Feasting in Switzerland: Le Poisson at Auvernier, near Neuchatel

Neuchatel. Lovely city. Pearched on the lake, it enjoys the mountains on one side, and the lake on the other. However, being a little lower in altitude, and by the lake, it does get quite a lot of fog.

Click here for a wide pano from the mountains looking over Lake Neuchatel. The Alps in the distance, and the fog over the city.

In the evenings, it is a bit more lively than most Swiss cities. But a short drive away, in the little village of Auvernier, lies this wonderful fish restaurant...its namesake in French Le Poisson (meaning fish).

We started with a glass of champagne and oysters. I cannot imagine a better combination for fresh oysters.



Fresh as it can be. Sweet, delicious. With a whiff of the fragrance of the distant sea.

And of course, I had fish...sole, pan fried with butter, and a serving of shoe string fries.



Needless to say, the sole was fresh. Firm flesh, white creamy. Pan fried to perfection...thin, slightly crisp on the outside. Smooth, rich, moist inside. Beautiful.



And the fries...superb. Crisp covering...and a creamy interior. I imagined the fries to be deep fried in tallow or a mix of tallow and butter to give it the rich, creamy mouthfeel. Sinful, but oh, so good.

For desserts, I had a small scoop of ice cream...pistachio



Home made. Delicious. And...



a triple decked decadence of pear and cream within crisp pastry. Heavenly.

Truly a magnificent place to dine in or near Neuchatel. We went to the restaurant on a Monday evening, and it was brimming...full. Merely 5 days later on Friday, we had a magnificently catered meal at a private residence attended by the chef of Poisson himself labouring in the kitchen.



He moves fast, this man.

Needless to say, it was a magnificent meal, featuring one of the best langoustines and veal dishes I have had in a long time.





The meat was superb. Sous vide, and expertly browned. Tender to melting. Smooth, creamy mouth feel. Superb.

Washed down with these magnificent wines.



I cannot begin to describe the Chateau Cheval Blanc. The first bottle (yes, we had 2 bottles) was superb...truly magnificent, in its prime. The second was still excellent, and had it not been the wonderful palate and nose of the first, we would have hailed it as a beautiful drink. But in comparison, it was perhaps a bit over in terms of aging. Perhaps a month earlier. But both bottles were superb. All its touted to be.

And for desserts, home made glazes...the marron was particularly wonderful.



Again fully confirms that this is one of the best restaurants in the land. Superb.


Restaurant Le Poisson
Rue des Epancheurs 1,
Auvernier 2012, Switzerland
032 / 731 62 31
www.lepoisson-auvernier.ch/

Feasting in Switzerland: Auberge de L'Onde

I recently had some extremely good gastronomic experiences with my Swiss friends. So in my two weeks in Switzerland, I ate well. Very well indeed. Allow me to start with L'Onde. An extraordinary restaurant in a small town (compared to Asian towns and cities, Swiss towns and even cities are miniscule. But each with character, and pride.).

It garnered its first Michelin star for 2012, I believe...and currently has 16 Gault Millau points. Housed in a two storey building, with a full grill on the upper floor, the restaurant is bright, and airy.



The pastry chef is remarkable. All the pastry churned out in the restaurant is lovingly hand made by him. The bread platter is no exception



Exceptional. Light, fluffy. And yet very tasty.

I started with the lobster soup...made from Boston lobster.



Exquisite. The meat was firm yet yielding, tasty, and sweet. The broth had a wonderfully aromatic crusteacean flavour. Excellent.

And to accompany, a crisp, French white wine...



Beautiful. Dry, crisp, very fine. The nose hints of vanilla and spices. On the palate, its refined, composed even...and very smooth, delicate. Flavours meld. And goes extremely well with shellfish. Perhaps 2010 is a little young, but still delicious.

And for mains, a nice, juicy steak...Australian Angus



As usual, I am not particularly fond of the red wine reduction sauce...should have remembered to ask for the sauce on the side. But the steak was very nicely done...perfect medium/medium rare.



