Page 19 – La Muse Blue

CLOSED Stüvas at Chesa Rosatsch: Slow Food in the Engadine

Mindful eaters with integrity applaud to the transparent channels of locally sourced food at Stüvas at Chesa Rosatsch in Celerina. Open only for dinner, the Slow Food labeled restaurant highlights producers from within the Grisons canton, but also the best from all Switzerland (like the “pope of Swiss cheese”, sustainable farmers, butchers, and growers) and, minutes away just across the border from Italy. Cooked delicious, the meal inside the hand-painted Engadine house is a must when you are luxuriating in St Moritz. For there is nothing of its kind in the caviar, seafood and foie gras taunting resort.

Food with its story told in full length at Stüvas

Every product served in the Stüvas’ cosy Swiss-pine-clad rooms has its own story to tell, even the pottery from Verena Jordan-Cullati in Guarda. Chesa Rosatsch is not just a cosy boutique Swiss hotel, its gourmet diversity is directed by chef Jan Gasser. In three restaurant concepts under one roof, his team uplifts and preserves the bounty of the Engadine and its surrounding lakes, mountains, pastures and valleys (Grisons and Ticino of Switzerland or nearby Valtellina in Italy). Preserved raspberries and quinces are used in desserts, while homemade orange jam accompanies the cheese plate.
Artisan producers provide the antibiotic, pesticide and added hormone-free ingredients that after the summer and fall ripeness were preserved into the winter delicacies. Bottled and picked using traditional methods, berries pop up in desserts, vegetable chutneys and condiments accompany the savoury plates. A springy, fresh bread arrives with an assortment of grass-grazed butters, salt, and seasoned olive oil. Then an off-the-menu amouse-bouche, like the local salmon tartare with fried onion strips and mustard mayo we had, tunes you into the chef’s not so simple, but rather inventive culinary gait.

Dining at Stüvas is authentic yet contemporary in its plating and portion sizes. With an eye on the future of food, it’s practical having small or ‘normal’, larger plate option for most dishes. Mindful of the developed world’s food waste epidemic, you can better judge which servings you will be able to consume. Using the animal in its entirety goes naturally without explicitly stating it on the story telling format of the menu. My husband loved every morsel of the Duck from Mörschwil in three turns – braised, sautéed and in a leg roulade served with an orange-semolina strudel, parsnip, broccoli and the bird’s jus.

We also relished in reading about some of the producers. Having their photo and a gist of their purpose in print enlightened and like a feather chiselled our sustainably-minded attitude towards food. Still, there was plenty of animal protein, so including more plants would make it more ecologically sustainable. I asked for an extra side dish of winter vegetables and the warm bowl (add CHF 25) was so wonderful that I would suggest the chef including a seasonal vegetable starter permanently in the menu. Saffron at Stüvas grown and picked by Silvia Bosshard can highlight some of the potential, Buddhist monk-friendly plates.
The Salmon from Misox was of superb quality. A vegetable aspic on a toast, cheese crisp and a scoop of fruity ice-cream introduced sophistication of a Michelin star quality to the Lachs. Also in the starters, the smoked Albula trout from Cordo Simone bred in an own spring allows raising the fish without any antibiotics in Filisur in Grisons.
I enjoyed the smaller Applewine risotto with mushrooms from Kerns. Sepp Häcki and his family developed their own nutritive substrate for fungi and substrate machine that sustainably turns over two tons of mushrooms per week. they are world-famous in the fungi circles. Served with spinach, organic mustard cream, it was large enough for a main course if you have three to four plates as we usually do at restaurants.

Swiss ingredients at their best

Next, my Pike-perch filet from Ticino was impeccably grilled with its skin on. The Tessiner Zander was plated with a Potato-beans cassoulet, an eggplant caviar and the now so popular fermented black garlic that is easier to digest.
The majority of the alpine-dried meat at Chesa Rosatsch comes from Hatecke, an elite butcher from nearby Scuol who now also has a store in Zurich. Beyond Stüvas taste his skills in a plate of Grison tapas or just get the triangular salzis at the Uondas Grill.
Being in the Alps yodels cheese, so keep your ears open at Stüvas since the options change regularly. Che Chaschöl goat cheese. Raw Swiss mountain cheese sourced from micro producers by Rolf Beeler, the local “cheese pope of Switzerland”. Jumi, set near the Emmental valley by Bern won the “Best Swiss Start-Up” at the Swiss Economic Forum in 2012. The Swiss founders Jürg Wyss and Mike Glauser come from a family of Swiss farmers and cheese makers. Make cheese with non-industrial methods expanded their business beyond Switzerland to London.

Check the Europe-centric wine list online. While DRC, top Bordeaux, French and Spanish icons star, we went for a Swiss red Pinot Noir «H» by Christian Hermann. Hermann joins Donatsch, Gantenbein, Irene Grünenfelder of Weingut Eichholz, Thomas Studach and Obrecht as the premium Swiss winemaker worth exploring. These bottles come at CHF 100-300 for some so not cheap, but better than an average Burgundy. Grappa and Marc – a spirit from grapes from various producers complete the alcoholic menu. Other beverages like their exclusive light lager brewed nearby in Pontresina, Swiss soft drink Rivella, apple and other juices from nearby orchards include the entire family in. Even if you do not order coffee or herbal tisane, small sweet petits fours land on the white table cloth to finish the superb meal at Stüvas in a gourmet tone.

The most traditional Swiss dining at Chesa Rosatsch, Heimatli is another Swiss food concept by the same chef, and the only venue we have not tried yet. Meat fondue and other mountain specialities star the menu.
Swiss mountain food cannot get much better than this. I cannot name any other restaurant or food concept in Switzerland offering such a consistent pleasure and quality sourced as much locally as possible. We will be back, summer or winter, it is open for most of the year.
Stüvas 6:45 pm – 11 pm, Tuesday closed.

Via S. Gian 7, 7505 Celerina/Schlarigna

+41 81 837 01 01

Convergent wisdom: The most important lessons I learned from wise authors, leaders, philosophers and scientists

Best-selling authors warn – don’t give it to them right at the beginning. Yet, I will shatter your anticipation and get to the core of humanity now.

Suspense, the prolonged wining that teases you to continue reading would benefit us all. Namely its essence – loyalty and patience. Yet, as the most recent research suggests there is already too much anxiety in our minds today. Let’s dissolve it.

Countless wise minds support the most important lessons that recently kept crossing my path as if on rewind:

What makes you happy is your mind.

You cannot doubt it. You can decide for or defeat your happiness. Different, divergent even contradictory views of what happiness exactly is are therefore clues to truth. Consider these:

Some call attitude into the helm of joy, others selflessness (often moralist and spiritual definitions) and neuroscientists would add conscious effort. Two millennia ago Marcus Aurelius saw it qualitatively: “The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts” . I could add curiosity, but what are the other “qualities” in your thinking? We know now that positive thinking is not a cure all and that genetic purists are irrelevant in the magnifying mirror of lifestyle.

Spiritual leaders like Thich Nhat Hanh would argue that judgement and prejudice blind true wisdom. And wisdom is happiness, isn’t it? The wise are happy, as many other ancient philosophers mused. Such openness further suggests that happiness does not matter much. Indeed, happiness like wisdom is individual. That is how I see it.

Getting back to the suspense, patience, broadening imagination and employing our brain circuits in increasingly complex ways evolved us to homo sapiens. We are who we are these days with gratitude to how we thought and dealt with in our past. Not only a quest for survival of the fittest but we crave longevity. Why living long if life and the world sucks?

Quality of life matters more than counting years from your birth date. Even biological age is only a slice of the whole – the physical. Learning feels rejuvenating and my best learning experiences in 2018 were so fertile that I shed at least a decade from my individual numeric calendar.

Further, knowledge differs from wisdom. The former recites what is commonly understood as facts. Yet facts can change, truths can be uprooted by new evidence, scientific inquiry and by other truth diggers. What prevails and individually evolves over time is wisdom. The universal ancestral truths that we have intimately discovered for ourselves, that’s wisdom. Jung called these archetypes dwelling in “the collective unconscious”. Bound to instinct they manifest through our consciousness and behaviour.

Ancient Chinese wisdom condensed millennia of truth searching in the contemplative pursuits of its sages. As the East increasingly converges with the West through globalisation and technology, traditional thinking and cultures mingle more closely, therefore allow me to elaborate briefly on the greatest Chinese minds.

