Recognition and incentive at the same time – METRO honours sustainable restaurant initiatives for the first time

After a 7-minute pitch and an equally long round of questions with the jury and the audience, the 3 finalists then faced the vote of the guests present at the award ceremony in Düsseldorf. The winner was the Berlin restaurant “DingsDums Dumplings” represented by co-founder Mauritz Schröder. The restaurant offers dumplings, which are made from about 80 per cent of rescued food.

With the dumplings, Mauritz Schröder and his colleagues have found an innovative way to turn surplus food into delicious new creations that change daily. Shock freezing the dumplings also makes them long-lasting and versatile – they can be used both in the restaurant itself and at catering events. Not only the guests in Berlin-Kreuzberg are delighted with the sustainable dumplings, but also the jury and guests of the METRO Award for Sustainable Gastronomy were convinced by the creative way of avoiding food waste.

The second prize was awarded to Fischküche Reck. With a passionate pitch, Doris Reck-Hartmann showed that she and her team embody sustainability and that a love of tradition does not mean stagnation. The inn has been owned by the Reck family since 1828. When it comes to sustainability, the tradition-rich establishment not only relies on regional and seasonal cuisine, but also on waste heat from a neighbouring biogas facility for heating, state-of-the-art kitchen equipment, high-quality and durable oak wood tables instead of table linen requiring intensive washing and ironing, as well as digital tools. A wind turbine has already been tested to generate power and anyone who comes to Möhrendorf by electric car or e-bike will soon be able to recharge their batteries at the inn.

The third prize was awarded to Stefan Burghart, who was nominated with the Allianz SE company restaurant. The team there has been working very hard for 10 years to gradually become more sustainable – be it in terms of animal welfare, effective recycling or avoiding waste. This is made possible, for example, thanks to a clever returnable cup system that has saved over 6.5 million disposable cups to date. The jury as well as the audience found this to be groundbreaking and award-worthy.