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| Venetian Restaurant |
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| Aschau im Chiemgau - Germany |
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World Level Perfection
October - 2008 |
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7
Stars & 7 Stripes
Overall - 'Cuisine & Service' |
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The
Ultimate Award:
Seven Stars and
Stripes® |
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| The village of Aschau am Chimsee is nestled in the
foothills of the towering Alps on the border of Austria. It is the fairytale
atmosphere in a stage-like setting of what appear to be tiny gingerbread houses
with wooden balconies. A profusion of color emanating from the flower boxes
lining the windows of virtually all the residences is prominently displayed to
the great joy of anyone strolling through the warren of small alleys and
streets. An old castle rises discernibly through the light fog, as if watching
over this Lilliputian town. This is the serene setting in which Residenz Heinz
Winkler is situated and ready to perform its wizardry with cuisine in its
Venetian Restaurant. It is a place where brave new cooking is the norm; a place
where your eyes will envy your taste buds; a place where culinary 'paradise' is
regained. Our previous encounters with the Venetian Restaurant had left us
thinking that the pursuit of “World Class Perfection” is their
culinary manifesto. |
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| This is the constant
ambition of founder and
Executive
Chef Heinz Winkler, a kinetic chef with great ideas who early on in his
career learned the value of risk taking. The achievement of greatness is
fleeting in most cases and maintaining an edge requires innovative thinking,
inspired creativity and the realization that the act of eating engages all
senses as well as the mind. We believe Chef Winkler is constantly reinventing
himself so that the ultimate pleasure is bestowed upon the one who is sampling
his cuisine. |
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A quote from the famed gastronome Brillat-Savarin sums
it all up:
“The discovery of a new dish does more for human happiness
than the discovery of a new star.” |
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And so we begin our 2008 sampling of Chef
Winkler's modern expression of culinary balance. We enjoyed a few minutes at
the bar with an authentic Bellini made with the perfect amount of white peach
puree, before dinner. Looking around I noticed just how lovely the restaurant
was decorated, each table with its own live orchid and unique silverware art
pieces formed into roosters and lobsters. After being seated, the restaurant
manager Fabrice Kiefer, took great care in creating the right service
atmosphere for our dining experience by orchestrating his
team
members in a culinary ballet of sorts. Seamless, unobtrusive tableside
routines lead us through the courses as if we were on a guided tour.
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| Five types of bread are generally served at the table,
including two of my personal favorites, potato sourdough rolls and olive bread
with paprika. We were offered a bottle of Plose Water, which comes
directly from a natural spring source some 6,000 feet high near Chef Winkler's
childhood home in South Tyrol Italy. Our dinner included four tapas-like
appetizers of which the Goose liver Composition with Green Amazon
Peppercorns and Apricots propelled our encounter with foie gras into a
whole new dimension. Another standout was served as part of the menu included
the Lobster Medallions with Chanterelles and Pistachio. This proved
delicate and tasty with a pronounced earthiness in a sea of foam. Also worth
mentioning was the Monkfish Filet with Old Style Creamy Potato Puree, a
tight bundle of juicy lobster-like meat just bursting with flavor. A bottle of
Gewurztraminer Henri Kieffer 2005 was suggested and turned out to be
perfumed and rich with a dense spicy edge. |
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| Now for the main
courses, which were presented after an innovative intermezzo on a curved spoon,
suggesting tomato essence as a palate refresher by the creation of a delicate
spumante, or effervescent tomato cream. This small tasty morsel was like a
fresh breeze with deep flavor and prepared us for the next wonderful course.
Venison Encrusted with Savoy Cabbage over Beet Puree and Truffled Potato
Mash for most is not an ordinary dish, and so I was pleased to find it
balanced, aromatic and savory. |
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| This came with the knowledge that each item is
prepared in multiple steps to insure perfection and an intense flavor profile.
Red Chicory with Fourme d'Ambert was next and the rich and creamy blue
cheese from France was pronounced but not overbearing. A bottle of Nicolis
Amarone della Valpolicella 2003, was the wine of choice for this course and
the suggestion was greatly appreciated. It became evident that the dry, medium
bodied wine boasted scents of wild flowers and ripe fruit. It was savory and
balanced, while introducing hints of bitter almonds. |
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Finally, dessert was presented as Four
Variations of Williams-Christ-Pear, as well as an incredible Valrhona
Chocolate Cigar with Light Mousse of Davidoff Cognac. Both selections were
truly imaginative in the way they were assembled and presented. The chocolate
cigar even had a hint of tobacco essence I thought, or was it my imagination? A
fabulous deep golden Muskateller Trockenbeerenauslese, Essinger Osterberg
2001 offered the support for the dessert finale. We topped that off with a
locally produced spirit, Apricot Obstler, which is somewhat similar to
the taste and feel of an Italian Grappa. Our total cuisine experience left us
with an almost 'sinful' feeling, one of an encounter with something 'forbidden'
or just too good to be true. |
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Chef Winkler has
propelled his take on cuisine and service into a whole new plateau. It seems
that after all these years of performing at such a high level, he has not tired
and continues to re-invent himself and his food. We offer
Chef
Heinz Winkler and his Staff at the Venetian Restaurant, Seven Stars and
Stripes for world level perfection! Congratulations! |
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by Thorsten & Edmund Buehrmann
Editor: John
Lomitola
Editor-in-Chief: Ingrid Lemme |
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| © 2008 ~ Seven Stars and Stripes,
Inc. |
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