Confucius (Kong Fu-Zi 6-5th c. BC) humbly stressed that he had invented nothing, for he merely invigorated the common principles of harmony which had existed in China for ages lived long before him. I sign up for this Eastern restraint as opposed to the Machiavellian power manoeuvring. To the later authoritarian regimes and the church succumbed to, and a wise person with high level of integrity cannot support. For paranoia is weakness. Supporting social harmony is gazillions smarter for a common wellbeing. As Sun Tzu, the praised author of The Art of War would prudently add – create victories where battles have become unnecessary! Strategic wisdom worded out in poetry.

The other, life-changing lesson assists at work and while studying in the distracting, plugged in culture. Efficiency and productivity are desired by most of us. Michael Townsend Williams like myself skips suspense by juicing out the message into his title:

Do/Breathe/

Calm your mind. Find focus. Get stuff done.

It’s is as simple, your breath is your best friend in whatever you do and when you think. It’s is the only helper that is there for you until your last breath.

The island monks at the Abbey of Lerins in the Mediterranean reminded me what the purpose of work should be. I was pleased to realise that I live by their devote philosophy. Making one’s living from sharing goodness with others regardless of the material gains (I don’t make any money from La Muse Blue) naturally leads to contentment and integrity with my work.

Japanese wisdom courts ikigai, the purpose of one’s life supported by its community regardless of one’s age or retirement. Your ikigai can evolve, important is to be aware and connected to it – the meaning. Knowing where you go makes even an extremely challenging journey more enjoyable on a daily basis. The Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama summoned her purpose, her quest for inspiring harmony between cultures in the anxious world today in her brilliant creative work. “In awe of the wonder of life” she was driven through the seven decades of her life until she “expires”. Her ikigai was expressed on her colourful canvases and the globally famous pumpkin sculptures.

Goal setting is glued to purpose. Map your goal and take small, achievable and rewarding steps towards it. Seeing these small goals completed encourages and motivates you to continue without losing your direction. This “Champion’s Blueprint” comes from a lifelong experience, a mentor to world-class athletes, platinum albums selling bands, and millionaire businessmen, an Olympic medal winner, leading chiropractor (Tour de France), artist and author Dr. Jeff Spencer.

REAL LIFE, REAL TIME, MORE REAL CONNECTEDNESS

Looking back at my best recent learning experiences also revealed how fallible memory is and it is only getting worse. Some had to be contemplated, flipped over, while others sparked fireworks right from their outset, but most were recalled only upon lifting them up from my digital library. We rely too much on electronic devices — the ‘smart’ phones are outsmarting us.

The La Muse Blue quest for balance strengthened my resolve to slow down, switching to an analogue, film camera, while training my human memory instead of snapping all information into my iCloud. I trust my brain’s firewalls more than the easily hackable internet and intranet. Nets are connected and thus more vulnerable. The artistic, closer to real, slow, and reflective quality of Roma, the movie of the year for many critics, reminded me of cinema before special effects. Lost to action and excitement, the majority of current productions are a step further escapes from the reality.

Joining meet-ups in London (writing) and New York (philosophy and psychology theory) organised online, but happening in real time with real people enriched me with sociable encounters that mean a lot to us. Love has the power to connect. As the revered Persian mystic Rumi hinted, “between you and everything”, which can also mean love yourself in order to connect with yourself.

In China, I attended an inspiring conference in Beijing, where one of the most globally viewed Tv hosts, Lan Yang, empowered women through knowledge. I had the honour to sit next to Jon Kabat Zinn, PhD world-renowned American neuroscientist, whose mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) captured me at university. Knocking back at ‘what makes you happy is your mind’ Kabat Zinn advised me his Full Catastrophe Living as the one book that my struggling father should read for inspiration to combat his health struggle.

Interviews taught me another drop of wisdom. Shinichiro Ogata, the award winning Japanese designer shared his pursuit of simplicity so alluringly that it became my new mantra when organising my home and travels. Another artist, a calligraphy abstract Moroccan artist Larbi Cherkaoui revealed that there cannot be creativity without freedom. So true! Yet, I might argue with him that “the start of freedom is the end of ignorance”, since liberty in democratic societies today seems to sustain oblivion. Having choices does not mean we will responsibly select from them, and this is the weakness of democracy.

There is already too much anxiety in our minds (competitive culture, social media and technology largely contribute). We need to remedy it through reading, since the wisdom of experienced others can assist us without drugs. Meditation and mindfulness are the mind’s tools to alleviate the fears we face.

Aside to the above mentioned literature, the book that imprinted my mind with its bold, science-meets-intuition, ideas most recently was The River of Consciousness by the late-neuroscientist Oliver Sacks. Read my review for the essence of its wisdom.

The irony of our choices, the banality of human behaviour, but above all realistically surreal wisdom are exposed in Milan Kundera’s novel from 1969 Life Is Elsewhere. I read the translation into my native Czech language by this francophone Czech emigré. Fiction often speaks the mind, and the naivety of a poet in Kundera’s book serves this purpose. Perhaps unexpectedly, Life is Elsewhere taught me to appreciate contemporary art through his invaluable insight. Kundera clarifies its aim poignantly. Technical mastery can be learned, yet what is most fascinating is when an artist or any individual allows for his/her inner world to get out. Shouting one’s unique self out should not be irresponsible. The author pours more acuity into the right to do so. “First, we have to get to know the world as it is, for only then we can radically change it.” I understand this as being open to all aspects of reality since my own biases blur truth. Once I am able to clear the ego, prejudice, partiality and other fogs of the mind I am in a neutral position. Grounded in its objectivity, I can change the world.

What were the essential lessons I took from these wells of wisdom? I live too fast. So I told myself to slow down and empty my mind regularly. Some of the places that physically and mentally slow me down are libraries. The wonderland of bookshelves casts a lost-in-time spell on my usually spinning mind. Focus suddenly becomes natural and I flow with an ease of a bird in nature.

In my next post I will suggest the best places for learning, where distraction more easily diminishes. Certain activities improve focus, and I will further reflect on those I have personally tried. So do some apps – use technology to your benefit.

Be a nefelibata (literally a cloud walker). Like Coco Chanel forge your own path, think for yourself and live the way that is true to who you are. Be unconventional and dreamer if you deeply want to. Be creative in your own way, so you feel rejuvenated from inside out.

I am daily watering my tree of wisdom with an open mind. Only then I can learn more truths about life.

Nobu's Vegetarian Cookbook

Nobu Matsuhisa, world’s most known Japanese chef, is open to vegetarians. His fame did not spark into global consciousness from Japan, but Beverly Hills, where Nobu’s first restaurant Matsuhisa casually rolls out the red carpet to the rich and famous of Hollywood. Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook was a natural selection to the existing compendium of publications to his name.

‘Replanting’ Nobu’s classics for Vegetarian Cookbook

The plant-based diet movement popularised by the so-Cal allegiance might had induced Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook. I bought this compact, sustainable hedonism encouraging compendium of recipes after one of our annual meals at his original Matsuhisa. It can be also ordered online. After more than three years of trialling in my kitchen, it is now ripe for a review.
Manhattan’s crème des chefs Français – Jean Georges (the multi Michelin stared chef also ventured into vegetarianism with ABCv, my favourite lunch spot in New York) and Eric Ripert (Le Bernardin) foreword with flattering remarks this visionary oeuvre of Nobuyuki Matsuhisa known in the global food circles by his nickname Nobu. Peru, Spain, even Mexico meet Japan in Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook as globally as in his omnivorous dishes. Nobu restaurants’ vegivore staples such as the ever so popular Eggplant with Nobu-Style Saikyo Miso feature next to Tacos, Party Croquettes and other entertaining pintxos picked easily between two fingers – like grilled skewers and sushi in all forms (nigiri, rolls, box sushi, …).

