Balthasar

I visited Balthasar in Cologne with friends who live in Germany and speak the language fluently. As a tourist, I was really looking forward to enjoying a nice evening, but unfortunately, the experience left me disappointed. We ordered both starters and main courses at around 8:10 PM. The starters didn’t arrive until approximately 8:40 PM, which was already quite slow. However, the real issue was with our main courses. By 9:20 PM, we still hadn’t received them, so we asked the waitress about the delay. Her response was a series of excuses: that they were busy with outdoor tables and that we were supposed to inform them when to proceed with the main course. This was never communicated to us beforehand, and frankly, made little sense—especially when the table next to us, who ordered well after we did, had already received their food. When we raised this point, the waitress claimed that the other table hadn’t ordered starters, which again felt like just another excuse rather than a genuine explanation or apology. Worse, she insisted that “this is how things work in Germany”—a comment made in front of my friends who have been living here for over eight years and knew this was not true. Even after all this, at 9:45 PM, we still hadn't received our food, and no effort was made to apologize or offer any form of compensation. When the food finally came, it was fine, but certainly not worth the two-hour wait and the poor service we endured. Overall, this was a frustrating and disappointing evening. Good food means little when the service and communication are so lacking.

Very tasty food (and at the neighboring tables everything I saw looked incredibly appetizing). Very fast service, attentive and smiling staff. Very pleasant atmosphere.

The food was nice but the service was amazing! Our waiter Cathy (or Kathy?) was incredibly nice and sweet, absolutely the best waiter, she made the evening very very more pleasant

Really good breakfast place with a good selection, friendly staff and big portions.

Delicious food, I had the Kalbschnitzel,good portion. Our waiter was very nice,looked after us very well. We had a good time. The music got a bit too loud around like 9 o'clock, but other than that we enjoyed the place.

We had a wonderful meal and would highly recommend. Service was good and the atmosphere was perfect. Nice simple decor and large bathroom. Pricing is fair. Staff was very helpful.

I’ve had lunch at Balthasar. The whiskey sour was well mixed and the stuffed chicken with mashed peas and young broccoli was fingerlicking good. I do definitely recommend this restaurant. It’s on the pricier side but worth every penny.

I was impressed with the menu. Very special one, extraordinary. The dish is simply amazing, especially the green purée. The waiters are friendly, the atmosphere is pleasant. I will certainly visit this place again. Thank you, guys. You're doing very well;)

My friend and I wanted to get some currywurst, so we casually sat down after checking out the chalkboard menu outside-- yeah, the actual course menu was of course different (should have expected that, the place looks pretty fancy, silly us!). I ordered the salmon and my friend ordered the porterhouse steak. The food here is amazing, it's pricey, but I definitely left a happy camper. The salmon here is partially rare, which to me is the proper way to make salmon. It was also perfectly seasoned. Ugh, DELICIOUS. I also liked the touch of the carrots and the sweet sauce that they sat on, yum! My friend's steak was also melt in your mouth fabulous. It was medium rare, but did not bleed-- HOW DO THEY DO THAT? Whatever their chefs are doing, they are doing it right! The price is reasonable in comparison to the quality of food that you get.

Very chic and vintage interior. The place was packed on a Thursday and I highly recommend reservations, which we had. The service is a little slow but the portions are huge! I ordered Chicken tikka masala, the curry flavor was strong (not my thing) but it was loaded with veggies. My friend ordered a salad with chicken breast and she loved hers! I would come back again and try some of the other dishes as they looked very good. The tables are close, so you can easy spot what others are eating.

I went for dinner my second day in Cologne. Great atmosphere, very nice people, friendly staff! I suggest to try ANGUS PRIME RIB steak. Enjoy

My family, including my 7 year old cousin, went here yesterday for some salad and a coffee. My cousin started playing with the salt shaker. The owner noticed this and came over to our table yelling at my cousin. We asked the owner to complain to us instead of yelling at a child - to which he said "I have a Haftpflichtversicherung (insurance) and can speak to her however I want. This is an expensive salt shaker." At the end of a long discussion he ended up apologizing, but unfortunately that's not going to make us want to return or recommend this restaurant for its service, which in my opinion is an integral part of running a restaurant. Ps the rest of the staff was friendly.

The number 1 bestseller Weiner-Schnitzel in Köln/Cologne, no joke! This was really good! Service on point, trendy place! Amazing food! Check it out!

Must try the yoga bowl!! It's a quinoa salad, perfect addition to any trip where you might be tired of German cuisine. This is a slightly more upscale restaurant for the area with a hip casual dining vibe. And don't be afraid to try some cocktails. The bartenders certainly know what they are doing.