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A quiet, enjoyable meal with Leila to celebrate Helen’s birthday
Amuse bouche – tomato soup jelly with herb cream/fois gras/guacamole/gamba
starter – Fois de canard poché à la vanille et vin de Maury, confit de poire ivre de vin
fish course – Tartare de thon à la coriandre, salade d’herbes et pousses en vinaigrette acidulée
main course -Coeur de filet de boeuf, béarnaise, pommes pont neuf, pointes d’asperges au parmesan
cheese course – Comté, confiture de tomate verte
predessert – mousse de fraises
dessert – Pana cotta à la rhubarbe, madeleine tiède

All restaurant photographs https://www.blackmores-online.info/Restaurants/

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Amuse bouche
soupe de choucroute et Saint Jacques
Menu Découverte
la déclinaison du baeckeofe revisité par notre chef
ou
la crème de safran, émulsion de petit pois et poitrine de caille au hoi-sin
—
l’involtini de volaille vapeur, duo de lentilles au garam massala et ses chips de crevettes
—
mousse au chocolat blanc et coulis de mangue
—
la mousse yaourt orange sanguine, mille-feuilles croquant au miel Turc et sa glace à l’huile de citron

le cannelloni de châtaignes, glace à « l’Eierlikor » en nid de nouilles, kaitaifi chips de caramel salé

All restaurant photographs https://www.blackmores-online.info/Restaurants/

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Amuse bouche – parsnip soup/cucumber sushi /emince de Saint Jaques
starter – foie gras de canard poêlé, haricots cocos en vinaigrette acidulée, jus perlé à la graisse d’oie
main course – sandre à la pomme de terre or suprême de pintard et ravioli foie gras et truffes
desserts – chocolate mousse or quince in various forms

All restaurant photographs https://www.blackmores-online.info/Restaurants/

We had planned to go to the Blanche Neige for lunch. We left a final decision until late morning as there had been snow overnight and in the morning and weren’t sure whether even the main roads would be driveable (this flurry of eating out is because there is only a limited overlap of time with our usual eating companions, Roger and Dorinda being here and Helen going to the UK). We finally decided to go but on telephoning, discovered the BN was exceptionally shut as the chef was giving a cooking course. So, after some discussion we went over to la Table du Gourmet in Riquewihr which R&D had visited once last year.
The trip over the Vosges was snowy but it started to disappear as we dropped onto the Alsace plain and there was none to be seen down in the vineyards. The room was a dark crimson with very low beams – even the waitresses were ducking. There is a panorama of the interior (http://www.jlbrendel.com/table/riquewihr-restaurant-virtuel-m6.html) – and it will then be obvious why the photographs have a pinkish-red hue) After some dithering we all opted for the 38€ meal with a bottle of Pinot Gris from Sipp Mack.

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Tartelette Flambée en Mise en Bouche
————
Dégustation de
Bâton de Foie gras de Canard sur Asperge du Pauvre, Aigre-doux au Gewurztraminer
et
Presskopf comme la Grand-Mère, Bouton de Fleur de Pissenlit
et
Omble chevalier du Val d’Orbey, un peu Fumé, Feuilles et Fleurs, Crème Battue à la Livèche
————
Sandre masqué de Feuilles aromatiques, cuit à la Vapeur,
Pommes Charlottes « Comme un Baekeoffa »
Huile essentielle de Persil Simple au Lard
ou
Volaille fermière d’Alsace aux Feuilles Aromatiques,
Bouillon Moussé au Gewurztraminer
————
Vacherin glacé au lait Citron et sorbet Fruits rouges Confits à l’eau de Vie

A meal we all found enjoyable and well presented (but not really with the variety of different tastes we enjoy at the BN). My sandre was slightly bland and really needed some well-flavoured vegetables other than the potatoes. A restaurant we will probably re-visit although I have my concerns that the much of the content probably having been preprepared rather than cooked to order.

And afterwards we went to Sipp Mack in Hunawihr and each bought a case of the Pinot Blanc Reserve 2004.

Until March 2005 Aux Armes used to have a Michelin star (the father of the current chef got the first star for the restaurant in 1938). We booked to eat there on my birthday a few years ago. However, all did not go well. It was a Sunday lunchtime. The only menu they had was 80€ with no choices (apart from the à la carte menu). We couldn’t find anything we liked so walked out. Unfortunately by then it was too late to find another interesting restaurant and we ended up having pizza.

