Dominik Hartmann becomes Switzerland’s first vegetarian Chef of the Year
Gault&Millau Switzerland names the Head Chef of Magdalena in Rickenbach Chef of the Year 2027, a first for a fully vegetarian kitchen.
Gault&Millau Switzerland has named Dominik Hartmann, Head Chef at Magdalena in Rickenbach, Chef of the Year 2027. It is the first time in the guide’s history that the title goes to a chef dedicated entirely to vegetarian cuisine. The award was announced with the launch of the Gault&Millau Switzerland 2027 guide.
A plant-based path to the top
The title crowns a steady rise. Hartmann was Discovery of the Year in 2021, then Rising Star of the Year in 2023 and 2025. He founded Magdalena with Marco Appert and Adriana Hartmann, and the restaurant has cooked fully vegetarian since 2022. It now holds 18 GaultMillau points and two Michelin stars.
“Dominik Hartmann represents Vegetarian Cuisine 2.0. His cooking is vegetable-based, yet indulgent and full of surprises. The young brigade at Magdalena works its magic with tweezers, delivers powerful umami flavours and makes guests happy. Achieving this level of success with an uncompromising vegetarian concept, far from a major city and out in the countryside, is by no means a given.”
Urs Heller, Head of GaultMillau Switzerland
Hartmann’s own explanation is shorter:
“Other chefs are better at cooking meat and fish than I am, so I do vegetarian.”
Dominik Hartmann, Head Chef at Magdalena
The 2027 guide in figures
The 2027 edition lists 870 restaurants, 100 gourmet hotels and Switzerland’s 150 leading winemakers. 84 restaurants enter the guide for the first time and 98 chefs have improved their ratings. Seven chefs keep the highest rating of 19 points, among them Andreas Caminada, Tanja Grandits, Peter Knogl and Franck Giovannini.
The other award winners
Stefan Beer, Head Chef at Radius by Stefan Beer at the Victoria-Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa in Interlaken, is Green Chef of the Year. He holds 17 GaultMillau points and cooks only with ingredients from the hotel’s garden or from within a strict 50-kilometre radius.
The Rising Stars of the Year are Gilles Varone (French-speaking Switzerland), Daniel Zeindlhofer and Aurélien Mettler (German-speaking Switzerland) and Federico Palladino (Ticino). Nicolas Schröder, Cyrill Baumann, Claryce Monnier, Alexandre Lacoste, Alessia Saglini and Baldo Lopez are the regional Discoveries of the Year.
Giuseppe Lo Vasco is Sommelier of the Year and Stefan Gerber is Pastry Chef of the Year. Sarah Benahmed of Lausanne Palace is Host of the Year, Appenzeller Huus in Gonten is Hotel of the Year and Zurich’s Bunzai is POP of the Year for casual dining. Jan Tibaldi, General Manager of One&Only Reethi Rah in the Maldives, is Swiss Star Abroad.
Main photo: Dominik Hartmann, Head Chef at Magdalena, with Marco Appert and Adriana Hartmann © Adrian Bretscher