Final Swiss stop Lucerne - here I met up with daughter and son in law who had recovered from their Covid. What a beautiful town setting. They were eager to eat so we did! First up a casual meal at the Rathaus Brauerei. It was ok - I think there may have been better choices than their bratwurst and rosti - huge portions. Beer was good, very scenic. We had much better sausage the next day at Obere First, a farm restaurant we hiked to on Mount Rigi (its not all that far from the Rigi Kaltbad train stop). No English spoken but we managed to negotiate a delicious meal . When daughter and I asked for vegetables in lieu of fries we were each served a big plate of local vegetables cooked with care. Offered cider in addition to beer ad other drinks, Very simple place, inexpensive gem. Mount Rigi is wonderful, too.https://www.google.com/maps/place/Obere+First/@47.0404111,8.4748169,17z/data=!4m10!1m3!2m2!1srestaurants+near+Rigi,+Arth,+Switzerland!6e5!3m5!1s0x47855666241c4ae9:0x4223e9a2ce354e9c!8m2!3d47.0404113!4d8.4791941!15sCihyZXN0YXVyYW50cyBuZWFyIFJpZ2ksIEFydGgsIFN3aXR6ZXJsYW5kWigiJnJlc3RhdXJhbnRzIG5lYXIgcmlnaSBhcnRoIHN3aXR6ZXJsYW5kkgEQc3dpc3NfcmVzdGF1cmFudJoBJENoZERTVWhOTUc5blMwVkpRMEZuU1VOUExXUklURFJSUlJBQg?hl=en&authuser=0
I was convinced to take the kids to Restaurant Maihöfli - Oscar de Matos, https://www.restaurantmaihoefli.ch/ in lieu of the Old Swiss House - having lived for a while in Bonn on stodgy German food they wanted something less traditional - the tasting format here with the young Ferran Adria trained chef (we chose six courses with wine pairings) was a relaxing, charming, elevated totally different type of experience. Some pictures below. I was impressed with the delicacy and accessibility of this very technically beautiful , complex food. Sorry I did not take notes, it would have improved this summary Some pictures below.-
- amuse buche: croquettes with creamy cheese sauce in side, topped with truffle-oid cheese crisps
- first course - seems to be (1) grilled avocado on rice crisp - with finger lime (2) tiny fresh peas, presented on a creamy tart sauce with a touch of green chile, I believe
- second course - zucchini wrapped around I believe fish, with garnishes including tiny wasabi flavored puffs
- third course - extraordinary grilled asparagus dish with fruity tart sauce drizzled by the chef at table with coffee vanilla emulsion, garnished with tarragon, it miraculously it came off
- fourth course - halibut with tomato confit and asian garnishes - also I believe described below by the chef and very delicious
- fifth course - two ways with guinea hen meat (no picture)
- dessert course - variety of globes and puffs some meringue some cream filled or more jelly like, very pleasing
- after dinner treats - more kitchen magic - especially those mango globes
Wine were mostly spanish (maybe all) , including cava, orange, pink and white varieties,
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Quoting from a recent interview with the chef in Gault Millau -" WHAT IS CURRENTLY YOUR FAVORITE GEAR?
[The whole menu is good. But my favorite is the halibut with a lacto-fermented tomato beurre blanc. And the asparagus season is actually over. But I fermented Gian-Battista von Tscharner’s Reichenau asparagus and preserved it that way. I grill them with a sauce based on coconut milk and passion fruit with vanilla and coffee essence. The guests also say: is he kidding us? But it’s just wow!"]
(https://www.gaultmillau.ch/starchefs/oscar-de-matos-maihofli-luzern-ich-hasse-peterli-391357)
Yes its wow. But its a totally different kind of experience in its complexity and yes expense from anything else I would eat. It does not exactly read as food though it stimulates all the right sensory centers. Very highly recommended if you visit the stunning city of Lucerne.
