A day by the north shore

Pin It

I bid farewell to the Mandarin Oriental Geneva bright and early, and headed to the Gare de Genève Cornavin for my morning train out of town.  I'm meeting Mr. and Mrs. B, who are taking me sightseeing today.  This is my third time in Geneva, and honestly I didn't get to see much of the area around Lake Geneva on my previous trips.  My friends very kindly picked me up from the train station near their home, and we drove to the vineyard terraces of Lavaux - which have been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It was, unfortunately, drizzling and gray.  Not really possible to take pretty pictures of the lake today.  Oh well...

Our first stop was Lavaux Vinorama - a tasting room where one can sample wines from many different small producers.  To be honest, I haven't had much experience with Swiss wines, not to mention good Swiss wines... but I was willing to keep an open mind and try.  We ordered a few glasses and shared them, taking a few sips of each.  The tasting notes are here.

Lunch was at Là-Haut, a restaurant in Chardonne with views of the lake.  Mr. and Mrs. B had been here when it was under the former chef, and they were curious how the style would have changed under new chef Mathieu Bruno.

Our meal stated with a few mises en bouche:

This was cucumber, verbena, and lemon.  After a nice and refreshing hit, turned somewhat bitter in the middle.

8 years and 400 kilometers apart

Pin It

I got done with the last meeting on this trip early this morning, which left the rest of the day for strolling around the city.  After resting up back in my room at the Mandarin Oriental Geneva, we went out around the old town, and eventually ended up at Carnivor du Centre to grab some lunch.

As a treat for finishing a week of meetings, I ordered myself a glass of Kir.  This used to be my go-to drink in French-speaking territories, and I still enjoy it from time to time.

I haven't been getting enough veggies and fruits for the last few days, so I figured I owed myself some greens.  This salade verte au mesclun de jeunes pousses cost CHF 7...

The shop across the river

Pin It

We were in a hurry to get from Zurich to Geneva, so we didn't have the luxury of grabbing lunch in Zurich... and ate on the 3-hour train ride instead.  I took a break in the dining car, and ordered something that seemed totally appropriate for the journey...

Zürcher Geschnetzeltes - the veal came with mushroom cream sauce, spätzli, and carrots.  Kinda interesting, even if the veal was fully-cooked and the spätzli was a little limp and mushy.

After checking into the Mandarin Oriental Geneva, we asked the concierge to check whether La Bottega had a table available for dinner.  While the dining scene in Geneva appears to be pretty sad by most accounts, this was one of the places consistently recommended by foodies.  As it was only a short walk away on the other side of the River Rhône, it seemed like an easy option.

I had unfortunately run out of battery in my Sony camera, and for some reason I forgot to bring my usual backup battery.  Since I also forgot that I could charge my battery in-camera via USB, I ended up spending the rest of the trip snapping pictures with my old iPhone...

MNSC Rhone Trip Day 8: Enfin, Paris!

Pin It

Another early start to the day, as I get ready to leave Switzerland and go back to France.  B very kindly made us a huge breakfast, and I joked that the spread is about half the size of the 5-star luxury hotels that I had been staying at during the past week...

After getting dropped off at Nyon, I took the local train into Gare Cornavin in Geneva, and boarded the TGV to Paris.  I was wondering why it would take 3 hours for us to make the journey, then it all became clear as we snaked along the river gorge during part of the journey... Can't exactly travel at 200 km/h given this kind of terrain!

The train pulled into Gare de Lyon, and I quickly checked into Hotel Mercure Gare de Lyon - rising above one corner of the train station.  I dropped my luggage quickly and ducked into the Métro below.  I was already late for my lunch appointment with the Specialist and her friends.

MNSC Rhone Trip Day 7: 3-star detour

Pin It

I'm on the road again... After less than 24 hours in Lyon, I got up early this morning and headed for Gare Lyon Part-Dieu to catch the train to Geneva.  I'm headed for one of my favorite restaurants in the world - Restaurant de l'Hôtel de Ville in Crissier.  I was here around the same time 3 years ago, and met my friend B for the first time.

Once I arrived at Gare Cornavin in Geneva, I took a local train to Nyon.  B picked me up in her black SLK... new since my last visit.  My giant Rimowa barely fit in the trunk...  We dropped off my luggage at her house, and Mr. B drove us all to Crissier.

It was a beautiful day around Lake Geneva - blue skies instead of gray 3 years ago.  We met up with another couple who had come in from the German-speaking part of Switzerland.  Lunch for 5 would be a lot of fun.