Starting easy for time-constrained everyday home cooks

The visually-titled sections are straightforward, the recipes are simply described and most take only minutes to execute. My favourites from each chapter include practical tips for improvement, alterations as well as warnings to stave you off failure.
From Brightly Colored Vegetables, the super simple Baby Spinach Salad with Dry Miso and Yuzu Dressing offers personal customisation so even non-leafy fans will mouthwateringly dig in. For consistency, saving you time and potential mishaps (Nobu does not write which brand of miso paste he uses to make his Dry Miso seasoning, the wonderful umami bomb used in many of his recipes). Use any type of salad greens according to your preference and season. The fried leeks are exquisitely indulgent and truffle oil (fresh truffles are healthier than this always artificially aromatised condiment) embellishes the luxe Nobu reputation. You can make it vegan as I did once. Replace the parmesan with “rawmesan” (I make mine by blending nutritional yeast flakes with pecan nuts, olive oil and salt).

Much lighter is Shredded Salad with Jalapeño Dressing, refreshing.
Nobu’s regulars will be familiar with his New Style sashimi, here rendered fish-free with tomatoes. If you do not want to marinate the garlic for 12 hours, use store-bought black garlic as I did. Easier to digest.

Entertaining with kanpai style

We loved the Colorful Ceviche! Spicy if you like and if the moment does not yield persimmons than ripe green figs balance the acidic sauce brilliantly. I like that in many recipes Nobu gives you flexibility and encourages creative seasonal cooking. Disappointing creation with lengthy preparation was the Ripe Tomato in Nori and Umami Jelly. Mine needed more salt. Some ingredients might be hard to find in your area, like edible chrysanthemum petal, makomo shoots, some spices, okra, and above all – yuba (tofu skin) that is made fresh (has to be used within a couple days) or dried in Japan. I always enjoyed the intensity of the Toban-Roasted dishes at Nobu, here vegetables prove that the heavy lidded pot serving can be at least as enjoyable as the beef, mushroom and seafood variations on his menus. The veggies get sweeter and more fragrant in this recipe.

Broaden your kitchen plant repertoire with Nobu

Other Vegetables and Mushrooms venture further into the plant world. Dashi Marinated Daikon was superb and easy to make. The bamboo version had to be bought preserved since, unless you live in Asia when in spring bamboo shoots grow abundantly, you hardly find it at your local grocers.
Informative ingredient pages go in-depth about wasabi, yuba, miso, sake and umami – the foundations (next to rice and seafood) of the Japanese cuisine. Its terms may confuse many foreigners. A basic glossary at the back remedies any doubt. Further supplemented at the back are basic sauces, dressings, dips, marinades, broths, all of which you can interchangeably combine in cooking as you please.
Ultra light was a dashi broth with Heart of Palm “Noodles”, totally gluten free (if you replace the soy sauce with GF product) since the vegetable is shaved into noodle shape. Super simple is Daikon with shaved Kombu Sauce (the mucilaginous tororo seaweed and kudzu root starch can be bought at many Asian grocers in cosmopolitan cities). Here, quality ingredients are essential for a tasty result.

Touch of luxury in Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook

Two black truffle dishes were perhaps my favourites from the Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook. The Daikon “Steak” and Daikon “Foie-Gras” include cruelty-free alternatives, the secrets of which you will find inside the cookbook. Another “steak” substitute, the humble Cabbage with Truffle salt, Oil and Shaved Truffles was a revelation to me – who would not relish in devouring cabbage then? Napa Cabbage also in the tuber melanosporum tnote was more complicated and not as amazing. Even when I luxuriated in the rare white truffles instead of the more common black.

A Grilled Leek with White Miso Dressing called again for the Nobu’s Dry Miso. Despite the imprecise account, it turned out delicious. The Oven-Roasted Turnip with Shaved Kombu and Dry Miso was nice.
From the Tofu and Yuba section I did not cook anything. Finding top quality of either in Monaco is extremely challenging.
Yet, the Rice, Soba Noodles and Soup chapter was fertile. My first ever Vegetarian Nigiri Sushi of Kombu-Cured Vegetables rocked our weekend out! My inner artist woke up – aside form the recipe following lotus root cured in kombu and sake for days, I jazzed up the rice morsels with ground black sesame on kombu-cured kohlrabi, some lazy slices of store-bought herbed peppers in olive oil, while wild cabbage leafs foraged in my Mediterranean back hills with their natural spiciness called for less wasabi.
My husband’s favourite at Nobu restaurants, the Crispy Rice Cubes with Taro and Pumpkin Mash instead of the usual tuna tartare topping were a ravishing, fried yumminess. Start a day ahead unless you regularly make sushi rice at home. Fried Buckwheat Noodles with “Ratatouille” filled us up one winter evening. Much simpler also physically, variations on the boring miso soup are welcome additions. Spicy Mushroom Soup and Nobu-Style Gazpacho were also easy and light. From Iberian inspiration, the Brown Rice Paella turned out superb. Not a quick dinner remedy though (about two hours preparation).

Fun indulgence

Desserts introduce off-the-menu sweets by Nobu. Deep-fried buckwheat crisps, sugared eggplant and candied squash were fun diversions from my typical cookie, chocolate and tart baking.
From the Cocktails and Beverages, Shiso and Aged Sake on the Rocks was our favourite summer aperitif, so refreshing. Non-alcoholic and interesting juice blends are included too, so ‘clean’ sippers can also revel in Nobu’s delectable creativity.

Overall, Nobu’s Vegetarian Cookbook includes some light bowls and plates, yet most are not health-focused recipes. Beyond desserts, sugar is added to many sauces, while deep-frying, and alcohol pop up. I will be getting back to this fun, more sustainable version of Nobu’s hedonism whenever my palate longs something Japanese with a twist.

The best tea rooms I discovered recently

For rejuvenating lifestyle I take more regular breaks from wine now. Only the best tea can satisfy my hedonistic cravings for a thought-provoking beverage sans alcohol. A casual tea drinker ever since I lounged in tea rooms instead of pubs in high school, only after I moved to China I became a connoisseur of fine teas. Some 15 years later I cannot drink the powdered dust packed into flavour-adding bags, I am a tea snob. Yet, the eastern potion means more than just taste to me and the millions who consume it.

Tea philosophy at Yakumo Saryo in Tokyo

Tea is the liquid breath for the mind

Beyond the caffeine (theine) effect, in my musing on tea I embarked on the spiritual journey that tea can navigate, the cultures that embrace tea as its signature beverage and the different types of tea. Here my mind and taste buds express their gratitude for the best teas I sipped over the past year. To simplify the choices, the best teas in Asia often have the “Imperial” title preceding their full name.

The mighty brew that I got my closest friends loving was the Imperial houjicha (Hōjichaほうじ茶) roasted by Kagaboucha in Kanazawa, Japan (I captured the process for a single pot batch at a tea room in Tokyo in the short video bellow). Beyond any kuki-cha (stem tea), this green roast is nutty, smooth and elegant, not as strong as most houjichas. Another Japanese tea that impressed me was a spring blend of green karigane stem tea with the sensei mountain vegetable fukinotu or Butterbur sprout. Served as a seasonal specialty at Higashiya in Ginza, its bitterness was balanced by the sweet softness of the Japanese stem tea.

From China, the imperial long-jing in its less common and least altered “white” form enchanted me. A more pure nature expressing twist to the silky smooth green Dragon Well (English name), this praised Chinese tea planted near Hangzhou lake was more fragrant in its white form. I discovered this organically grown beauty at Song Tea in San Francisco.

My tasting note:
A liquid silk whetted my lips. A cashmere blanket enveloped my tongue in a cosy, pure weight in tune with my body. My mind joins the flowing delicateness of this tea. The pressed, white tips of the spring youth taste like nothing found on Earth. A brew that a Chinese emperor would praise in poems.

There was to date only one black tea I truly love. Considering that I am more jet-setting around the globe than in my home, it is quite an irony that I buy it from my local Tea Shop in Monaco. The rare, wild Taiwanese black tea is neither from the tea council recognised Camelia Samica and Sinensis, but another family of the tea plant. Sharon, the founder, numbers her teas, so the 519 Yuchi Wild Mountain tea from Sun Moon Lake (I made black tea there, and brought her a sample; of course my amateurish first attempt cannot measure up to that fragrant perfection) is my annual supply of the best black tea in the world.

The best tea rooms in New York, Paris and Tokyo

The best tea shops might have charmed me with their novelty spell, yet all were significant improvements of what had already existed in their respective city. From Tokyo, Hong Kong through Paris and New York, tea has like yoga entered our culture craving a calm state of the mind. In Brooklyn, Zach Mangan’s Kettl Tea introduced me to a blue brew of Japanese, naturally pigmented green tea. All direct imports from Japan, where the founder got its tea diploma. Tea teaches patience. As the boutique’s attendant mindfully prepared our tasting samples of houjicha, me and my German friend chatted about our passions with a natural flow that is now rare in human encounters in busy cities like New York.