And a great bottle of red from the area...



Swiss wines are an interesting bunch. Less famous than their neighbours...France and Italy (and even Germany), they do nevertheless make some excellent wines. Full bodied, more a Bordeaux style than Burgundy. Ripe, luscious with strong hints of berries and a very light bite of tannins. On the nose, a floral bouquet sends its greetings. Nice.

And for desserts, a selection of ice creams and sorbets...all home made.



A truly superb meal. Beautiful surroundings. Magnificent wines. Great food. And most importantly, wonderful friends. Thanks Marco and Veronique.

Highly recommended if you are in the Lausanne area.



The Auberge de l'Onde
Village Centre
1071 St-Saphorin
Tel. +41 (0)21 925 49 00
Fax +41 (0)21 925 49 01

Another brewhouse in Munich: Augustiner Brau

And you thought Monday;s brewhouse in Munich is old when it was founded in 1589. Today's entry is about a brewhouse which is even older.

The Augustiner Brau has been existance since 1294...more than 700 years! I visited the establishment in the pedestrian district of Munich one evening



Inside, it was large as well...huge halls with rows on rows of tables.



Looks like this is the style of Bavarian beer houses. So the beer?



I had the Edelstoff...a bright beer...sparkling, refreshing. Very nice.

And the food? I had a roast chicken...



Well, it felt like a whole chicken...when in fact it was half...the bird was huge, but expertly roasted. Crispy skin, smooth, tender meat. Great chicken.

And another beer house in Munich worth visiting...and not just on Oktoberfest.


Augustiner am Platzl
Orlandostr. 5 | 80331 Munich
Tel: +49 89 2111356 | Fax: +49 89 21113577
www.augustiner-am-platzl.de

Business hours: daily from 10:00 am to 12:00 am
Restaurant: from 10:00 am to 12:00 am

Beer in Munich: Hofbrauhaus, of course!

Hofbrauhaus in Munich is an institution. That's it. A real institution. Still family owned and operated since 1589...now owned by the Spreger family since 2004, but founded by Wilhelm V, Duke of Bavaria. This brewhouse in the heart of Bavaria has been serving millions of liters of excellent beer and hearty food for nearly half millinium. Wow, now that's a long time.



And beer it is. One liter, please...cold, refreshing. The barmaids are equally famous...this was just after Oktoberfest, so they are just relaxing from fetching 12 one liter mugs each time...here one is carrying 2 large and 2 small beers...



But imagine, 12 one liter jugs...6 in each arm...each weighing more than a kilo...(1 liter of water weighs 1 kg...but add the mug, which is quite substantial in weight too). And she's fast!

At one corner, I spied rows and rows of lockers...for regulars who own and use their own mugs to lock them up, after they have had their drink.

To rouse up the mainly tourist, but also locals, an ompapa band plays on one corner of this huge establishment...




And the food? Standard Bavarian fare...schweinshaxe, sausages, and schnitzel...




If I said this was the best schneitzel I have ever eaten, I'd be lying. But its rather enjoyable. The meat was cooked well, nice crisp breaded exterior...




But we are not here for the food...nor the beer, which is bloody good, I must say. But to soak in the atmosphere. The huge, cavernous beerhouse has plenty to offer...and has been doing so for almost 500 years. So be a sport. Have a liter or two when in Munich at the Hofbrauhaus.





Hofbrauhaus
Platzl 9 80331 München, Germany
089 290136100

Time out

Apologies, no publication this week, as I am travelling on work assignment shooting watches in Switzerland.

Will return next week on some amazing meals in Switzerland.

Have you cooked in a 1 star Michelin kitchen? Well I have...read on...

Bulow Palais...home away from home...I have perhaps stayed at this Relais & Chateaux hotel more than 20 times over the last 10 years...previously at the Residenz, as smaller, boutique hotel, and now at the larger Palais. The restaurant Carousel, previously helmed by Stefan Hermann, and now by the able Dirk Schroer, has earned and retained its Michelin star for many years....as long as I remember.

