Rote Wand Chef’s Table

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Wow. It has been described before as a Frantzén in the mountains, and I have to agree. This Chef’s Table experience was just wonderful. Part of the Rote Wand Gourmet Hotel where I stayed and had the most perfect time, this meal just made it all the more special.

Starting off in a cabin style seating area, where we enjoyed some champagne, and some excellent snacks.

Tomato Consommé.

Tomato Tartare- smoky, with truffle. Delicious.

Mountain Trout with Horseradish.

Toro Nori Cup and Ikura- loved this.

Caramelised corn- like popcorn flavour, with frozen duck liver.

Potato pancake with grilled eel and shiso.

Then came a preview of all to come- much like Franztén- duck, crab, truffle, oyster, char, cherries and an explanation of all the ingredients.

All very good, then time to head upstairs to the chef’s table where, like Frantzén or Kitchen Table, we sat around the kitchen and were fully immersed in the experience. I must say, I really enjoy this style a lot, the interaction with the chefs and whole dynamic and atmosphere is so good.

Mackerel from Brittany, pickled Japanese style and blow torched after, green aguachile, jalapeno foam.

Lightly grilled oyster, also from Brittany, salad sauce, codium oil vinaigrette- seaweed flavour- with n25 caviar.

Stuffed courgette flower with polenta, figs and goats cheese, smoked tomato chutney and pine nuts – for me as I have the crab allergy.

Crab with kohlrabi pickled in tonga bean, sea buckthorn, on seared duck liver.

Slow cooked Artic Char- which was out of the pond in Lech just across from the hotel, with a buttermilk chive sauce, and powdered black lime- which was a nice touch and worked.

Grilled French Langoustine, with an intense broth made from the langoustine heads, mushrooms and a soft custard below, every mouthful was different, this made it to one of my top ten dishes for this year for sure, it was excellent.

Diversity of grilled vegetables, lots of herbs to lighten the broth, chilli and kaffir lime. Not a traditional tom yum soup though.

Monkfish with lardo, sauce made of the head- and green shiso oil, green almond razor clam and medlar – and a generous serving of caviar.

Palate cleanser- rose kombucha, sake, red shiso.

2 weeks dry aged duck, Szechuan peppercorns and jus riche, with a parcel of carrot purée, citron and braised duck leg ragout and duck liver – so good.

Cheese and umeboshi with truffle and 15 year balsamic. This was delicious.

Cherry cacao and Vinschgerl ( bread from the region ) – this was interesting, and big and had a lot going on. Probably my least favourite dish.

Final snack – Max’s own hybrid of Hokkaido milk bread crossed with a French croissant, brushed with coconut caramel topped with fleur de sel and coconut sorbet – totally loved this. His drop the mic moment.

This was without doubt a two Michelin star meal, without the actual stars as for some reason Michelin haven’t ventured this way and they really should have by now. Max is doing incredible things and Bekah, his partner, is incredible on service and they are a super team.

Sadly, they are leaving here, and precisely why I wanted to experience him and his cooking before he moves on to ventures new, where I will absolutely follow, and where he will for certain achieve the stars deserved.

#mymuybueno #mymuybuenochefs #mymuybuenovisits #eatlivelearn