Tè Company in the West Village may feel less zen, but equally injects the eastern communion into the hectic Manhattan life. Their tea card is the most impressive for a savvy tea connoisseur and I savoured each page, story and the organic, wild Taiwanese oolong tea grown by monks (“Green Sanctuary” in the menu) near Taipei with a mindful joy. As much as I enjoy the Tea Drunk bar on the eastern side of Manhattan, Tè Company, far away from the Japan town buzz was, so far, more peaceful.

Kodama in Paris is more Marais hip, as it nests nearby the fashionable district. Yet, aside of the popular French blends tapped with their unique twist, the rare seasonal teas introduce more intimately than the established and vigorously proliferating Marriage Frères. The best tea in Paris certainly cannot rival to those in Beijing, Kyoto, Shanghai or Tokyo, yet the seasonal smoked teas served there won multiple awards in Japan. From the blends I loved the Sticky Rice tea.

In Tokyo, I went back to Sakurai Tea Experience,had a long tea lunch in the design-beautiful private tea room at Higashiya Ginza, even to a fancy cocktail tea bar après dinner, yet the Yakumo Saryo tea house in a residential district off the tourist path is the best feel place for tea in the capital, if not in any global city.
The Yakumo Saryo tea house was founded by local designer Shinichiro Ogata, whom I interviewed about his mission last year. The award-winning artist also established the best private teatime spot at Higashiya Ginza and boosted the wagashi Baishinka brand (in April try the extraordinary cherry blossom sweets). All his tea room creations featured in my popular Best Japanese Tea Rooms in Tokyo list.

Beware, tea shops are a different category from tea rooms. The later is about the space, the energy, authenticity, quality and choice of teas being served, not about selling the best tea only. The commercial side is less pronounced in such tea rooms, and that is why they are special places. Today, no juicery, coffee joint, wine bar, perhaps only some very social pubs could provide the cultural, nurturing value of a well done tea room.
For small, adventurous groups or couples, while in Tokyo pop up to the Mixology Tea Salon. It is a fun, elegant tea bar, where alcohol plays a lesser role to tea. Non-alcoholic inventions are also served.

Although I am not a convert of bottled (old tea stripped of its many benefits) tea, just for pleasure, and especially when in America, I succumb to the kombucha temptation. The Better Booch Rose Bliss kombucha was the tastiest sparkling tea beverage I sipped to date (I have tried any new kombucha I saw anywhere on the market). The blend of oolong tea and rose extract made in the US energised me before each pilates class with Laura, a friend and the founder of Natural Pilates. One needs it, she also trains Silvester Stalone!

NOTE: My choices were those places close to my heart that I still crave to revisit soon. Please, do share your personal favourites with La Muse Blue.
With gratitude. Radka Beach, the editor and founder of La Muse Blue.

The River of Consciousness by Oliver Sacks: Contingency of science and the balance of all life

In The River of Consciousness, the late author, neurologist and physician Oliver Sacks puzzles an intellectual reader with his cross-science view of human perception. Fascinated with Darwin, Freud, James, and other revolutionary geniuses, he connects the known and missing synapses of all life.

Critics showered superlatives on Sack’s 15 books spanning oeuvre including this last work published posthumously (outlined two weeks before his death). The River of Consciousness takes you on a comprehensive scientific journey immersed in a gripping, deeply immersive style that initiates the reader into the complexities of the mind and pure existence. Oliver Sacks has the gift of writing about a difficult subject with an ease of a poet.

The title borrows from Jorge Luis Borges: “Time is the substance I’m made of, a river that carries me away, but I’m the river.”

A trio of close friends, whom Sacks charged with publishing The River of Consciousness, organised his wisdom of eight fruitful decades flowing with curiosity. The physical (hormones, molecular activity) is theoretically related to the mind’s processes of his patients and his own observations. The author’s theories are plucked from the stash of evolutionary science, molecular biology, neurology, neuroscience, philosophy, psychology, but also from the board literature that Sacks pondered over his long and intellectually fertile life.

Size does [n’t] matter: how human judgement increases the possibility of error

Great minds inspired “the poet laureate of medicine” [NYT] to pin ideas together. From the flowers feeling, sharing 70% of their DNA with us and the animals, through our perception of speed and the flow of the mind, he further explains why our memory fails, how we recreate the self and the reality of the past events. The biology hobbyist stirs appreciation for some lower animals (amoeba, lampreys, insects have feelings equivalent to these of a dog; studies by H.S. Jennings) and the other forms of life in the light of science. “Bees are expert in recognising different colours, smells, and geometrical shapes… and communicate these to their fellow bees.” While, paper wasps are “highly social species” as an “individual can learn and recognise the faces of other wasps”. Further, knowing that crayfish feels desire, hunger, pain, pleasure et al. (Freud) reasons for the potential to rewire one’s empathy towards animals. He reminds us: “Sensitisation and habituation are crucial for the survival of all living organisms”. Learning indeed is living.

The televised personality knows how to move smoothly between sciences and themes. Sacks dives into theory of what really matters – creativity, feelings, time, perception, memory, the laws and the meaning of life itself. In tune with the Darwinist Tree Of Life when balance, evolution, survival or extinction are the major forces in nature, Sacks lifts up the continuity of natural selection self-organising from chaos into universal realities. Strikingly, “Human beings might never have evolved” as evolution “never stops, never repeats itself, never goes backwards. It shows the irrevocability of extinction.”

The faults of science: why timing, forgetting, speed can inject more bias in science

By the route of showing – he demonstrates how old theories are replaced by new through adaptation. Today, neuroplasticity or modification of entire brain systems by individual experience is widely accepted. Freud (neurology and psychoanalysis) and Kohler (Gestalt psychology) sniffed at it, but could not measure this dynamic and constructive processes in their time. Timing is as important in science as it is in business. Premature theories are stifled by new consensus. So was the case of the heliocentrism of Aristarchus (3rd century B.C.) replaced by Ptolemy’s geocentric model (2nd century A.D.) for 16! centuries before Copernicus lifted the dark ages into the light of what we understand today.

Can we catch up with the flowing change?

The great connector of medicine to other sciences even technology, Sacks illuminates the grey corners of being in The River of Consciousness. Taking up photography for its microscopic prowess (altered rate of motion) he observes the daily life frozen in movement. Accelerated reality on contrary is possible through cinematic manipulation. Veering into science itself, speed fascinates Sacks.

Reflecting upon his medical research experience, he alerts that despite all the technological progress, modern science is less detailed, taking less time than the “fuller, more vivid” accounts of the 19th century. Scotoma or neglect in human learning erased from its accounts some great thinkers and their achievements essential for our scientific progress. The substance known today as oxygen was described by John Mayow in the 1670s. Oswald Awery discovered DNA in 1944 before Watson and Crick were credited with the double helix structuring of it almost a decade later. In his own field Ramon Y Cajal “the first and greatest micro anatomist of the nervous system” is re-celebrated in The River of Consciousness by the neurologist. Like Darwin with his orchids, he revealed the nature of previously unnoticed phenomena. Human experience, the origins of all life and sentience (feeling through electricity currents used to move and react) of insects and plants puzzled his inquisitive mind.

The secret of creativity: Is human perception less limited than we think?

In a chapter on Creativity, the author unleashes the magic of flow on the mind of any creator. The field of consciousness widens, and in his view a scientist merges with an artist. The two “break new ground through a special energy, over and above one’s creative potential, a special audacity or subversiveness to strike out in a new direction”. A genius can be awakened and use disadvantage to its benefit. The epileptic seizures of Dostoevsky, Stephen Hawkins Tourette’s syndrome, and other neurological pathologies affecting the greatest thinkers like Freud (migraines), allowed them to alter perception and to show us the world in a different way though literature and science. They illustrated a new dimension unknown to those with “normal” standardised behaviour.

What this energy is, “what makes an observation or a new idea acceptable, discussable, memorable” and its enemies that “may prevent it despite its clear importance and value” is broadened in The River of Consciousness so eloquently that it became one of the most intriguing books I have read to date. The author wisely concludes that “Science is not ineluctable process but contingent in the extreme.” Daunt Books in London nudged me to get my copy that stirred plenty of ideas and meaningful thinking.

