The Golden Imperial Schnitzel is on offer at a self-service counter in the western German city of Duesseldorf for a cool 150 euros ($216). Sprinkled with 24-carat gold, it outshines the sausage and meatball dishes on the menu, which start at under five euros.

Yet it is not the Midas touch but rather the white Italian truffles in the breading, sold for 3,000 euros per kilo, and the black truffles on top that put the 300 gram schnitzel in a class of its own, said Thomas Huber who runs the Schitzelhuber chain of restaurants.

While just milligrams of gold leaf are needed, the recipe requires a few grams of truffles.

"Gold has no taste," Huber said, but it gives the dish an attractive glimmer. Huber says the imperial schnitzel comes with a traditional potato salad and a glass of champagne.

Resurrecting tradition

But he is not the first to have the idea, Huber admits. In fact his imperial schnitzel revives regal eating habits that stretch back at least 1,000 years, he told the Duesseldorf tabloid Express.

"The Eastern Roman emperor Basileus used to order his best pieces of meat be topped with leaf gold."

Rich people picked up the habit but it was finally prohibited in 1514 – until Huber resurrected it in 2006, when he first put in on his menu. Since then he has sold about 100 of the precious cutlets.

However, Huber's schnitzel went public only on Wednesday with a report in the local media. The chef said he previously had not dared to publicize the decadent dish. But with the economic and financial problems still dominating the news, it's puzzling why he has started promoting his elite dish just now.

rri/afp/dpa
Editor: Kyle James