The mastery of Philippe Rochat

Pin It

Today I finally met up with B, the kind-hearted big sister who went out of her way to help make my stay in Geneva enjoyable. She had kindly offered to show me around the shores of Lake Geneva, and also made reservation for us at the Michelin 3-star restaurant Philippe Rochat.

It rained today. Real bummer. My one free day on this trip and it had to rain. After driving along the lake from Nyon to Lausanne, we head north to Crissier – where the restaurant is located. We step through the doors a minute or two after 12pm, and immediately I sense that something is amiss. I am in a 3-star restaurant in French-speaking Switzerland, and I'm wearing jeans and a polo shirt! Realizing my faux-pas, I sheepishly decline the offer to hang up my jacket...

We find ourselves seated in the corner with good natural light for ease of taking pictures. What ensued was a 4 ½ hour lunch, and one of the best meals I’ve had in recent memory. There were two degustation menus, and after some debate we both decided to go for the same one.

I started with a glass of 2007 Chasselas Selection Philippe Rochat, made by Domaine du Daley, at the suggestion of the waiter. It’s a local wine so I thought I’d give it a try. Was not impressed. Perhaps the wine had been open since last night, and it has gone flat.

The menu:

Huîtres noisette Marennes-Oléron à l’osciètre – very nice Fine de Claires oyster. The jelly underneath tasted of brine, just like it would be if the oyster were freshly shucked. I love the white ceramic spoon used to scoop up the caviar.

Croquet de foie gras de canard à la gelée de cassis – a really nice creation here. The foie gras is very smooth, and worked really nicely with the thin layer of cassis jelly. The garnish – which includes pistachios and more cassis – adds another dimension to the dish. The warm brioche was very yummy.

Perciatellini aux truffles blanches d’Alba – what can I say except “wow!” The perfume of the white truffle hit my nose immediately. The interestingly-shaped pasta contains what tastes like filling made from spinach. It doesn’t take long for me to scoop up every drop of the truffle-infused emulsion. I had completely forgotten that it is now the season for white truffles! I guess the financial market turmoil has really taken a toll…

Soupe thaïe de crabe de Lannion à la citronnelle – an interesting Asian twist. It almost tastes like tom yum kung without the chili, with lemongrass, alfalfa sprouts and black sesame adding the crunch. There are also little raviolis with very small amount of crab filling inside.

Teppaniaki de lotte de L’Arcouest tiède bagna cauda – the monkfish has a chewy texture not unlike lobster (hence sometimes referred to as poor man's lobster), and I loved how the sauce and garnish worked so well with it. The interesting thin layer at the bottom is the chef's slightly more solid version of bagna cauda, an Italian dipping sauce.

Bouchée de Saint-Jacques d’Erquy au naturel – the scallop enclosed in a thin layer of carrot was deliciously sweet, while the very light emulsion was acidic to taste, with chopped carrots and celery adding texture.

Queues de grosses langoustines de Loctudy coraillées au curry vert de Bangkok – the langoustines from Loctudy were wonderful – sweet and tender and garnished with strips of green apples. The green curry was very interesting, with more bits of green apples inside.

Lièvre à la royale – the gamey hare meat was actually really nicely done, despite the slightly chewy and dry texture. The sauce was heavy and made from blood – exactly how the duck blood caneton tasted like at La Tour d’Argent. A heavy dish but not too overwhelming for me.

Sélection de fromages frais et affinés – I tried a bunch of local cheese here, including at least 3 varieties of Gruyère. I didn’t believe B when she told me that Comté is actually the same as Gruyère – the difference being which part of the Jura they come from and the fact that Gruyère is now a Swiss AOC. But after tasting these, I have to admit that the taste is almost identical. The Reblochon is also pretty good.

Espoumas de poire Williams aux baies de sureau – delicious and refreshing, with a sprinkle of pistachio bits on top of the foam.

Moelleux de chocolat Manjari au café Arabica – the warm-centered chocolate cake using the best ingredients. The café Arabica ice cream is wonderfully intense and aromatic.

Macarons, pâtes de fruits, chocolats pures origines – all very delicious. B was full so she decided to pack them home…

We shared a half bottle of the 1999 Marc Morey Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Virondot. This turned out to be a wonderful wine. Golden, honey-colored after a few years of aging, the nose was also full of honey, butter, pear Anjou and green apples. You can taste the ripe fruit on the palate, and there was a good acidity balance and a reasonably long finish. Excellent!

We were the last table to leave the restaurant, past 4:30pm... It really was a fantastic meal, and I can't thank B enough for everything. Hopefully I will be able to repay her kindness when she and her husband visit Hong Kong next year.