The best wine lists in the world for La Muse Blue

The best wine lists for me offer plenty of aged bottles ready or peaking to drink (ideally featured on a highlighted page), less known local gems, good value finds from established producers, visibly marked biodynamic and organic wines and at least ten diverse wines by the glass. In the age of sophisticated preserving technology from pumps pulling out oxygen to the haute gamme of Coravin the customer can savour a broader opportunity to explore, learn and to drink moderately if not sharing a bottle is preferred.

Still, a great wine list is not a win-win and technology cannot answer more personal preferences and questions, so a knowledgeable sommelier is a welcome bonus.

The wine expert must be sensitive to your budget, taste, occasion and experience. A good sommelier listens to his customer and advises a short selection of bottles that make your choice easier. The process should not be intimidating. Good hospitality sheds the weight from your decision making, while not pushing you too high. Wine is about pleasure, sharing, socialising and letting go a hard day. So where can you get the best wine service?

In London, Hide Above and Bellow is hard to beat for its wine menu. One of the best cellars in the wine savvy metropolis – Hedonism Wines supplies the bottles. The pairing flights are fun and flexible. If you do not want a sweet wine the team of sommeliers happily suggests a replacement. I prefer the pace and the more satisfying food at Hide Below as opposed to the lengthy fine dining Above. Classic, Discovery and Hedonistic wine pairings offer very different experiences for your mood. Trust your gut.

Also in London, the Pall Mall 67, a private members club for the wine trade naturally hives in amazing bottles, but you must know someone from the vinous business to be allowed to sample some of their savvy selections. The passionate, multi-sommelier team are open to discussion and pleasant to talk anything wine related.

Most restaurants in Paris offer French-only or Francophile selections.While I prefer to drink as local as possible, I can include only three venues in the French capital in my best, most interesting wine lists selection. La Tour d’Argent, Le Bristol and Les 110 de Taillevent, a wine-centric bar by the gastronomic stalwart Le Taillevent, offer some depth, but only the later has also a good breadth beyond the French borders, now also serving at its branch in London. I find most of the natural wine focused bistros in the French capital rather limiting in their offer.

Probably the rarest wine tasting menu at a public restaurant

Italy does better. The legendary Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence is known for its superb wine list and it delivers well beyond the Italian borders. Here I saw the most exclusive by the glass program ever at a restaurant. The rarest and most prestigious wines sparkled in the Ausone, Cheval Blanc, Lafite, Latour, Petrus, Rayas as well as Henri Jayer’s praised Burgundies company. Conterno, Gaja, Tenuta San Guido et al. in the Italian stable (photo bellow). Still, only for the billionaires – almost €6.000 for six small glasses while a minimum of two drinkers must participate (each has to pay, not splitting). We splurged within our limits on a vintage against a vintage comparative tasting of Burgundy vs. Italy. The best wine lists should look like this.

In Spain, El Celler de Can Roca offered the best wine list to us. The female sommelier was patient and sniffing our interest, she added some of the wine flight glasses to our two bottles of tiny production Spanish reds. The best cavas we tried, incredible white from Penedes (some 800 bottles produced, photo bellow), plus great values, a rare pleasure at a three Michelin restaurant, bravo! The service as well as the list itself were incomparable with Monvínic in Barcelona, where a couple of birthdays back and a post-dinner cuppa another time I was not impressed with what many say is the best wine restaurant in the Catalan metropolis.

In New York, the Chef’s Table at the Brooklyn Fare now relocated to Midtown Manhattan ticks all of my above criteria with a helpful hand of the sommeliers. For a specialised wine list, the Hearth in East Village pleases particularly the Riesling fandom. From Austria, Germany, France, Finger Lakes to Oregon, the age-worthy expressive white varietal is celebrated intercontinentally. Apples, green vegetables, even petroleum and mineral expression of its terroir Riesling rules. Wines from the Middle East show a savvy palate of the wine director at Hearth.

In Macau, Joël Robuchon au Dôme disappointed me with the food, but the double-bible list is exceptional. The gamblers have it easy to spend their fortune on celebratory bottles from the rarest vintages. Verticals (an uninterrupted row of vintages of the same wine) and global choices impress. Where do you see Madeiras and Ports from early 1800s?

If you are a well-travelled wine expert or connoisseur and know some other extraordinary wine lists, please, share them! Let’s enjoy the bounty of the human interaction with nature sipped from the best wine lists, santé!

DISCLAIMER: Apologies for not including some special, small wine treasuries that shall remain secret as I promised to dear friends sharing in person, gracias, grazie, amori!

Henri Milan: naturally better wine in Provence

Henri Milan is a character. Still experimenting after thirty-three years at the helm of his Domaine Milan, the flamboyant and outspoken vigneron has produced a wide range of distinct wines from the 17 hectares set along the ancient Via Aurelia in Provence. The Frenchman inherited the beautiful provencal stone house and vineyards from his late father. The soil is his wealth – blue marl, like in some Grand Crus of Chablis, clay, gravel and limestone, while yellow sandstone compliments the red varieties (same as my favourite red in the South of France Château Rayas).

Henri Milan makes superb wines. The nods from top sommeliers far beyond the French borders join my pampered palate in praise. I saw Le Vallon at a distinguished wine list in San Francisco, while his two reds made it into the three Michelin stared Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare in New York. Milan’s resistance to conventions of the French wine laws reflects pure respect for the grapes, the unique soil and the wine itself. The rebelliousness is imprinted in the changing labels and blends that may confuse customers, but the taste is what counts. First organic then he listened to the moon, the soil and nature’s rhythms converting into biodynamics. Now he subscribes to the natural wine movement, adding a minimum of stabilising sulphur only when necessary. As a seasoned taster I am wary of the “sans soufre ajouté” wines since faults often stick their awkwardly smelling antennae out and do not tend to last for decades in one’s cellar. Henri Milan makes some of his wines without added sulphites, and he is sensitive to each vintage, trust him.

Domaine Milan, naturally

Ironically, the first time I tasted his natural wines was at Les Grands Chais Monegasques, the oldest wine shop in Monaco. A few months later as we drove by Saint-Rémy-de-Provence during the summer, and also closed the year tasting at his ‘cabanon’ – in fancy terms a boutique winery.
The Merlot in Le Jardin by Henri Milan seduced us with the first sip, the enchanting green pepper nose, animal wilderness with a refreshing minty aftertaste like garden reveal their charms as you enter deeper through its herbal, violet, black currant perfume. A distinct white wine is also made under the same blue label – La Carée falls under the appellation of Les Beaux en Provence.

Vin de Table, St Rémy de Provence
I was also fond of the single vineyard white Rhone blend of Le Grand Blanc that he has organically made since 1989. The blend of Grenache Blanc, Chardonnay (in some years), Rolle, Roussanne, Muscat a Petits Grains and what works in each vintage was once awarded award of excellence by 800 independent Rhône tasters. The current, layered floral drawing on the label captures this flamboyant beauty that as a humble “vin de table” outsmarts even the greatest Hermitages.
The hipster winemaker of Provence makes better natural wine than anyone else in France. During our first visit to the winery his “Le Presk’ Orange” stroke my palate so much that I begged for three bottles. The almost orange Rolle (Vermentino) was macerated like some Pinot Grigios in Northern Italy for long enough (10 days) to release more golden dust into the otherwise pale yellow wine. A total of 292 bottles were produced in 2015 so I was a lucky vagrant that Henri Milan fit in. The simple label with a crossed O in the ORANGE title even acknowledges that P. Lardot sparked the idea to make the wine in this style. This was certainly one of the best of the quirky orange category that I have tasted in my geeky wine life. At home, paired with a cep parmesan risotto, this ‘unfancy’ bottle opened our festive night with freshness and depth.

For most, the lively, vibrant labels were designed by local artists that Henri Milan befriended.
The vigneron also makes these red wines:
Le Clos and C.L.O.S. (we tried the barrique aged, non-filtered 2007 blend of Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon offered also at the Brooklyn Fare), SX is a pure Grenache, while the Pinot Noir is still in its infancy with optimistic hopes sprayed from Henri Milan himself, “it’s not perfect, not yet”, he confessed. We liked the juicy fruit eloquent in tis youth, and with patience over two days the king of reds unleashed its complex spell on us back at home. Henri’s son was recently allowed to bottle his own Haru that with the calligraphy on the label one may confuse it with a sake, yet the pure Cabernet Sauvignon is of the French breed, not bad.

