Fabio Haebel

The Honours

Recognition lands differently in a room built around fish. At XO Seafoodbar, Pasta Krabbe sits at the center of a menu shaped by freshness, seasonality, and seafood specialties, and the award reads as a vote for that method: let the sea set the terms, then build the rest of the kitchen around it. Monkfish schnitzel and grilled prawns sit in the same register. They show a kitchen that is not using seafood as a garnish or a concession, but as the main vocabulary of the room, stated plainly and without decoration.

The Craft

The brief for XO Seafoodbar was clear from the start in Fabio Haebel’s own account: “A real fish restaurant had been my plan for a very, very long time, and it was meant to be exactly opposite the other place. The drinks part came later as an additional idea.” That sequence matters. The fish came first; the bar followed. That order shows up in the plate structure. Pasta Krabbe, monkfish schnitzel, and grilled prawns are not side notes to a drinks concept. They are the center of gravity, the dishes that make the restaurant’s seafood identity legible. The drinks program at XO was framed against another format Haebel described more narrowly: “At Hæbel, we only do wine and non-alcoholic menu pairings, and I myself actually drink spirits very rarely.” XO extends beyond that. “But still, it appealed to me to include this kind of drinking culture as part of XO, also because we want to be a place for aperitivo.” The result is a room where the plate and the glass are meant to work side by side, without one taking over the other.

The Career

Fabio Haebel’s career details here center on XO Seafoodbar in Hamburg, Germany, a project shaped by a long-held wish to open a real fish restaurant. The drinks program came later, added to a concept that was already defined by seafood at its core. The restaurant’s identity was direct and disciplined. Pasta Krabbe carried the signature-dish title, while monkfish schnitzel and grilled prawns helped map the breadth of the kitchen’s seafood range. Together, they formed a concise portrait of a chef returning again and again to the same elemental idea: that fish, handled with care and intention, can provide both structure and pleasure.

Signature

Fabio's signature dishes include Pasta Krabbe, monkfish schnitzel, and grilled prawns.

In Their Words “A real fish restaurant had been my plan for a very, very long time, and it was meant to be exactly opposite the other place. The drinks part came later as an additional idea.” “But still, it appealed to me to include this kind of drinking culture as part of XO, also because we want to be a place for aperitivo.”