La Cantine @ Hotel Le Chatelet, a delightful, romantic dinner date

August 6, 2015 ~ Corie Bratter ~ 5 Comments

I had already a chance some times ago to eat at the Cantine of Chatelet Hotel, on a quiet side of Hollerich/Gare area, but I did not write a review as having been there only for lunch, I supposed it was not extremely indicative. I had some lovely fish and chip on that occasion and the service – even if, as said, was just a business lunch – was great.

I came back with hubby this week for our weekly date. We called for booking a short while before and we were proposed a table on the terrace.

The restaurant has in fact an open space on the street – for drinks -, a main dining room, a bar lounge and a backyard covered terrace, that is very pleasant during summer time.

I had a ham/melon starter and hubby a beef carpaccio, while for main we shared a “cote de boeuf“, that was served with vegetables and fries.

Our dinner was just perfect – except for this Spanish guy calling all his f*ck*ng family on Facetime at pretty loud volume just next to our table for hours – nothing could have been better.

We had a great St.Emilion Gran Cru that was always served by the waiters, the starters were delicate and tasty, and the meat was indeed delicious – maybe next time I will go for the Chateubriand, instead, as this cut was just a bit too nervous, but only for my taste, hubby loved it.

The final coffee was accompanied by a yummy almond cake and, with the bill, we were offered two digestives – oh mon dieu, how much time had passed since a restaurant offered me some final drink? Well done and highly appreciated!

I have also to say that, together with the ambience and the food, one of the best thing of this place is the service. Talking with hubby I said: for me, tonight, this is exactly what I consider the real perfect service. Waiters were smiling, kind, affable, always there when you needed them but not bothering rest of the time.

I will definitely visit La Cantine more often and I highly recommend it for a couple or friends date. If you fancy good food and refined atmosphere, you would love this place!

Mansfeld Reloaded: Business Dinner with the Boss

July 27, 2015 ~ Corie Bratter ~ 2 Comments

I talked about the re-opening of Mansfeld Brasserie some posts ago. I said it used to be one of my favorite place in town and the first visits confirmed the old glory. I tested it once again while my bosses were in town and I was not disappointed.

We had a fabulous time and my guests were extremely glad about the choice.

Definitely and once again highly recommended if you want to have a posh delicious dinner, without the heart attack upon bill receipt. Ca va sans dire, this is not gonna be cheap, but you will have, beyond any doubt, the clear impression to have spent the fairest price for the merriest evening.

Super thumbs-up: friendly and smiling service, some kind of rare gem among all grumpy waiters at most gastro places in Luxembourg.
Secret hints: great choice of gins for a strong start or a relaxing after dinner; lovely terrace overlooking the river; my favorite dish is the tuna tataki – just heaven! and.. make same place and don’t skip the dessert, they are all worth it!

Another Sunday, Another Italian Restaurant: Sapori, Luxembourg

July 21, 2015 ~ Corie Bratter ~ 6 Comments

Since I came back after ten days abroad alone, I wanted to make hubby happy and let him choose the restaurant for our Sunday date. When we woke up the weather was great, so we opted for a location with the terrace and we ended up in Beggen, in a restaurant located in Place d’Argent called Sapori. It was long time I wanted to try it, but being out of our area, we always chose closest solutions.

The restaurant has a small terrace in front, overlooking the main street, two large but intimate rooms internally, and another terrace on the back, where we found our table.

We started with a Prosecco, we had a small gazpacho as welcome from the chef, I continued with beef carpaccio with truffle as starter – and I had to share it with hubby, who initially was not convinced enough for taking one but, after seen it, decided it was worth eating half of mine. As main, I had 7-hours roasted lamb while hubby had lamb tagliata, and we closed our lunch with iced mascarpone and cheese.

During the meal we had one of my favorite wines, Marina Cvetic Montepulciano, and for the dessert I had a glass of sweet Recioto della Valpolicella.

Here some pictures of your lunch, followed, as usual, by my general impressions.

I loved almost everything about Sapori:

– Food was outstanding: best quality materials, great techniques, fair portions, lovely presentation. The menu card was wide enough to have a good choice but most of the dishes were daily suggestions, therefore prepared with very fresh ingredients.

– Service was extremely attentive and available: we called just fifteen minutes before arriving for booking and we have never been there before, but they were indeed nice to accommodate us in the best way possible. We have always had our glass filled, bread on the table and the timings of the lunch were perfect. I appreciated very much the aperitif was asked at the arrival, so I had it while looking at the menu – and not when we had already chosen, no sense then.

