The Miil Restaurant is undoubtedly a culinary and design experience must-try if you are around Merano. It is located exactly in Cermes, five minutes by car from Merano, and originally was an old mill, from where indeed it takes its name.
Since from the parking lot the atmosphere you can feel is very particular, a tree-lined driveway and a small stream of water will accompany you to the entrance of the restaurant, well not really easy to find if you never been there before. From here already, you will start to understand that you are entering in a very special place and you will begin to feel already excited.
The entrance is a very small wooden door, beyond which a world opens to you when you enter, outside the silence is total, and when you are in, you will wonder where all those people are coming from.
Right at the entrance, on the left, a beautiful counter where you can have an aperitif or eat at the bar, as in those cool contemporary restaurants of New York or Northern Europe, than you have various rooms, like a small maze so you will not be able to get exactly how many people are inside.
We have ate in a room, three steps up stairs, completely open so you could see the rest of the room, lights perfectly adapt to the colors of the interiors, creating a warm and intimate atmosphere. During the days of the festival of course most of the other guests around us were from the wine business and although it was certainly a bit crowded evening, the service was impeccable.
The menu reflects the typical South Tyrol and Italian tradition that relies on the seasonality of the raw materials, which means that in the period we went there, it spoke of fall everywhere.
Soups, mushrooms, Porcini, all flavors and dishes emblem of the season and of the local tradition, with a very special touch from Othmar Raich, chef and owner of the restaurant.
The wine list is one of the most interesting and well organized I have ever seen, wines divided by type and by region with an eye to organic and natural small producers. It took us a while but our choice was well rewarded by an extraordinary wine that I will remember for a long time. The elegance which I found in this wine is hard to achieve and was perfectly paired not only with our dishes but especially with the atmosphere of the place.
The Miil is not only a restaurant, but more a philosophy, in fact it is part of the Kranzelhof estate, which includes 7 gardens, a winery and the restaurant of course, in which events, visits, artists exhibitions are organized with the purpose to create the “Kranzelhof experience” which wants to nourish not only our body but especially our mind and soul. We did not have the chance to visit all the estate as we were there only for dinner but I would absolutely recommend to try the full experience.
We do have something with a similar concept in Tuscany, which I would love to tell you in one of my next posts.
The Paper Plane Journey 