Anyway, after countless times experiencing the cusine here, this time, I returned to the kitchen...did I say kitchen? Yes, to prepare our own meal:



A "Drei Gang" three course, menu...complex French techniques...were we up to the task?

To relax my group...I lead a group of collectors to the Lange manufactory once every 2 years, we had some champagne at the bar...



Then, a breifing by the chef and sous chef



And we go!



Cutting potatos, Russian style. Note swiftness of Dmitry's handling of the sword...um...knife.

And me? Of course I was up to the task...Chef handed me two large black truffles...wow!



And how did I do...of course, well...



Unlike many other kitchen experiences, we were in the actual 1 Starred Michelin kitchen...not some instructional kitchen. And we actually prepared the food, including the more complicated and delicate processes like browning the beef:



closeup:



No one was spared. Even Lange's CEO Wilhelm Schmidt did his time in the kitchen.

Interestingly, chef Schroer does not use open flames in the kitchen. Only induction heaters...cooler, he says...sous vide machines, and ovens.

When the cooking was done, it came time for tasting...but first the welcome by Wilhelm



And the meal:

An amuse bouche which we did not prepare...hmm, maybe he does not trust us with this...



Soup



We prepared and mashed the pumpkin, cooked it. Prepared the chicken. Taste? delicious...what else do you expect from a 1 star Michelin kitchen?

The main course, complicated recipe...but we did well...pat on our backs...



The puff pastry was perfect...light, crisp. The spinach wrap wonderful. And the meat, as you can see, seared nicely, but medium rare within. My gosh we were good! I asked the chef if he would give us jobs as sous chef...his response was this.

We still had dessert to go...tarte tartin with vanilla ice cream



Superb experience. Wonderful dinner.


Restaurant Carousel
Bulow Palais
Dresden, Germany

Airline food: Singapore Airlines First Class

Some say PPS (Singapore Airlines' Priority Passenger) get treated like gods on board SQ flights. I am not so sure. I have been a TPP (Top Priority Passenger...their Solitaire class...currently the highest being offered by the program...one starts with Krisflyer Silver, then Gold, then PPS, then TPP. They used to offer LPP (Lifetime Priority Passenger) as a higher level than TPP, but withdrew that. LPPs do not have to re-qualify annually by spending S$25k on First and Business class flights...yes, no how much Economy flights you take on SQ, you will never go beyond KF Gold.) I find the treatment of TPPs varying at best. Sometimes, we get the recognition, sometimes, we are just treated like any other passenger.

One of the privellages of a TPP is access to the SQ First Class Lounges at Changi regardless of class of travel. In fact, they should rename this Solitare Lounge...as full fare paying First Class passengers get access to a special lounge within. But I digress.

Anyway, my work has allowed me enough flying to be TPP...and have been for 13 years. More than a million miles clocked on SQ tails. I never book on First Class, but travel on Business Class often enough to qualify. And seldom...in my 13 years, I can count on the number of times SQ has upgraded me to first. Once to Shanghai, once on return from Zurich. And just a few days ago, on my return flight from Frankfurt.



The seats on the 77W First Class is not too different in width from the Business Class seats. But a bit more pitch (airline lingo for length of the seat translating to legroom). There is no hump from the seat in front...but there are no overhead storage in First...so the bags stay under the seat.

Note new unisex toiletery kit (still Salvatore Ferragamo) right of the TV, and the new Givenchy pajamas (track suit) just left of my boots.

Krug is the champagne of choice in First, though, on request Dom Perignon is also available. I prefer Krug anyway...



And dinner? We started with a fairly large dollop of caviar with toast and accompaniments...nice. No pic of that, sorry.

And a very beautiful pork soup...nicely done...tasty, hot.



