<a target="_blank" href="http://www.jlbrendel.com/fr/table-gourmet.php">La Table du Gourmet</a>

5 Rue de la 1E Armée

68340 Riquewihr, France

Tel. &nbsp;<a target="_blank">+33 3 89 49 09 09</a>

BY IAN D’AGATA | NOVEMBER 11, 2016&nbsp;&nbsp; The food:

My garden scenery: green bean,
eel, mustard flower, watermelon, and grated egg (Paysage de Mon Jardin: Haricot sur la
Braise, Anguille, Fleur de Moutarde, Pastèque, Œuf rapé)

The “impossibile barbecue” of meagre:
pops, bell pepper confit, lemon aïoli, pickled onion&nbsp; (Maigre
“le barbecue impossibile”: Pops
&amp; Confit de Poivron, Aïoli Citron, Pickles d’Oignon)

Chanterelles and foie gras: wood sorrel, apricot, flower, sorrel (Girolles &amp; Foie gras Alsace: Givre
Oxalis, Abricot, Fleur, Petite Oseille)

Lobster cooked blue: Iberian pork, melon, stock jus, garlic leaves (Homard Bleu: Jambon Ibérique, Melon, Jus de Carcasse, Feuilles d’Aïl)

Rack of veal on
braised aromatic herbs (Carré de Veau Fermier élevé sous la mère sur Braise d’Aromates)

Heart of
sweetbreads, green strawberries, nasturtium, May onions, violin squash (Cœur de Ris de Veau, Fraises vertes,
Capucine, Oignon de Mai, Courges Violon)

The wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 2006 Louis Sipp Riesling Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé
 Grand Cru Séléction des Grains Nobles
 </td>
 <td>
 92
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 2010 Josmeyer Pinot Gris Brand Grand Cru
 </td>
 <td>
 93+
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>

<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868013897-1-jardin+copy.jpg"> 

My garden scenery: green bean, eel, mustard flower, watermelon, and grated egg 

















There are places that you realize should
have more recognition the minute you walk in or sit down. Jean-Luc Brendel’s
outstanding La Table du Gourmet is one of these. The restaurant is nestled on a
quiet side street of the postcard pretty Alsatian town of Riquewihr, an open
air museum of very well kept 16th and 17th century houses and cobblestone
streets it’s impossible to tire of, even if the pedestrian-only main road can
get very densely populated with tourists during daytime. More importantly, it’s
at this temple of very creative haute gastronomy
in Riquewihr where I have had, going back years, my longest streak of great
meals in Alsace.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868089063-2-maigre+copy.jpg"> The “impossibile barbecue” of meagre: pops, bell pepper confit, lemon aïoli, pickled onion 



















La Table du Gourmet
is family affair, with Jean Luc Brendel in the kitchen and sister Fabienne in
front of the house. Anne Humbrecht is the sommelière. If you are especially
tall, be careful of the low lying ceiling and its pretty wooden beams,
especially when gazing too long at the intensely red walls, inspired by the
principles of Feng Shui and which might make you forget where you are. The
dishes are all precisely executed, flavorful, and though distantly rooted in
Alsatian traditions, clearly push the envelope of flavor juxtapositions and
aromatic intensities. Best of all, it is a subtle, refined cuisine that won’t
leave you feeling bloated or heavy. <img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868135568-3-lobster+copy.jpg"> Lobster cooked blue: Iberian pork, melon, stock&nbsp;jus, garlic leaves 

















The “garden
scenery” appetizer is marvellously light yet flavorful, the oily, intense
personality of the eel washed clean by crunchy and perfumed veggies; the meagre
is an especially concentrated and well cooked (very juicy and yet crispy at the
same time) slab of fish with whimsical accompaniments such as popcorn and lemon
aïoli. The fish called meagre (Argyrosomus regius) may not be well known in North
America, but it is certainly deserving of fame, as it’s an extremely high
quality fish of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean (from France to
Senegal, essentially). A member of the family&nbsp;Sciaenidae&nbsp;and with a distant resemblance to the European Sea Bass (like that fish, meagre also has a pearly-silver hue
and a long, thin shape), it can run up to two meters in length (roughly seven
feet) long, and can weight up to 55&nbsp;kg. (over 100 pounds). It’s called
Corvina in Italy and it is always an excellent choice in restaurants, as it is
rarely a farmed fish, while European sea bass (Bar or Loup de Mer in
French; Spigola or Branzino in Italian), almost always is. Foie gras is an Alsatian staple and is found
everywhere in the region. The best is always made from goose liver (duck foie gras is flavorful but less
refined). The veal and sweetbreads are also especially noteworthy culinary
renditions on this night. A choice of knives is presented before the arrival of
main meat course, which adds to the flair of the dining experience.

<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868207660-4-carre+de+veau+copy.jpg"> Rack of veal on braised aromatic herbs 

















I washed down Brendel’s lovely dishes
with, what else, two great Alsatian wines. I kicked off dinner, as I very often
do, with a sweet wine: provided these have enough acidity not to be cloying,
they work amazingly well with rich, intense appetizers featuring pumpkin, blue
cheeses, foie gras or liver terrines,
scallops, shrimp, lobster and more. It’s really something I think should be
tried more often by all food lovers, instead of relegating sweet wines to an
afterthought come dessert time. Clearly this sort of wine and food paring won’t
work for everything (admittedly, d’Yquem and porterhouse are not the way to
go), but late harvest wines are actors that can play more parts at the dinner
table than those they are usually limited to. <img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868266273-KNIFE+SELECTION+copy.jpg"> The knife selection

















The 2006 Louis Sipp Riesling Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé Grand Cru Séléction
des Grains Nobles is balanced and clean, with rich honeyed aromas and
flavors of mango, quince, peach and aromatic herbs, plus hints of lemon verbena
and gin. It is not especially sweet, and matches well not just with the foie gras and lobster, but the meat
dishes as well. The 2010 Josmeyer Pinot
Gris Brand Grand Cru is a stellar wine that showcases the heights this variety
can reach in Alsace when the product of a true grand cru terroir and low yields. Admittedly, Josmeyer is especially adept at
turning out great Pinot Gris. Rich yet steely, long and penetrating, the 2010
(a great year of high acid but ripe Alsace wines) lingers magically on the
taste buds. It proves a great way to bring another fine meal at La Table du
Gourmet to a wonderful close.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1478868698223-Screenshot+2016-11-11+07.48.18.png"> 

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