Dinner-Party a la Gatsby and bathtub chillin'...Part I

Since reading the book (read it!), watching the movie (watch it!) and listening to the soundtrack on repeat (listen to it!), I have had 20's fever. More specifically, Gatsby fever. Over the past few months I have had the urge to have a night out in Munich town "Gatsby" style. Really the Fräulein (or in this case the Duchess), just wanted an excuse to party a tad more extravagantly than usual...

When I first arrived in Munich, a new place had just opened, a place called...

...Lazy Moon.

The name doesn't give too much away, so I will. Lazy Moon was inspired by the tradition of the supper club. These flourished in America in the 30's and 40's as a means of bringing the vibe of the New York underground jazz clubs "above ground" so to speak. The idea was that rather than have dinner at a restaurant and then have to "kill the mood" by having to go home or attempt to take the party to a club, the restaurant already played live music, morphed into a club and you could just stay! Now this isn't a revolutionary concept by today's standards, however the way the Lazy Moon does it, is certainly above standard.  

It was top of my list of places to check out upon my arrival in Munich, but I just never managed! As most things in life, there was a reason. Apparently I was meant to wait until they came up with their Gatsby-menu:

Even if you don't speak German, you should be able to figure this out...

I literally only had €39.79 left in my bank account...so I figured this would count as being that "little more extravagant". We just had to try it! 

It is located in the heart of Munich, in the 'Filmcasino' building, which was previously a cinema. After passing through a small bar area at ground level one turns a corner and is immediately struck by the glistening crystal chandelier and grande, Gatsby-esque flight of stairs that seems to stretch into the heavens. "My life has got to be like this," he she said pointing a finger toward the sky staircase. "It's got to keep going up." So we did.

In fact there are two great flights of stairs, so after one has conquered both of these (in sky-high heels), dinner has definitely been earned and one is even more impressed with the fit out of the actual space, boasting 300 square-meters, with a vaulted ceiling reaching six meters. The main bar sits within this space like an island, amidst an eclectic collection of cozy club chairs and tables clad in crisp, white cloths. 

Such a large space could so easily have become sterile, with its monochrome colour-scheme, but the details that can be found in every nook and cranny of this place make it feel like you really are hanging out in Gatsby's lounge. Berlin-based interior architects Novono did a fine job, and also took way better pictures of the place than me.

Back to black the dinner-party...Our waiter, I believe his name was "So" (unless he was messing with me?!) was super-lovely from the get go, although he disconcerted us somewhat to begin with, since he asked if we would like to look at the menu when we were under the impression we were already getting the set-menu we had ordered...just a minor misunderstanding though, which was swiftly cleared up and we could proceed.

What a cool menu it is though!

'The Fitzgerald cocktail' & 'Waldorf salad'.

Photo credits for this post has to go to my friend Julia, since I still haven't managed to get my camera over from New Zealand, so we had to make do with her phone...

Both the Fitzgerald and Waldorf salad were impeccable. Unfortunately you can't really see it in the picture, but the lettuce was used as a kind of cup to hold its own dressing which was stand out. Normally I'm not a fan of creamy dressings and even less so of Waldorf salad since I've had it where its been so shredded it looks like it's been pre-chewed...But I would've happily eaten three more portions of this! I think, if a chef can make a salad stellar salad, he's already earned his hat. 

Onto the main course:

'Vol au vent of seafood': pastries filled with crayfish, prawns and muscles in Mornay-sauce atop spinach.

I was a bit hesitant to post this picture because let's be honest, it ain't the prettiest thing in the place, and it definitely doesn't do its taste justice! Because it was beautiful. The seafood was cooked to perfection, which I would imagine quite tricky with the very different "meats". My slightest of criticisms would be the pastry of the 'vol au vents' themselves. They were a touch dry, and I imagine this was because they probably pre-made the pastries in the morning and then filled it with the seafood and sauce just prior to serving, although the sauce (more compliments to the chef!) made up for it. Also I'm a bit spoilt when it comes to pastry since I know the best pastry maker in the world...but that's another story.

Apart from the fine company of the girls, dinner was accompanied by the jazzy tunes and soulful voices of the live band.

After several lengthy breaks and vinos later we concluded with a wee molten choc-pud on orange-ragout...I was happy.

The clock almost struck twelve by the time we put down our dessert spoons, but not before a round of sparklers was given out to all the guests, lights were dimmed and we celebrated the new day. Or the rising of the lazy moon?

We were full of energy from our meal, a definite upside of eating where you plan to party (I am usually already famished by the time I go out)...So we joined the lazy moon in its rising and boogied (that makes me sound like I'm 40!) to the Electro-swing, House and RnB beats of DJ C-mon. He is also a winner. He's got the knack that every DJ should have, of playing the exact song you wanted to hear, just as you decided this would be the last song before leaving! So we stayed a while...

Apparently "So" was quite impressed with our "boogying" and suddenly appeared with a round of Ramazzotti! Not my good friend Veuve or Moët, but probably a better way to finish the meal and help us "digest". Much appreciated!

I had worked the night before and managed to get epic blisters from ballerinas (not even heels!!!), and I was soon struggling to stand. A little party may not have killed no-body, but my feet were on their way...Since I am not the kind of girl that can just sit and listen to good music (I must dance!), there was only one option for us as the party came into full swing, to leave hard-heartedly...

A friend of a friend was celebrating his birthday/flatwarming and we still had to stop by there, which is where we ended the night chillin' in the bathtub...but more about that tomorrow!

Sleep tight for now my lazy moon, I will be back!

Yours truly,
Fräulein SoulFood x