YUNICO - Japanese Fine Dining

We decided to take a short trip to the charming city of Bonn to indulge in the creations of Christian Sturm-Willms, Chef of the Year 2013. To say it straight away: Mr. Sturm-Willms achieves a perfect symbiosis of Japanese cuisine combined with modern German cooking. Only high-quality ingredients are used, which are transformed into creative and visually stunning dishes. The clear highlight of our menu was undoubtedly the red mullet, perfectly executed. When visiting this wonderful restaurant with its beautiful ambiance, one should not focus too much on sushi. The kitchen clearly operates at Michelin-star level, with great attention paid to creating harmonious dishes where every ingredient makes sense and complements the whole. The service was flawless – always friendly, attentive, and highly professional. Every question my companion had was answered confidently and in detail. The only minor criticism we could find was the sashimi course, which unfortunately did not quite match the otherwise outstanding level of the kitchen. We ended the evening in the best possible way, enjoying excellent cocktails on the magnificent terrace overlooking the Rhine – a truly wonderful conclusion to a memorable dining experience.

Rightly a Michelin star restaurant! The finest taste experience! It's unbelievable how the different flavors are combined to make great creations! Highly recommended: include the Kobe tasting in your menu. Fantastic! And you will love Omakase! The service is just as great as the cuisine: attentive, friendly, dishes are explained at the table. Incl. welcome by the chef at the table. We've been here several times now as a couple and will be back even more often. Thank you for these great experiences every time!

I am a major fan of Japanese style food. I got the 6 course menu, and the first 'Grüß aus der Küche' transported me to Japan. It was a small piece of tender beef with a radish and sesame. It set the tone. Everything was really good. Two highlights for me: A plate with Mackerel sashimi with caviar and Japanese mustard ice cream. It sounds totally weird and I mostly do not favor caviar. But it was magic. The ingredients in that dish played off each other wonderfully. A main course with a Venison steak, back cut, with a butter nut mouse that tasted like salted caramel and candied hazelnut. Mixing a dab of this with the reduction sauce, and intermingling these with the array of tiny bites of mushrooms, mustard seeds, what I think was a tiny dollop of mash, mini onions and radishes was staggeringly delicious. The price of dinner has been earned by this chef. He spoke with us after dinner. They really change dishes around on a daily basis. He had a chef of the year award already in 2013 and kept his Michelin star 4 years in a row. The tables are spaced very far apart, this is a nice feature. The interior was designed by the Hotel, so I cannot fault them for this. I think areas for improvement would be the servers and their ability to read their guests, or to generally provide service to match the high caliber food. They were all very friendly and engaging, but timing was sometimes a little off and it felt impersonal. A different person would approach the table each time or sometimes a really long pause between meals. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't there for the service. But it seems like a better coordination for the front of the house would be welcome. Two minor points are the reduction on the deer was very salty. I think that is ok or 'good' for someone who had a fair amount of wine, but not for the typical customer. I also did not taste any Yuzu in the oyster sauce or the Yuzu/banana dessert despite anticipating it. I would gladly return.

An experience. The ambience is pleasant, yet the service is warm and not artificial. The food leaves nothing to be desired. A menu is highly recommended to give the chef a free hand. Dietary regulations are easily taken into account. The sommiliere deserves another great mention. She has accompanied all dishes with excellent wines and sakes and explained the background to all of them, which, in addition to the wonderful taste, also gives you a little story. Overall, a wonderful experience that can only be recommended. I am already looking forward to my next visit.

