|
 |
|
| American Dream Cuisine™
|
|
| Le Ciel at
the Grand Hotel Vienna, Austria receives |
|
Extraordinaire |
|
5 Stars &
Stripes for
Extraordinaire Cuisine & Service |
|
The Ultimate Award:
Seven
Stars and Stripes ™ |
|
|
|
| And now we must find the focal point
for the entire Vienna Grand experience, the place where enticing views of
Vienna captivate the unsuspecting, and culinary masterpieces are flawlessly
prepared. Located on the seventh floor of the Grand, we enter a world of
magnificent wall art painted in the style of the palaces of Schönbrunn,
and we are led to our table in the private "Rotonde" dining room. |
|
The initial impression for Rolf and
myself, went beyond our expectations in an instant as we were seated
and handed the creative menu of Executive Chef Siegfried Pucher.
While focusing on exclusive Viennese and traditional French specialties
Chef Pucher and his team, as we will see, skillfully apply a wealth
of international experience to their culinary art.
It was not long before we thought how tempting it might be to forgo
the written menu and allow Chef Pucher to create something for us
as far as his imagination would let him. Enough said, our Maitre d'
conveyed our request while both Rolf and I sat back and simply waited
and wondered what gustatory pleasure would most certainly come our
way. |
|
Siegfried
Pucher |
|
|
| In the meantime, Sommelier Franz
Messeritsch prepared to compliment each unique course with the appropriate
wine selection, focusing primarily on the marvelous abundance of local Austrian
viniculture production. At the same time as the creative juices were flowing
in the kitchen, we couldn't help but take in all the grandeur and comfort
emanating from our surroundings while listening to the waltz-like muffled
voices of other satisfied patrons. |
|
Chef Pucher began the eventful evening
by sending out a delicate seasonal specialty soup made from locally
grown produce. Creamy in texture, this fresh pumpkin with pumpkin
soufflé was drizzled with just the right amount of cold pressed
pumpkin seed oil thereby adding a toasted nutlike essence to this
elegant dish.
Appropriately, a glass of 2001 Grüner Veltliner, Weingut Schloss
Gobelsburg, Kamptal was offered. It was vibrantly spicy with a penetrating
grab of fragrance and has an inner lightness that makes it float on
your palate rather than feel heavy. |
|
 |
|
|
| For Rolf there now came a smoked
venison carpaccio with Jerusalem artichoke and fig salad. Paper-thin slices
of garnet-red venison were carefully positioned on the plate perfectly in
concentric circles; their edges folded gently to resemble little napkins.
Scooping them up was like lifting miniature bishops hats to your mouth.
|
|
 |
|
The accompanying Jerusalem artichoke
and fig salad perfectly complimented the venison by offering the sweet
taste and floral fruit of the fresh figs with the added texture similar
to water chestnuts.
The accompanying glass of 2001 Blauer Burgunder (Pinot Noir) Weingut
Heinrich, Neusiedlersee performed flawlessly as it offered up a full-bodied,
barrel aged red wine with wild berry fragrances although dry in the
finish. |
|
|
Next
came a delectable serving of marinated turbot (the king of all fish) with
Brussels sprouts and apple salad. This was our heaven and we must have shown
it with a certain look of satisfaction while savoring the subtle contrasts
of the combined ingredients.
Certainly a nice pinot gris or sauvignon blanc would go well with this course
and we could see Sommelier Messeritsch approaching with a well chilled glass
of 2002 sauvignon blanc, Weingut Erwin Sabathi, Gamlitz Sudsteiermark. A
fine selection since January 2004, 'THE BEVERAGE TESTING INSTITUTE' of CHICAGO
tasting rated it exceptional at 91 points. |
|
Now the real test; how the Austrian
Chef will handle an American icon, the Black Angus Beef Tenderloin.
An extremely tender cut of meat that when cooked properly can offer
up a mouth watering, juicy tid-bit with each fork full.
Chef Pucher deftly prepared the meat with accompanying cream potatoes
and oven roasted vegetables surrounded with a surreal red wine demi-glace.
The sauce had a deep rich hand crafted flavor and was immediately
in tune with the delicacy and tenderness of the meat. Rolf was now
in his own personal heaven! |
|
 |
|
|
Of
course, it is now apparent that we must be in line for the next attempt
to duplicate this culinary wizardry! Once Rolf is deeply involved with his
Angus, a platter of whole pan-fried sole with root vegetable ragout, leaf
spinach and truffle sauce arrives. My initial attempt to sample the sauce
does nothing more than intoxicate me with the earthy undertones of the grated
truffles. I wanted more and began to de-bone the sole when the maitre d'
reduced the endeavor to a cake-walk with two or three strokes of his fish
knife. I savored every morsel of fish while continuously going back to the
truffle sauce to feed my addiction.
This time a 2001 Grüner Veltliner Smaragd, Weingut Prager, Weissenkirchen,
Wachau (more on this fabulous vineyard later) was the appropriate selection.
It produces full, dry and concentrated fruit, rich and simple with a lovely
follow through. |
|
 |
|
It is now nearly impossible to describe
the level of satisfaction written all over our faces. A brief respite
was in order and what awaited us at this point was the 'grand finale'
so to speak, but we could barely move.
For me, it had to be a café Mélange to collaborate with
the sweet cheese mousse with cassis jelly and marinated figs. It came
to the table suggesting a crisp tower of sweet wafer atop a foundation
of 'Topfen' resembling the texture of cheesecake. Needless
to say, an appropriate dessert wine of 1999 trockenbeerenauslese,
Weingut Angerhof, Tschida, Illmitz was in order now and it produced
a light yellow-gold color with green reflections and a gradual background
aroma of citrus peels. |
|
|
| In front of Rolf was now placed
a deep-fried chocolate praline on exotic fruits with vanilla parfait. You
could tell this was going to be something special with the unusual combinations
of textures and colors and it certainly was. At first bite you sense a cornucopia
of flavors blissfully connected with crisp baked fillo dough and fluid crème
Anglese just begging to be polished from the plate. |
|
While almost whimpering for help
Rolf began to savor his dessert, then the sommelier brought the corresponding
wine paring to the table, it has been a long evening.
This time it was the Bründlmayer Grand Hotel Cuvee Speciale Brut,
the specially labled sparkling wine available only at the Grand Hotel
Wien. |
|
 |
|
|
| |
|
by John Lomitola
& Rolf Staehler
Editor-in-Chief: Ingrid Lemme
|
|