The winemaker’s dog cannot be a better reflection of his master. Focused, present yet owning the place.
Henri Milan also has a rosé sparkling wine without added sulphites. Not rose per se, rather a cherry-tinted white wine. The Zebra swallowtail butterfly on the label with its unique wing shape and with long tails personifies the experience from tasting this unusually delicious bubbly. A blend of Grenache Noir and Mourvèdre, the Brut Nature has a zero dosage. Made by the méthode traditionnelle from his grapes this is the only label in the Henri Milan stable that is outsourced to a facility where two fermentations and the upside down turning of the fizzing bottles prior to the disgorgement take place. Like for most small wineries in Provence bottling bubbles, the machinery is too expensive and requires additional space. As the last day of the year was ticking off, we jolly joined in not spitting out before our journey to Marseille for a three Michelin meal at Le Petit Nice.

We only introduce our closest friends to the best wineries we know. Our east-bound visitors were thrilled not least with the setting of the rustic winery branching out the ancient Via Aurelia where most of the vines are planted, but bought as much as they could carry. Special wines must be shared with those you care about and Henri Milan ranks in the best in Provence for us!

Best breakfast: my favourite morning eats around the world

Ravenous or simply in the mood, get inspired by these best breakfast bakeries, cafés and insider venues that I enjoyed over the past year. Some require a long drive, others waiting in a long queue or reservation well ahead, and sometimes you must stay overnight to savour the delicious morning privilege delivered into your room. A proper breakfast can be hedonism at its greatest and for most busy city dwellers it’s also the greatest luxury reserved to weekends only. Let’s fix it.

Staying over is a must for my best breakfast in 2018 – a warming bowl of Sonoma Grains porridge at Single Thread, in Healdsburg, California. The inn’s seasonal fruit scone with lemon curd was better than anything I had in England. The three Michelin stared restaurant and five room luxe B&B also whips a full Japanese, generous English (a tribute to Heston Blumenthal with whom the chef/owner worked with), and Sonoma breakfast sets (local cheese, charcuterie, bread, grains), all decadent and superb. These feasts over the three mornings we stayed keep me salivate for coming back. Everything was beyond perfected simplicity. The avocado toast (on sourdough) with their own farm-fresh boiled egg was my husband’s favourite. The California wine country never offered a better, sophisticated indulgence than with the arrival of the Single Thread in Sonoma County. Meadowood and the French Laundry over in Napa Valley can only gasp with wonder.

Another superb farm to table feast, but more rustic was at São Lourenço do Barrocal in Portugal. The historic farm set near Monsaraz in the breadbasket region of Alentejo by the Spanish border revealed Portugal’s greatest gourmet secret. On its own side of the border the Iberian pigs grazing on acorn made for the best, most fragrant and meaty jamón (de bellota) we had to date. The coffee was impeccable as elsewhere in Portugal. I got my drip into a pot and was ready to run in the olive fields with the free-roaming cows. The popular dairy-free oat milk was as good companion for the brew as their own cows’ milk. Lactose-free yogurt, daily refreshed seasonal fruits like pomegranate seeds, persimmon, freshly baked changing Portuguese pastries and flaky croissants, the buffet and a la carte warm plates catered to every palate, and the quality was extraordinary. Farmers eat well!

Relish the slow life in California with the best breakfast

A drive to LA’s Silver Lake is a must for SQIRL’s ricotta toast. The famous slice of gluten with in-house curdled ricotta and your choice of one of their famous locally sourced jams that like a sweet pond of colour dwells in the luscious meadow of fat. For the best breakfast in town get before noon as the line picks up. The shakshuka is served with the longest toasted baguette ever (see bellow), the sandwiches are not bad, but the rice bowl is exclusive, indeed! Perfectly locally roasted coffee or house lemonades for a liquid fix complete the ‘so-Cal’ experience.

Still in the embrace of Hollywood, drive Westside for the superb sourdough and cakes at Lodge Bread in Culver City. The carrot olive oil cake, the apple millet and seeded banana, plus the miso chocolate chip cookie, please! That was my order to go after a decadent brunch of a superb flatbread with an unctuously rich labneh, mixed and some pickled veggies, generously poured over with olive oil and tossed with fresh green herbs. Even kids love it there, feed’em real bread LA mums!

The art of European morning pastry: a glutenous affair

My best breakfasts were mostly at bakeries and cafes known for their AM focus. For less pomp and more finesse in pastry though, one must go to Europe.

An apple tart (tarte fine aux pommes made only in the fall season) from Du Pain et Des Idées, the pain au chocolate (they call it chocolatine) and other seasonal tarts (apricots in summer) are always a treat when in Paris. Read more about the best bakeries in Paris.
An organic flour based cardamom bun “bulle” at Green Rabbit in Stockholm. The same nordic specialty made from organic sourdough at Handwerk in Oslo. Our Norwegian breakfast there included all sourdough-based breakfast pastries they had: cinnamon, black currant, but the cardamom twist was the most delectable, not too sweet.
In Italy, the almond biscotti from my favourite baker at the Ventimiglia market (Liguria) were devoured in a car, while the mini-pastries with a frothy cappuccino at the historic Pasticheria Marchesi in Milan sweeten my every trip to the fashionable Via Montenapoleone.

Breakfast means breaking the fast from involuntary overnight dieting. If your dinner did not involve 10+ courses at a gastronomic restaurant (check my best meals in 2018), you feel ready to indulge in the am.
Some restaurants focus also on their morning offering. At Meierei in Vienna, the ingredients are sourced from the same farm as for the two Michelin restaurant above, the Steirereck. Such decadence at its grandest shows in the Stadtpark Breakfast set. Poached eggs, fruit dairy porridge, stewed seasonal fruits, freshly milked buttermilk, farm cheese, perfect for me. My husband relished in the preservative-free bacon with an omelette. The dairy queen of Vienna does the best breakfast in town.

For the setting, the self-service greenhouses inside the biodynamic Rosendals Tradgard where sustainability and taste rub shoulders is hard to beat. This venue in Stockholm is an escape to the country and reminds me of the Petersham Nurseries in South London, but is more truly sociable (less London pretentious) and thus fun. The ‘smorebrot‘, bricks of butter to dip in, cookies and pastries are very good (vegan options). Get goodies to go from the in-house bakery and shop, or savour the views over its vast gardens. Their tisanes and a smaller greenhouse for private hire radiate the hygge cosiness.

I love the idea of breakfast, for today it symbolises the slow life. The wholesome time in the morning when you sit down with your first meal and savour it mindfully. I’m dedicating to its history and purpose, plus reminiscing on some of the best breakfasts I have had in my entire life, my February musing.
For most, the start of the day means a warm cup of coffee or tea. Upon the later, I muse in the best teas I sipped over the past year. Perhaps, your resolution now might be — making time to mindfully, indulgently and happily enjoy breakfast on most mornings. Starting the day right-footed, with a happy belly as well as the mind (since they are connected) is important, don’t you agree? The best breakfast starts you energised and content with anything that crosses your path that day.

Where I want to indulge again in 2019: Best restaurants, dishes and desserts in the word by La Muse Blue

Here I sum up the best restaurants, dishes and desserts of 2018 that I cannot wait to return to in 2019.
It is important, perhaps essential, to reflect on the year that passed. NO negative judgements, but an honest discovery of what was great, what pleased you. The result can take days, weeks even if your memory falters and your photo library goes to four digit species. The effort is worth though as I discovered myself. Looking back at the generosity of recent months completes the loop of the year, so you can free yourself for new experiences and only go back to the best restaurants, dishes and desserts you enjoyed.
The best gastronomic experiences of 2018 that opened my mind, pampered my palate and stroke my soul with lasting pleasure liberally spread across three continents – Asia, Europe and North America.

ASIA

For us Kanda in Tokyo serves the best contemporary kaiseki in the world. We go every year. Japanese chefs are savvy about their ingredient sourcing, not just for sushi, but in particular in the seasonal, multi-course kaiseki cuisine. Chef Kanda delivers each time we dine at his exclusive counter. His passion for the European Burgundies reflects on the excellent wine list that with the rare Japanese smile his maitre’d and sommelier pours happily. No tipping in Japan, just show gratitude to the hard working chef.

