We will be in Munich for the Christmas holidays through December 26 and are wondering what restaurants are open December 24 and 25. We are staying at a pension so have breakfast covered both days. Our original travel plans were to fly home on the 25th to avoid this issue, but the airline cancelled our connecting flight, so we have to extend our stay by a day.
On Christmas Eve, almost all restaurants will be closed, if not for the day than latest around 14:00. Recommend making reservations at a nice hotel that will be serving dinner. On the 25th and 26th, many restaurants do a booming business, so you won't have problems finding a place to eat.
We were once stuck with an almost inedible meal on Christmas Eve in Salzburg. Since, I have always made sure that I had snack food in the room.
If you're staying near the main train station the Marriott hotel is a block away and should have the dining room open Christmas Eve. You can easily confirm that. Christmas day the major hotels and restaurant's should be open starting in the afternoon.
If you want pictures of Munich Christmas Eve and early Christmas morning will be ideal times to take them as the streets will be pretty empty.
Last, if you're walking around Munich Christmas Eve and there's a party going on there's always a chance you'll be invited to join.
I was in Munich in 2001 at Christmas staying just around the corner from the Hofbrauhaus in the Aldstadt. Everything was closed except this place. Touristy but fun! It was very busy, many Germans there in lederhosen, great polka band - we ate there both the 24th and 25th because it seemed to be the only place open that was walking distance. I just looked at their website and it says open 365 days a year. We enjoyed the fun, festive atmosphere and then walked around the platz window-shopping (since everything was closed).
In 2001, you say...sorry to tell you that times have changed. The Hofbrauhaus has changed and the service is downright rude or just nonexistent. I've taken small groups there for several years and it just gets worse every time we visit. The last time we were there we had a deranged man as our server who flat out refused us service. I finally had to get up and track down the manager and complain vehemently while the deranged man was yelling at me for talking to the manager. OMG - what a nightmare. We all received free drinks, a discount and a DIFFERENT server. Where do they get these lunatics?