YUNICO, Bonn » My visit: June 2024 » Total score: 4.6/5 – still very good » Comment: Overall, I would rate the food as good to very good: In my opinion, the dishes were characterized by many different and all very high-quality ingredients. I also found some of the dishes to be elaborately crafted. I would particularly highlight what I thought was the outstanding third intermediate course with red mullet, the excellent pre-dessert and a very nice selection of confiserie. There were, however, some aspects that I didn't like: In my opinion, the team should not take the risk that a guest who may be inexperienced in Japanese cuisine should have to eat their way through what I found to be a soy sauce-dominated mishmash (despite the high-quality, diverse ingredients) during the first intermediate course. I then came across a pungent aromatic outlier. I would suggest that the team cross-checks with each individual guest that they have actually understood the purpose and form of use of said ingredients. I found the lamb in the main course overcooked. Moreover, I would describe this dish as single-sided and unharmonious. 1|111|63 ===== My ratings for this gourmet restaurant in detail: ●● Service – 4.9/5 – outstanding: ● Hospitality, friendliness, obligingness, etc.: 4.9/5 ● Atmosphere, temper, facilitation, etc.: 4.8/5 ●● Food – 4.5/5 – good to very good: ● Flavors (range, depth, composition, harmony/balance, etc.): 4.2/5 ● Level (thoroughness, craftsmanship, originality, exclusivity, variety of impressions, consistency/diversity, etc.): 4.8/5 ● Choices: 5.0/5 ●● Beverages, mainly wine and sake – 4.8/5 – very good: ● Taste (depth/range, length, complexity, balance, accessibility, elegance, intensity/subtlety, etc.): 4.8/5 ● Level (variety/novelty of impressions, consistency/diversity, exclusivity, etc.): 4.8/5 ● Did the beverages match the dishes?: 4.7/5 ● Choices: 4.7/5 ●● Presentation of the food – 4.3/5 – good: ● Textures and (differences in) temperatures: 4.6/5 ● Colors and decorations: 3.8/5 ● Timing and sequencing as well as sizes of portions: 5.0/5 ● Special effects (positionings, DIY-effects, sculptural or thematic elements, surprises, color and motion effects, fake effects, olfactory effects, fog or smoke effects, etc.): 3.4/5 ● Procedures at and around the table (attunements and explanations, elements added/changed, service and staffing intensity, involvement of kitchen team, orchestrated dish presentations, preparations and dishes (partially) built up at the table, etc.): 4.4/5 ●● Presentation of beverages – 4.9/5 – outstanding: ● Procedures at and around the table (explanations and attunements, etc.): 4.9/5 ● Quantities poured as well as timing in relation to the dishes: 4.8/5 ●● Premises and location – 4.5/5 – good to very good: ● Accessibility, surroundings and - as applicable - the view: 4.0/5 ● How did I like the room or - as applicable - outdoor area’s style, decor and atmosphere?: 4.7/5 ● Well-being (space, privacy, temperature, ventilation/odors, lighting, soundscape, sanitary facilities, etc.): 4.7/5 ●● Price – 4.8/5 – very good: ● Price-performance ratio for food: 4.8/5 ● Price-performance ratio for wines and other beverages: 4.6/5 ● Price transparency and correspondence of the expected to the actual price (simple, complete and unambiguous price information on the restaurant's website and in the menu, etc.): 4.9/5

I'm a picky Asian, especially with Asian food in Europe. I'm pretty surprised by what you can get here. -Food: 10/10. We had the 4 courses surprise menu. I absolutely love every single meal we had. Even the drinks, remember to try their sake, so sweet and yum! From starters to main dishes, they have interesting combination of tastes that adds additional layers to the food. They're NOT a wanna be restaurant which put random and unmatched things together. The sashimi was so fresh and the dessert was a bomb - variation of banana combined with tea was just perfect. I especially appreciate the fact that the team brings tea flavored dessert, dorayaki, and wasserkucken (Yokan) to German table. 🙏 -Atmosphere: all in all fine. The distance between tables are big so it provides privacy. It'd have been even better if Japanese music is played. -Service: Attentive and friendly service. As other reviews say, they indeed help you pull out the chair EVERYTIME you come back from the restroom. Little things like this made the experience even better. Thank you! Will definitely be back.

Simply incredible! Amazing European - Japanese fusion cuisine. A journey through all tastes and textures one can imagine. An experience truly worth every penny and all this facilitated by genuine and very friendly waiters and chefs! You'll see us again ;-)

A very nice place for a Lovely and exquisite night. The menu brings with a lot of plates accompanied with a especial wine. The crew tread you excellent, we are always happy to come back here.

Anyone who reviews this restaurant with less than 5 stars was just having a damn bad day because this is definitely one of the finest restaurants I have eaten in in my life. From the moment I was greeted until I stepped back into the elevator the service I was given was impeccable. My server, Nils, was extremely informative and clear despite the fact that my German is nonexistent. His drink recommendations were spot on not only based on the taste profile I shared to him that I wanted to enjoy but in compliment to my food. I ordered the 5 course Omakase meal. (They offer 4, 5, and 6 course options) - Omakase means "Let the chef decide" or as I call it "Buy the ticket, take the ride" Omakase is for the brave and adventurous. I would not recommend Omakase if have special dietary needs or are a picky eater. What you are doing is allowing the chef to really flex their creative skills and in my opinion getting the best culinary experience possible. Based on my experience however you order at Yunico you are going to be stunned and delighted. As a side note, Nils informed me upon my inquiry that the restaurant will keep track of the dishes that you get in an Omakase meal and avoid duplication during subsequent visits. He suggested that I might have to visit a dozen times before encountering a duplicate dish! I believe him. I just wish I could afford to come that often haha

This restaurant on the 5th floor of the five star Kameha Grand hotel is indeed a fine dining restaurant. The atmosphere is formal but warm. The food is top class. The YUNICO is awarded with 16 Points in Gault & Millau Germany 2015. And you can definitely experience that. It is amazing how ingredients are so beautifully blended to create an eating experience that triggers all the senses. We went for the surprise dinner by the chef with accompanying sake and wine. The only thing you have to know is that the prices are upper class as well. This restaurant targets for the kind of audience for whom money is no issue. And that is partly a shame, because more people should be able to experience such wonderful tastes. The prices are so high, that soon they probably have to reconsider, cause now it feels not in balance even if the food is the best I ever had. Another minor thing was the timing of the food, which took a bit too long. We felt too much like being 'waiting' between courses. This is the case more often with fine dining restaurants as the idea is probably that you have to give the food time to be greeted by your body and senses, but I guess I am not the person that wants to be dining for 3 hours or more. Anyway, if money is no issue and you like seriously ethereal food, go visit Yunico when you are in Bonn.