NORTHERN AMERICA

Single Thread in California reinterpreted this Japanese seasonal tasting concept into its locally sourced gastronomic dining. The chef Kyle Connaughton gets mist ingredients from the farm run by his wife Katina, and outsources the rest sustainably where possible (caviar, seafood, meat). My two meals there were exquisite, and the breakfasts served in-room at the tiny luxurious inn ranked in the top of 2018 for me too. Details further down. The design is comforting, luxurious while not showy, Silicon Valley in!

EUROPE

The old-continent favourite L’Arpège in Paris is is still one of the best restaurants in the world. Alain Passard is a naturalist, a culinary magician who respects the product and tradition. The French cuisine is elevated to its grandest in unpretentious, barred down, country setting but with white table clothes on. Arpège is hard to beat for the perfected fine French meal. One entire afternoon we devoted ourselves to his multi-course feast, I went for the vegetarian tasting and oh, the veggie sushi – nobody has done it better, yet! Fish is my preferred neta (topping), but if the seas get depleted I know where to go.
The last two source from their own biodynamic gardens, sustainable fishermen and small scale, responsible farmers. It shows.

I must give it to the Red Guide, even though I often disagree with its logic, since my best gastronomic dining in 2018 involved all three Michelin stared restaurants – one was on its way to the third star just a year from its opening (a month after my visit, Single Thread officially got it). I have dined at each at least twice as per my judgement criteria for reviews (over a decade of professional gastronomic expertise nudged me to give promising restaurants at least two chances – most only prove themselves after the initial novelty halo clears my foggy lenses). Further, I enjoyed the hospitality and presentation at El Celler de Can Roca in Spain and of some other highly regarded restaurants such as Sushi Saito, Le Petit Nice, et al. but the competition was rife!

Curiously, the most memorable single plates were not mostly served at the my choices of above best restaurants. These dishes stood out:

A reindeer moss ball “breaded” in Swedish black truffles at Agrikultur, Stockholm *
Roasted duck at Gastrologik, Stockholm *
Uni tostada at the Brooklyn Fare, New York ***
Aged goma-doufu (hot sesame soft pudding with kudzu root starch) at Mitsukawa kaiseki restaurant in Kyoto *
Ravioli and marinated beet sushi at Arpège ***

The goma-doufu had a camembert-like skin with a decadent creamy centre leaking into a rich semi-liquid sauce. All was generously sprinkled with ground white sesame. The first plant-based “cheese” I truly revelled in!

The duck was shared at the communal table at the Michelin stared Gastrologik in Stockholm. In the same city, at Agriculture the Reindeer moss served like a lolly, covered in local black truffles, was a revelation. I want to eat more moss!

The most irresistible desserts have to share the sweet throne. In New York, my hedonistic cravings take me each visit to Bibble & Sip for their daily fresh giant cream puffs – the matcha and black sesame are my favourites. There is a queue, but one location, plus near Times Square, yet this is not a hype. The truly great quality, luscious dense cream filled puffs rival to the best eclairs in Paris and Tokyo. In Provence, the chocolatier and pastry chef Hawecker as an M.O.F. represents the best of France. His global travels inspired chocolates, the pastry, and above all the butter almond brittle biscuits make even non-sugarholic howl.

Italians rejoice, gelato stole my heart, again! This “km0” ice cream and sorbets sugared our plush car, since in addition to twice three scoops, I also bought two boxes to go of the heavenly “tree of gelato”. I ate about a dozen scoops before getting home. I was once again the girl that I knew when I was little. Whipped from organic milk and slow-food certified, local artisan growers’s produce in a tiny village between Como and Milan L’Albero dei Gelati is a hyper-lative achievement for ice cream. Creative, but driven more by what’s in season and much locally sourced, just the sugar comes from abroad. They even offer gluten-free wafers.

A chocolate talk invites itself in. The best bites were a single origin organic dark Standout Chocolate from India. The small batch, bean-to-bar 70% cocoa from the IDUKKI region was made by Fredrik Martisson in Sweden. A shocker was a real fresh milk chocolate (I do not – usually – like milk chocolate) by Tiroler Edle. The organic milk comes from rare Tiroler Grauviehs cows that graze on the Alpine pastures of Austria. Smooth, generously milky with just the right balance of 75% Domori (Italy) cocoa.

The most interesting dessert though was something unusual. Atsushi Tanaka, the Japanese chef heading his one Michelin star restaurant A.T. in Paris, infused the relaxing hinoki wood (used traditionally in a relaxing bath) into the creamy and crumbly concoction. From Japanese hands comes also the quirkiest dessert that I could not get myself tasting this spring – the soft cream with a cherry and spiny lobster flavour in the Ise city, Japan. Let the lobster alone, I thought. Would you lick it sweet?
In Asia, best egg tart I had was at Tao Cheung bakery in Hong Kong. The puffy, flaky pie pastry delicately crumbled between my teeth and generous still warm egg custard enveloped my tongue with an utmost silky pleasure. The short crust pastry is folded with plenty of butter, success!

The best afternoon tea was by far at the Goring Hotel in London. Crumbly and warm scones, buttery clotted cream, superb homemade strawberry jam, good selection of tea served properly (not over-infused), and the lawn, the art and the cosy library room to sip it in! Needless to add, the cakes were not cheap, baked with care. The Claridges, the Ritz et al. are tourist traps as retrying them during the past tea-fuelled-year affirmed to me and my companions (ladies and one gentleman). Perhaps, only Sketch is also worth your afternoon, but Goring is best for local tradition perfected to its proudest.
Casual bistros, bakeries, cafés, eateries and no-fuss restaurants that the Italians would call trattorias must be mentioned here too. For, it is not only fine dining of the Michelin calibre that we indulge in. I love authentic restaurants sourcing best local produce and cooking or otherwise preparing the ingredients at its finest. Most years the tops would be in Italy for me, but again it all depends where you travel.

My best casual meals in the South were naturally close or in the Mediterranean. On a protected island where a tiny port was built with restraint L’Anse de Port Cros is a very laid-back local fish eatery. All is served with the creamiest risotto, vegetables and table-side red wine salt. Complementary digestive shots come after the meal. On the dry land in Vence, Provence another al-fresco lunch at Restaurant La Litote again sated us with fine provencal fare. Seated under a linden tree on the cobble-paved historic village the sleeping cat next to our table did not lift an eyelid until the fish arrived. The pasta are great too.

Another excellent midday meal awaited me way North, in Norway. My last, sunny day in Oslo turned out one of he best langoustines I have ever chewed. Instead of an imported wine I washed them down with local beer. The view from Festningen is not bad either, the fjords and the port of Oslo spread like the Northern lights in front. A starter of a fish carpaccio, a side of thick, generous, crisp fries with mayo, Norwegian bread, the seafood feast at Festningen completed our Scandinavian summer journey with fanfare. More memorable than the three Michelin Maemo in town.

Not only best restaurants, but also breakfast sets our palate into the heavens of hedonistic pleasure. Read about my best breakfasts over the past year to find where you should stay, drive to or indulge in the am while traveling.
My selections of the best restaurants are not discriminating other than the above continents, yet I still need to find the mind-blowing meal in Africa, return to Australia, New Zealand and South America has not seen me for almost three years, therefore my coupe de coeur may not deliver. Everything changes more rapidly today, so I better stick to the most recent experiences and each year share what was the best for my globetrotting palate and ultimately the craving mind.

Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare: #foodporn² in low-carb, luxe tasting menu on Manhattan

The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare has entered a legendary status on the New York culinary scene. The whispers of the hedonistic tongues have tipped the heavily Japan-inspired, in French-cuisine-trained chef Cesar Ramirez as the gastronomic revelation of the metropolis for years.

Chef Cesar Ramirez and Head Sommelier of the Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare

Many firsts filed the tasting menu only gastronomic restaurant into the golden stash of the Big Apple. Not the counter concept since Robuchon had already coined that joyful affair with L’Atelier, and Momofuku ko took more affordably further, but as a fine dining staged inside a deli, the signature trait of New York, and being the first three Michelin star restaurant in Brooklyn.

