back then it was just a dense forest at the building grounds of what today is an impressive mansion with one of the best restaurants in the world.
The atmosphere and style of the dining room feel French and the cuisine is mostly dedicated to the French classic even if you now and then can have a dish of a significantly more modern touch. Chef Patron Helmut Thieltges really is one of the masters when it comes to French style cooking. The technical level of his dishes is sky-high and the balance of each ingredient’s flavour is as perfect as it can possibly be. It is a privilege for everyone to be able to have such an amazing cuisine. The location is not the most accessible, but the trip to Restaurant Sonnora is a must for all food lovers. Forget about any hype or celebrity chef style when you arrive at this wonderful place – focus on what all in the gastronomic universe should be about– the flavours! You make a reservation at Sonnora to have some of the best food in the world, period.
The service at Sonnora is flawless, but a bit too formal for some. Once again you come to Sonnora to have some of the best food on the planet, not to be entertained or distracted by anything else than what is going on around your nose and taste buds. There is an impressive wine carte which is of course filled with amazing German wines. All selected and served to you by one of Germany’s foremost sommeliers – Magdalena Brandstätter.
Chef Patron Helmut Thieltges and his wife Ulrike have created a paradise for food lovers. The focus is on the genuine culinary experience – in its purest form – and that will disappoint no one.
Written by Andy
