Collection Culinaire: Tasting May
The Collection Culinaire is a monthly changing, five-course tasting menu at the Brasserie Le Faubourg. Head Chef Steffen Sinzinger uses fresh and regional produce to create his dishes inspired by traditional French cuisine, and each course is served with a carefully-chosen wine pairing. March tasted like saddle of lamb, spinach, beetroot, stuffed potatoes and port wine onions; tuna, goose liver and herb risotto; indulgent banana split à la Brasserie Le Faubourg… April featured marinated beef filet with ratatouille chutney and rocket salad; ray wing with wild garlic pesto, potato espuma, green asparagus and beetroot; panna cotta with sour caramel, chocolate and raspberry… Read on to find out what treats the May Collection Culinaire has in store, or book online here and taste for yourself!
matjes herring tartar | pickled asparagus | spinach | mustard | red onion
The changing of the seasons is always a joy for food lovers, and May heralds the arrival of a particularly delicious delicacy: matjes herring. These are basically young herring, which, as Steffen Sinzinger explains, are “a classic of nordic cuisine” – although they are also extremely popular in Germany and the Netherlands. May also marks the beginning of Spargelzeit, or asparagus season – a vegetable which inspires strong emotions in Germans. Both the white and green variety of the vegetable are grown locally on farms on the outskirts of Berlin, who also host asparagus festivals. In this month’s cold starter, matjes herring tartar is paired with pickled asparagus, marinated spinach salad, creamy mustard and red onions. The crunchy, sour of the vegetables complements the matjes herring perfectly and it is all served up with a 2010 domaine du vieux chai folle blanche.
wild garlic cream | asparagus foam | sot l`y laisse | poached apricot
The next course features wild garlic cream with foam of asparagus, braised chicken sot l’y laisse (literally: ‘a fool leaves it’, the succulent piece of meat above the parson’s nose), asparagus chunks and poached apricot. True to its name, only a fool would leave this dish, which is served with a 2012 pierre naigeon chardonnay and pinot gris.
fillet of veal & sweetbread | asparagus | egg yolk | almond balls
The main course is succulent fillet of veal with sweetbread, white and green asparagus, egg yolk cream of smoked and boiled egg yolk and crispy almond balls. The dish is paired with a 2011 domaine du calvaire gamay.
cheese selection affinated by "hennart" | sorrel | buttermilk | physalis
As always, the cheese course is affinated by “hennart” and is this month served with sorrel, creamy buttermilk and tart physalis chutney. The dish is paired with a 2011 caparzo sangiovese.
coffee mousse | rhubarb sauce | macaron | raspberries | „milchmädchen“
Last but not least, the dessert: coffee mousse served with French macaron, Sinzinger’s heavenly “Milchmädchen”, fresh raspberries and a refreshing rhubarb sauce. Some of you may remember this one from this year’s hugely popular Easter menu, if so I don’t need to tell you twice to book a table today for this month’s collection culinaire – May will be gone before you know it!