Either changed though three years ago. The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare relocated to Manhattan where the gastronomic competition is rife. The once intimate counter does not square around the kitchen any more, it is larger and there are also regular tables in the second line along the wall. Hell’s Kitchen is not far from the high-earning offices of Midtown, the media giants around Times Square, the residences in Chelsea, and a dart drive to both Upper Sides. More money can pour into its pockets (menu excluding beverages comes at $400 per head, plus tax).

Were the Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare in Tokyo, the experience would be less eye banging. Counter restaurants serving about the same quality of seafood and meat, are tossed around like rice grains at a sushi joint there (whereas you hardly find any carbs on the menu at the BF). To par his three Michelin star tasting menu with Tokyo’s Kanda, Sushi Saito or Yoshitake is unthinkable for the regulars at either.

Low-carb, ultra-luxe tasting menu on Manhattan

“Won’t I get even a small bread roll or a sliver sourdough?” I asked the waiter, my stomach overwhelmed with the fat and high protein sixth course at the Chef’s Table. The restaurant will not accommodate seafood allergies, vegetarian or vegan diets. We found the tasting menu off balance. Dining twice in the new Hell’s Kitchen location, the highest echelon of gourmet hedonism in Manhattan served a vitamix of animal, mainly seafood flesh, full stop. “We do not serve bread, madam”, was the answer. It seems that the pricey restaurant keeps some business for its namesake deli that in a speakeasy fashion ushers the well-heeled diners into its fancy troves. As after the previous four digit meal for three, we roamed the grocery aisles of tortilla chips and glutenous crackers to balance the fatty affair. I wished there was a great pizza joint next door, any carb would do. Owned by Moe Isa from Kazakhstan who also runs the three namesake delis, the Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare is a savvy deal as each time we spent extra $$ buying snacks to fill in for our no bread, rice or pasta dinner. It was fun though, and getting a breakfast ahead without going off your way is practical.

Red perch at the Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare in New York

The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare is the exemplary embodiment of the #foodporn tag on social media. The orchids decorating the tables, caviar, sea urchin, even the langoustine plating, all resemble human reproductive organs. Galloping along the frantic pace of New Yorkers, the entire meal is faster than at most three star establishments. Over just two-hours the meal is over. Two seatings, first at 5 pm. Our 7:30 booth for four diners was the last layover wiping the plates at 10:30pm. The counter seats face the open kitchen, and additional low chair tables are less discrete than the two booths.

Japanese influence

Chef Ramirez was the right hand at David Bouley for eight years, where the food is strongly influenced by Japanese cuisine. Then he went to Osaka in Japan to exchange culinary ideas. He came back creating a rich, simple, yet high-profile ingredients listing tasting menu. The presentation is not Instagram-friendly, but orgasmic on the foodie terms. High in cholesterol (seafood and red meat), vegetables barely feature on the overwhelmingly in Asia-sourced menu (up to 90 percent in some seasons).

Starting with ovations, the signature Tartlet of saba (Japanese mackerel) was at both meals my favourite bite. It’s oily quality is balanced with a sour flesh of a lemon segment – extraordinary!

Uni lovers rejoice, the Hokkaido sea urchins nesting on a two-bite brioche (a little carb insert) topped with marinated Australian black truffle are insanely decadent. This is a Sex in the City dish. Yet, as we are getting extras for our missing companions the second time we dine here, we learned that one is enough. Too much of the super-charged mouth filler.

A Grilled wild trout (Pennsylvania) served with its skin in an oily dressing freshened by enough of grated ginger was nice.

Now some show. The server brought a giant box of Kaluga Queen Caviar. Spooning out the farm raised cross of female kaluga with amur sturgeon, the Chinese roe topped a bowl of crab, sansho puree in a wine-based creamy sauce so rich that a pumpernickel bread would make it more palatable for me. Our palate and my stomach started to crave some carbs or neutralising flavours.

An egg custard with foie gras chunks and diced black truffles where acidity and fat again mingled made me hallucinate. I need bread! Sardinian pane-crassau or light crackers at least could be served on the table, I dreamt, or rice please!

The superb Scottish langoustine with root puree (reminded me of Toyo in Paris), blood orange segments and foam (a cliché late in 2018) distracted me more a year before as a morsel of Koshihikari rice was served with it. Stonington Maine Lobster steps in when available and in season.

A Japanese fish chosen according to the season. Agamutsu – red sea perch from the Chiba prefecture in fall. Topped with sliced Matsutake mushrooms, the dish was delicate as in Japan, but in a more salty broth for the American seasoned palates.

Two meat courses continue the paleo gourmet feast. A very fatty, chewy local duck from John Fasio farm Upstate with roasted brussels sprouts, chanterelle mushroom and cabbage confit creamy purée in 2019, while celery root provided a bite-size vegetable fix in fall 2018. The wagyu-like rich duck was not to either of our trio’s liking. On Manhattan, we much prefer the duck served at Momofuku ko and Cosme.

Next, the real thing – the Japanese wagyu beef from Miyazaki Japan, horseradish purée. I much prefer a top yakiniku as well as Kanda’s more meaty and juicy cuts of beef in Japan. At our second meal at Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, a crisp yet smooth Black Cod with smoked eggplant purée added a mini taste of vegetables into our menu. I prefered the previous version with Oregon Matsutake mushrooms.

Chef Ramirez decides all proposals from the team for the deserts. In the mildly sweet finish of communal creativity a palate-refreshing (much needed) pre-desert of Sea buckthorn ice cream and Komekome sake jelly was superb. Another time Pink Grapefruit with Sake Gelée freshened it up as did another ice-cold treat of Sobacha (roasted buckwheat) Sorbet. The main dessert of Bichontan charcoal burlet pear with pure milk ice cream was not sweet and the sour caramel sauce was interesting.

For the final desert blast a frozen milk Matcha souflé (no eggs) like Japanese shaved ice with powdered matcha all over revealed a three star surprise of salted crisp white chocolate balls hidden inside. A light ‘Japanophobia’ that I loved. Previously my final tea accompanied a soft Chocolate Custard.

Tipples at the Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare

To start, a $35 glass of blanc de blancs Grand Cru (Mesnil sur Oger) champagne by Robert Moncuit impressed with its complex and characteristic chalky intensity. Partially (about 30%) aged in oak, the floral and citrus tones of the Chardonnay were preserved. The wine list was successfully curated to the current tastes. A grower champagne out-rules the commercial giants by the glass, off the beaten path producers balance the big names. A rare nod from a seasoned wine drinker lie myself, the cellar at the Brooklyn Fare excites me as much as the Playboy magazine turns on teenage boys. The sommelier (former of Momofuku ko) knows his game so perfectly that he balances trends with the essence.

Natural wines could not escape his attention. Tschida’s Austrian rose, a red Cornas by Auguste Clape, the pioneer of bottling his own estate wines in Northern Rhone’s Cornas. A great selection of Japanese sake reflect the eastern inspiration (a carafe of dry – Junmai Daiginjo – Daishiki Minowamon worked with the seafood well). Most sommeliers today have a penchant for Mosel, so the recommended white German bottle of Scharzhofberger Riesling landed on our table. The late-harvest off-dry 2009 Spätlese from the slopes of the Mosel river is usually not our first pick as dry wines are more tuned to our palates. Made by the legendary bull-headed Egon Muller, it was drinkable, but the $613 + tax tag stung. Balancing the sheets at the next meal, the decade old Gevrey Chambertin (Premier Cru of the astute Les Charmes site) by Hudelot—Noellat was a masculine affair with a smokey nose, forest needles, hummus and ‘ooh nature calls’ horse shit perfect Burgundy.

With desserts a wisely chosen tea list complements the liquid menu of Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare. Japan-focused Kettl tea (Brooklyn and now a branch in NoHo) provides soba cha, a roasted buckwheat soother, Fukuoka sencha and black tea for caffeine boost, while the mint infusion came from the BF deli. Served in a Hering Berlin pottery touched a modernist feel.

We much prefer to dine at Momofuku ko Downtown or the Single Thread in California since the tasting menu is much more exciting and complete.

The reservations are very specific so check their website for details. A warning, $200 per person is non-refundable upon reservation, so show up!

Two Tuesday-Saturday dinner seatings only at 5 and 7:30pm

431 West 37th Street, Manhattan, NY 10018

+1 718 243 0050

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