– Special mention to the wine card: it is one of the best Italian wine card I have seen in Luxembourg. Great names, nothing too commercial, fair recharges.

Nothing was disappointing about our lunch, if I have to find something to improve, the appearance of the back terrace is not in line with the rest of the restaurant – people were coming out to smoke from the kitchen, not very pleasant to see. It needs also to be said, the bill, depending on what you eat, might not be cheap – but the quality has its price and I would definitely be extremely happy to come back to Sapori really soon.

Dinner with view: Beim Siggy, Luxembourg

July 6, 2015July 6, 2015 ~ Corie Bratter ~ 5 Comments

Often during this season, friends are asking me for a place for dining in town with a nice terrace. Honestly I cannot lie – even if, you know, I would sometimes prefer to keep my best places secret to avoid them becoming overcrowded. Then I usually suggest them at first “Beim Siggy”, a traditional brasserie located halfway between city center and Clausen, that has a wonderful terrace and one of the most amazing views in Luxembourg.

I have been there more than once last year during sunny evenings and I visited it recently with friends. The menu, as said, is very conservative, but portions are great, prices extremely fair and the quality is above the average.

I love the tartare – I had the salmon one and the beef one last time – but also Luxembourgish dishes are pretty yummy – hubby is a fan. List of wines – mainly French and Luxembourgish – is proportionate and has some great names at legitimate prices.

Find some pictures of the night – definitely a place highly recommended for me, above all if you have someone visiting to impress or if you want to arrange a romantic dinner without splurging:

A perfect evening in Florence: Borgo San Jacopo

June 11, 2015June 11, 2015 ~ Corie Bratter ~ 1 Comment

During our (second) honey-moon break in Florence, we wanted to have one special evening to celebrate one year marriage and the renewal of the vows at the church. We did a bit of research on the internet in order to find a place that could be special both for the settings and for the food.

We ended up choosing the Borgo San Jacopo restaurant, in the premises of the same-named hotel, just few blocks from Ponte Vecchio and our hotel. I contacted the restaurant a bit in advance as I wanted to reserve a table in the amazing terrace overlooking the river. They were definitely available to explain me the possibilities and the special evenings they have already in the agenda and to postpone the confirmation of my reservation because of the weather – the terrace in fact is open only during the summer.

We were lucky. That night was just the perfect temperature, not too cold, not too hot. We arrived at the restaurant by cab – just cause I had high heels and Florence’s cobblestones are even worst than those in Luxembourg. We were welcome by the staff and accompanied to our table. The view – ca va sans dire – was amazing, I think you might have the occasion to dine in a place like this few times in your life but it is definitely worth. Moreover, the actual trend is “rooftop” but I would say this restaurant has nothing less than a balcony overlooking the city.

We started with an aperitif – you have the drink list and you can easily decide between cocktails, bubbles and wines. We went for a glass of Franciacorta Millesimato – served perfectly chilled and with the bottle opened at the table. Good start.

The restaurant card has two tasting menu: one regional (“My Tuscany”), based on Tuscany dishes, the other one with a common item – potatoes. There are also lovely dishes a la carte, but we decided to go directly for the regional menu.

We accompanied it with a bottle of Sassicaia 2011. This is one of the greatest wine in Italy – based on my personal opinion and on general wine rankings, and the bottle was definitely worth the price. Moreover, considering the normal price, the restaurant recharge was pretty fair.

The dinner itself was one of the best I had in my life. Check out some pictures and my detailed comments after them:

Things I loved about this restaurant:

Everything. I cannot list something in particular. When we booked here, we did it basically because of the special location. We wanted to eat something “nice” and not too much touristic, but we were never thinking of finding one of the best restaurant we have ever dined in our life.

We loved the atmosphere, romantic, quiet, delicate. We loved the service – take notes Luxembourgish restaurants! – that was always present but never annoying, waiters were smiling, presenting nicely the dishes, offering the bread when over. We loved the timing of the dinner: we definitely had the right time to enjoy all the courses without feeling overwhelmed. And finally, we loved the food – this perfectly balances Italian cuisine with a lovely French accent. Gastronomic, but attentive to details and authentic ingredients. I still dream about the “bottoni” we had as one of the first courses and the “dama” made of chocolate bites was terrific.

I know in Florence there are tons of good restaurants – we tried several just in few days -, but if you are going with your companion and you fancy something unique, you cannot definitely miss Borgo San Jacopo.

Borgo San Jacopo Restaurant, Borgo San Iacopo 62/R – 50125 Florence

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