French food in Geneva - Day 3

Pin It

Day 3 in Geneva, and once again I'm running late for a meal. My unscheduled meeting ran over a bit, and I rush to meet my friend Nunu for lunch at the Michelin 2-star Restaurant du Parc des Eaux-Vives.

The restaurant setting is absolutely gorgeous, on the second floor of the building that sits atop a small knoll. We had a table by the window with views of Lake Geneva and the UN on the northern shore.

We forgo the "business lunch" and order a la carte. We were presented with a series of amuses bouches, which were:

chicken frittata - very creamy inside and very yummy
mini roll filled with cream of anchovie - not too bad
cockle with a diluted cream sauce - nice and bite-sized
sandwich of parmesan jello and tomato-flavored tortilla chips - kinda interesting

A cute little bar of lightly-seared tuna, topped with caramelized onions (and ginger?), and served with two halves of a tiny, grilled mushroom. This is really cute. And yummy, too!

The waiter rolls in the bread cart, and my eyes light up at the sight of so many yummy-looking buns. We choose three, and really enjoy the cheese bread. The cornbread is interesting, but not exactly what you get in the US...

I start with the l'oeuf de poule, Ormalingen pig. Ham and pig trotter made from free-range pigs, made into a potato salad with Burgundy black truffles. The egg - in the edible tube - is separated into a semi-hard yolk at the bottom and blended with potato into a foamy liquid at the top. Strips of black truffles make for a wonderful combination. The "L" is a wall made from squares of ham, pig trotter and truffes on top of small potato cubes. Very creative and pretty, although a tad heavy on the salt for my taste.

For main course I ordered the deer from the hunt of Jean-Marie, since I don't get to have venison much in Asia. Three pretty noisettes of venison sauteed to perfection - pink on the inside. The thin slices of beets hid a layer of pumpkim mash underneath. Puffy potato chips stuck in individual dollops of pumpkin mash were pretty. Separately, there was also a parmentier crumble in small cup which contained pumpkin, chestnuts and a layer of venison at the bottom. Unfortunately I again found this to be way too salty for my taste.

I had a selection of cheese from the trolley, choosing Comte, Epoisses, Appenzeller and some goat cheese. Wonderful stuff, but I'm almost bursting at this point.

I think Chef Olivier Samson is a highly creative and skillful chef, and the star rating is probably well-deserved. However as I mentioned earlier, I thought the tastes were a bit of the heavy side. My friend Nunu's choices actually looked even better than my own. She had scallops for starters and there were three plump ones topped with black truffles. For main course there was the line-caught seabass, which looked oh-so-tender and topped with Oscietra caviar and Champagne emulsion. I would suggest diners favor the seafood when they come.

For dinner, I wanted something regional that I can't get in Asia. I cross over to the right bank, and find myself in the fortunate position of securing a table at the Bistrot du Boeuf Rouge. This is one of the most popular places in town, and I can see the reason for this popularity.

I started with the rillettes maison, and the delivered three slices of the pate - taken from a large, refridgerated container. The warm bread for the rillettes came wrapped in a napkin inside a tin box with Asian motif. I was happy. The rillettes here wasn't as mushy and full of lard like the one I'm used to having at the Brasserie on the Eighth in Hong Kong, so I can tell myself that this is a "healthier" version...

For main course I had something that I had been craving for years - andouillette! This country sausage stuffed with pig tripe is something you just can't find in Asia, and it's been 6 long years since my last sampling. I got it with the mustard sauce. Unfortunately, this wasn't quite what I had in mind. First of all, the sausage was stuffed with a lot more than just tripe, including a lot of spices. The heavy mustard sauce - with Dijon mustard, of course - also got to be a bit too much for me. I should have ordered just the grilled version so I could have mustard on the side.

I am reminded of my dinner at the French Laundry. It was also a time when seasons were changing, and I was likewise wearing a sweater in a room that was packed and a bit too warm. There was also the mustard sauce for one of the meat dishes, and the combination of the richness, heat, and the spices took its toll on me. I felt a little ill then, and I was experiencing the same thing here. I struggled to finish the andouillette, trying not to get too much of the mustard sauce on the meat, and leave the delicious scallopped potatoes largely untouched.

I did have a nice glass of 2006 Sauvignon Blanc from L et Mermoud, with pleasant nose of green apples, muscat grapes and minerals. Good for a quaffing wine!

I pick up my very full stomach and have a nice stroll back to the hotel... taking in the last looks of Lake Geneva in the evening.