For mains, I selected the coconut chicken curry with rice



Rich...extremely rich coconut milk...perhaps cream...the spices are nicely balanced, though slightly overpowered by the richness of the cream. The rice was nicely done, long grained, fragrant. Overall, quite enjoyable...especially after 10 days of weisswurst, schweinshaxe and rich French meals (two of those will be featured in the next blog entries...both Michelin starred meals...and one with a twist).

And the dessert? White choc...



Needless to say, service was superb...um...first class! Attentive, always with a smile, always addressing me by name. Suberb.



SQ325 Frankfurt to Singapore
Seat 2A, Nov 12
First Class on Boeing 777.

Espresso Joints: Toby's Estate

Continuing on the series on Third Wave Espressos...we now come to Toby's Estate...an Australian concern, helmed by the efferverscent Suhaimi Sukardi, who started and manages the "I am a Barista in Singapore" Facebook page...where I am a member.



The place is rather hidden, tucked in a new residential building in Rodyk...by the river. Nicely located, but not the best for visitors who drive...as there is no parking in the building. Gotta park at Robertson Quay area.

Anyway, the cafe is large, airy. Nice. Pride of place is a huge, and I really mean huge roaster...



Definitely the largest amongst the 3W gang...some 15kg per roast.

The work bench and barista area is occupied by the large Mazzers and Speedster.



The coffees?

I had the espresso doppio:



A little dark, slightly forboding. But good mouth feel...rich, thick, heavy. A bit bitter. Crema is light and dissipates quickly.

The latte featured a nice, well defined art...



Nice smooth feel in the mouth. Rich...milky, creamy. A tinge of the espresso offers some bite.

Overall, a worthy place to hang out for 3rd Wave customers...nexct time I will try the food..


Toby's Estate
8 Rodyk st. #01-03/04. Singapore 238216 +65 66367629

Szechuan in Beijing

As this post goes online, I will be having a very busy week in Munich and Dresden...so just a short one today...one pic, one para...

Szechuan cuisine...hot, spicy...this is a typical mixed platter...you order the level of heat, and the ingredients...we had at mutton, chicken and at least 6 different vegs going on in here...medium heat. With the "ma la" peppercorns...its quite lethal...even with my chilli padi seasoned tongue...



Not sure where in Beijing...

Appetite for China: Muslim cuisine in Beijing: Donglaisun

Muslim cuisine is rather well developed in Beijing...interesting, considering that Muslims make a small minority. But their cuisine featuring lamb is very popular, and have established a long tradition.



I remember eating at a shuayangrou restaurant the first time I visited Beijing in 1994. This was a hot pot, where you cook the lamb yourself. The lamb itself is sliced thinly, each slice the serving portion, and rolled up, frozen. I relish the taste...and have been looking for something like this kind of food ever since. So when I saw one Muslim restaurant right at Wang Fu Jing, and a well known one at that...Dong Lai Shun is an old restaurant, serving up good food for nearly a century.

We returned to the restaurant twice...because the first two times, it was full, and won't take us. On a nice Wednesday morning, we went at opening time...11am, and were rewarded with a table.



We ordered the premium lamb cut...the lamb rib...each portion is RMB78. And another cut which the menu calls Gold Medal cut...also RMB78. Both are for 200g.



The ribs were darker, and well marbled.

And the gold cut was rich pink in hue, and less fat



We also ordered some Chinese cabbage, and noodles



A soup base was ordered, and left to boil in a charcoal hot pot.



The fire went furiously, and soon the soup was boiling...we threw in the ingredients...

when cooked, dip in the dipping sauce...based on sesame...each shuayangrou shop in town boasts of its own dipping sauce...made from secret ingredients...



Extremely delicious. The flavour of the two different cuts of meat was apparent. The ribs were somewhat sweeter, more flavourful. The gold cut was more sinewy. Both were very tender, and very nice. The resultant soup was superb to be drunk just like that.

Excellent meal. We loved it. We thought of going back for a second round, but was distracted by another shuayangrou place in APM Mall...not as good...but I will blog about that experience next week.


Donglaishun Muslim Restaurant (Wangfujing Branch)
Location: No.198, Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District