Foodle

BLOG POST: https://loustejskal.com/2017/07/20/uchu/

YOUTUBE VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx1ylIelqF8

Once inside, I felt immediately transported to Japan. I have never been to Japan, but it’s how I think I might feel there. The decor was serene, calm and monochromatic. Upon entering the back room, the first thing I noticed was the barware. Beautiful sake vessels, Zalto stemware and gold-rimmed cocktail glasses filled the shelves that were backlit like the sign out in front. Each glass was an exquisite work of art.

Frank Cisneros, who previously worked at Tokyo’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel, hand-selected each single vessel for Uchu. Upon a closer look, the shelves were graced with prized Japanese whiskies. I was getting excited to see the rest of the night unfold.

Uchu has two different Japanese dining experiences. The front room holds their sushi omakase dinner for ten guests which was not yet open at the time of my visit. I was there for the kaiseki-influenced meal run by Sam Clonts, alum of Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare. Eight seats surround the L-shaped bar where five of us would be joining a couple who was already seated.

Samuel Clonts, formerly of Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, has designed an intimate, meticulously prepared kaiseki-influenced dinner for eight people at a time. You listen to the likes of David Bowie and The Smiths as lids are removed from bowls, each filled with Japanese-inspired dishes. The beverage pairing included some fine champagnes, sake, burgundies and we also enjoyed cocktails accompanied by table-side ice carving, gold-plated swizzle stick spinning and tea service at the end of the dinner.

Chef: Samuel Clonts
Kaiseki: $200 Less

Roister is a concept by Grant Achatz, intended to be a lively and loud dining experience. Customers can pre-book the option to sit at the counter and view the cooking action at the hearth. Downstairs is Highbrow, Low Country Boil, which is a southern, coastal seafood, family-style dinner, served out of the basement test kitchen.
CHEF: Andrew Brochu.
BLOG https://loustejskal.com/2017/12/02/roister-4/ Less

Roister is a concept by Grant Achatz, intended to be a lively and loud dining experience. Customers can pre-book the option to sit at the counter and view the cooking action at the hearth. Downstairs is Highbrow, Low Country Boil, which is a southern, coastal seafood, family-style dinner, served out of the basement test kitchen.
CHEF: Andrew Brochu.
BLOG https://loustejskal.com/2017/12/02/roister-4/ Less

Roister is a concept by Grant Achatz, intended to be a lively and loud dining experience. Customers can pre-book the option to sit at the counter and view the cooking action at the hearth. Downstairs is Highbrow, Low Country Boil, which is a southern, coastal seafood, family-style dinner, served out of the basement test kitchen.
CHEF: Andrew Brochu.
BLOG https://loustejskal.com/2017/12/02/roister-4/ Less

Last evening of our unforgatable holiday we were fortunate enough to sample the creations of Chef Arnaud Lallement. Perfect culinary experince from start to finish along the Saveur menu. Wonderful personalised service, with great attention to all details. John Dry, milk fed lamb, just to name few of the plates. The cheese selection of Philippe Olivier was amazing. We have to mention the soft goat cheese with shalot onions the best we have ever tasted and we have tasted a lot. Amazing bread, butter, amuse bouche, petit 4, all the highest quality. Our chosen welcome drink was a small serie of Francis Boulard rose champagne and our dinner was accompanied with a bottle of Chateauneuf Du Pape rouge 2008. Very heavy on the bank card but well worth every cent. Less

Last evening of our unforgatable holiday we were fortunate enough to sample the creations of Chef Arnaud Lallement. Perfect culinary experince from start to finish along the Saveur menu. Wonderful personalised service, with great attention to all details. John Dry, milk fed lamb, just to name few of the plates. The cheese selection of Philippe Olivier was amazing. We have to mention the soft goat cheese with shalot onions the best we have ever tasted and we have tasted a lot. Amazing bread, butter, amuse bouche, petit 4, all the highest quality. Our chosen welcome drink was a small serie of Francis Boulard rose champagne and our dinner was accompanied with a bottle of Chateauneuf Du Pape rouge 2008. Very heavy on the bank card but well worth every cent. Less

Chef Daniel Schimkowitsch is one of those young German Chefs who go different ways. Already in his first place in Munich, the Tramin, he introduced the concept of Gourmet Casual to German and deservedly received one star in the Guide Michelin. In 2014 he moved to the wine region of Pfalz and opened the restaurant L.A. Jordan which he very generously opened for us for a special Saturday lunch for which I am very thankful.
The restaurant, which name sounds like a basketball shoe but is a reference to a German politician, is super modern and flooded by light. It is part of the beautiful hotel Ketschauer Hof but in a separate building. The atmosphere is casual with parts of the dining room without table clothes. The front office wears jeans and a top from Le Noveau Chef.
The food is more ambitious than it was at Tramin, the products sourced from one of the best suppliers in Germany and the execution flawless. His combination of flavours is sometimes surprising but always pleasing. He likes to add a certain kick to some of his dishes but always stays below the threshold which would render the dish too spicy for some diners. 
He developed further his signature and has now something which recognisable as his. Dishes like his Burnt Beef and his Carbonara are already classic dishes which are in high demand by his customers.
I am somewhat disappointed that the GM did not give him a second star in 2018 because he certainly deserves. Less

Cheval Blanc
Traveled to Basel specially to sample Chef Peter Knogl`s food. Our table was booked for lunch and that day we were the only guests in the restaurant, which only has 10 tables. We had therefor the full and undivided attention of the Maitre and the waiter. Menu has been explained with all details, we have chosen from the a`la carte selection. Classic french cooking with a 21st century twist.
Duck liver with fig confit, earl grey and cassis gelee, sweetbread with yuzu foam and shitake mushroom, pigeon from Bresse and fillet of turbot. All cooked to perfection with harmonious flavoring. The pigeon is one of the signature dishes of the Chef, it was nothing we have ever tasted before, the texture of the meat was unbelievable. The plate compositions were like art, colorful yet elegant and clean. Service was friendly but very professional with great knowledge of all dishes and wines. Very memorable visit and very well deserved 3 Michelin stars.
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The restaurant is located in a quiet village in the heart of Alsace. A grand classic French Michelin star restaurant serving food in a beautifully designed really chic interior. We have opted for the Haeberlin menu this time without the wine pairing. We have chosen from their extensive wine selection, with the help and recommendation of the sommelier.
The wide variety of dishes has arrived in a really good rhythm, leaving us enough time between courses. The most memorable plates for us were the venison fillet cooked to perfection and the warm poached pear with timur pepper and Tahiti vanilla ice cream. Nice petit four. Service was good but could have been a bit more smooth, the trainee waiters were a bit under pressure but it did not at all effect the quality of the whole dining experience. Less