Now Aux Armes only has a Bib Gourmand and we thought it time to check it out as the chef might be working really hard to regain customers. The midweek lunchtime menu is now 27€ (or 32€ with a glass of Alsace wine and coffee). There are several choices for each course and of wines (we could select from reisling, muscat, gewurztraminer, and pinot noir). The cooking and presentation were passable but nothing exciting – it would certainly not indicate the chef once had a Michelin star. We won’t be rushing back.
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Ravioles d’Escargots a la Crème d’Ail Persillée et ses Chips
Terrine aux 3 Viandes – Sauce Cumberland
Filet de Canard – Jus aux Épices – Garniture du Moment
Parfait Praline, Glace au Bailey’s et Poêlée de Pommes et Griottes

On leaving we saw a display of newspaper and magazine cuttings. It seems the chef Philippe Gaertner decided that keeping up the high standards necessary to retain the Michelin star was costing him too much money so he gave back his star and indicated he was turning to a more rustic cuisine. “Winning or keeping one’s star status requires not only professional vigilance at all times but a big investment in money and personnel, and you need a big clientèle to support it.” “The pressure to maintain the star rating had led to a slow erosion in the numbers coming to eat at the restaurant and to higher charges for customers.”

A cartoon by Jean-Pierre Desclozeaux in Le Monde du 23/02/06 accompanying an article by Jean-Claude Ribaut on «le monde turbulent des casseroles» entitled «Le Michelin 2006, avare en étoiles»

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We finally visited the Elisabeth yesterday. It is only a hundred metres from one of our favourites, the Auberge Frankenbourg. As the AF is shut on Wednesdays, we wondered how many of its customers had gone up the road to the Elisabeth, where the prices are similar. Interestingly, the chef only took up the profession when he was fifty, after many years as a manager. He has been there for three years, and has now acquired a Michelin Bib Gourmand. The 10€ menu of the day was reasonable – celeriac and jambon, pork chop and frites and rice pudding – though judging from the number of half-eaten portions cleared away, the dessert did not gain much approval. The 28€ menu was adventurous – although the chef obviously likes his liquidizer. The appetiser contained liquidized chestnut and bacon; the amuse bouche was liquidized carrots and cumin with a beetroot and melon juice; the foie gras starter was decorated with blobs of liquidized peppers as was the salmon with chopped ham and haddock; and the dessert had layers of creamy chocolate mousse and crushed fruits.

• Foie gras de canard en mi-cuisson, feuille et garniture façon pizza
• Pavé de saumon cuit en basse température, ventrèche (french pancetta), fèves au haddock à l’huile de noix
• Minestrone de fruits exotiques et gelée d’orange, mousse au chocolat blanc, crème d’avocats, sorbet maracudja

 
All our restaurant photographs https://www.blackmores-online.info/Restaurants/

28 Feb 2007: The new red Michelin Guide to France came out earlier. There was no mention of the Blanche Neige in the press release of stars awarded which was extremely surprising and puzzling to us.

Late last year the restaurant had indicated they thought they’d had a visit from a Michelin inspector and, based on our experience of starred restaurants in the region, we were expecting the Blanche Neige to be awarded a star. Not even a “Bib Gourmand”. The restaurant was also missing from another guide, the Bottin Gourmand, which came out at last November. Puzzling since it has had a 15/20 rating in GaultMillau for the past two years.

Our other favourite restaurant, the Auberge Frankenbourg in la Vancelle, retained the * it acquired a couple of years ago; it has also had 15/20 from GaultMillau for the past few years.

Hopefully we’ll find out more on our next visit but I wonder whether they were inspected or whether the rumours of guides and back-handers have some truth?

Update 8 Mar 2007: Having now seen a printed copy of the guide I have found the Blanche Neige was awarded two red knives and forks.

Michelin Guide FAQs http://www.michelin.co.uk/travel/downloads/Guide%20FAQs.DOC

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pre-starter: crab-like packet on black rice
starter: pea and ham soup and St Jacques
main: thai chicken, noodles, sun-dried tomatoes, tiger prawns
dessert: 1) chocolate mousse, 2) spring roll myrtille, 3) miel sapin ice
cappuchinos

All restaurant photographs https://www.blackmores-online.info/Restaurants/