Simple food in Geneva - Day 2

Pin It

My second day in Geneva, and the culinary experience continues. I am taken to La Coupole for lunch, which is again conveniently near my hotel. Could this be a Genevois branch of the famous Paris brasserie?

Other than the entrecôte - which I already sampled yesterday - the specialty of the restaurant is fillet de perches leman. Perch caught from Lake Geneva is filletted, pan-fried and served with a lemon cream sauce with chives. In the middle of the plate is a mound of delicious frites. The fish was absolutely delicious, and the manner of serving remind me of sole meunière. Once again I enjoyed the frites and eat more than I should, using them to soak up the sauce. What a great lunch!

Once again I finish late for work, and even my original back up plan - trying the McEmmental at McDonald's - failed I got to the door just after they closed at 9pm... So I wander around and find myself in the Cafe du Centre in Place du Molard. I was initially attracted by the prospect of having boudin noir, which happens to be the plat du jour. As I sat down to order, however, I was informed by my waiter that (duh!) plat du jour is only served for lunch. Aaarrrgggh!!!! Oh well.

I start with the salade d'automne avec orange et endives. Unfortunately this didn't work for me, because the combination of the bitter endives and radicchio with crunchy walnuts, raisins and orange slices just produced confusion for my taste buds. I leave most of the salad untouched.

For main course I picked medallions de magret de canard. The duck breast here is pretty yummy, cut into - what else - medallions and pan-seared just right. Interestingly, the skin and the fat have been scored with a knife before frying. The meat was actually a bit more cooked than the rosé I had ordered, but it was delicious anyway.

The ground of Place du Molard is interesting, in that many of the cobblestones have been replaced with lights. Printed on the glass are various expressions in various languages of the world, including French, Spanish, English, Russian and even Chinese. Words like "thank you", "goodbye", "cheers"...etc show up randomly around the square. Pretty creative and interesting.

Simple food in Geneva - Day 1

Pin It

I'm in Geneva for a few days on business, exploring the city in my free time and sampling the cuisine at this cosmopolitan city. While I was lucky enough to get reservations at some Michelin-starred restaurants, I was equally excited about the simple, hearty cuisine of the region.

My first meal in the city was lunching solo at Le Relais de l'Entrecote, a restaurant only steps from my hotel. This happen to have been rated highly in Zagat's in terms of food, and as I passed by around lunch time, I popped in and got myself a table. This place is ultra busy. Waitresses were dancing around tables like bees pollinating flowers, bringing customers their plates of food.

There is only one dish here, and that is steak frites. There is a simple plate of salad, and pieces of baguette to start. Then the main event: a warm plate with half a portion of entrecote - 5 slices or so - is served with loads of thin, crispy frites. The waitress makes sure that you get plenty of the sauce, which tastes like a cross between pesto and green curry. I asked for medium instead of bleu, thinking that in French-speaking Geneva, bleu would be really raw. Well, the meat was pink on the inside, but a tad on the dry side for my taste. Guess I should have tried bleu... Or was it because the meat was so lean, unlike what I am used to at Entrecote in Hong Kong? Anyway. The sauce, as has been written, was delicious. I finish the steak and gobble up most of the large portion of frites.

As I was debating whether it was advisable to finish all of the frites, the kind waitress comes over an dumps the other half of the entrecote in my plate. I'm in shock at this point. I was grateful for the small portion of meat when it first arrived, as it would allow me to eat lots of frites without overstuffing myself. Now I realized - quelle horreur! - that the restaurant wasn't skimping on the meat. I was just about full at this point, but couldn't very well toss the meat back. I decide to give it my best shot, and end up taking down another 4 out of 5 slices in the second serving... I am stuffed, on the verge of feeling a little sick from the large amount of rich food. But I'm happy. This simple and delicious lunch is just what I wanted.

I blew off my friend Nunu for dinner that evening, as work took a lot longer than I expected. We gave up our restaurant reservation and she stayed home with the kids. Past 10pm, I am left with relatively few choices for dining venues. Nunu suggest that I look around rue de Pâquis - the colorful red-light district where there would be interesting choices of ethnic food. I make my way on foot to the neighborhood, and pass by a number of Turkish joints selling doner kebabs as well as some Chinese places.

In the end I settled on Auberge de Savièse, a Swiss restaurant mentioned in the outdated copy of Lonely Planet that I borrowed from a friend. I'm in Switzerland, so what else should I order but raclette? I start with a simple green salad, then proceed to enjoy two portions of the melted cheese. I was very tempted to have more cheese, but I was getting very tired and decided not to stuff myself at such a late hour. Satisfied with myself for having enjoyed the local specialty, I make my way back to the hotel and call it a night.