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This was the hottest new place in town, mainly because it commands the top floor of the glass cube of the new modern Kunstmuseum, opened in 2005 and designed by Rainer Hascher and Sebastian Jehle. The minimalist restaurant was designed by Heinz Witthöft featuring all-glass walls and ceilings, furnished with banks of long chocolate wooden banquettes and clean-legged chairs set on a bare stone floor. From our sky perch, we seemed to be floating over the sea of red tile roofs and the rolling hills beyond.

The menu is modern international, rather fancifully described as "Pacific Rim." The "light and fresh" lunch menu features a changing daily special for €7.80 and a three-course set menu for €28.80.

I'm not sure what Swabians mean by "light and fresh," but it was simply too hot even for a diehard glutton like me to consider a lunch of roast saddle of veal (€18.80) or pan-fried perch with asparagus gnocchi and sun-dried tomatoes (€16.80) or even penne arrabiata (€8.90). We opted instead for salads, one with grilled chicken and coconut dressing drizzled on greens, and the other with salmon tartare on spring greens with toasted lemon crostini (both €10.80). Although they were billed as appetizers, they were so huge that we decided against dessert. (Cakes for €2.80.)

Service from the handsome guy with perfect English was exceptionally cordial if a bit slow at the end. Food is nicely presented and well executed, if somewhat unimaginative. Location is unbeatable, especially for fans of Otto Dix. The museum houses the o T Bar as well as 15,000 works of contemporary, principally regional German art. The lunch crowd seemed to be well-dressed local business people. —Lydia Itoi

Contact: Cube Restaurant in the Kunstmuseum, Kleiner Schlossplatz 1, 70173 Stuttgart, tel. +49/(0) 711 2804441.
Rating: QUALITY 13/20, VALUE 13/20