Auberge Au Cheval Blanc, Hesingue.
Since we visited in February, this review is late.
Positives: Food, ambiance, welcome, hosts, décor, service. Negatives: Baeckaoffa.
Decor/Ambiance/Service: Warm welcoming restaurant with good décor and a great host and a good feel to it. The host was convivial, even charismatic. Service was professional and friendly.
Food: The Tarte flambé Nature was equal to the best I’ve had. The only other Tarte flambé I’ve eaten that was that good was at Zum Baren in Hoechst a few years ago. The fact the two were so similar makes me question whether the base, at least, was prepared on site. If the base and topping were really made on site, then chapeau to the chef. Whether it is home made or not, I’d order it again as it was excellent. We also had one Tarte Flambé Montagnarde, which used the same base as the Nature and was generously topped and good although it would be hard to beat the Tarte Flambé Nature, as it’s a simple classic. We also ordered 1 Baeckaoffa aux Trois Viandes and 1 menu Terroir which included Escargots au Beurre Persillé and the Baeckaoffa aux Trois Viandes. The snails were good, but looked likely to have been bought in pre-made rather than prepared on site. The Baeckaoffa aux Trois Viandes was advertised as a ‘Spécialité Alsacienne’ and seemed to be a signature dish for the restaurant. This was a generously sized dish, but sadly not good at all. I had the impression it had been re-cooked. It contained almost no lamb, which is a shame as it was the only meat that didn’t seem to have been heavily overcooked. It was hard work to eat and if I were to revisit this restaurant I would not order it again, as a group we were unanimous in this view. We had one Tarte Flambé Framboises for desert, for me it was ok. Not sure if the Framboises had been frozen/thawed and warmed up or whether they had been cooked, but the other members of our group would have preferred that the raspberries had been fresh/uncooked and all felt that the classic apple Tarte Flambé would have been better.
In summary, the Auberge au Cheval Blanc at Hesingue is a pretty Alsacienne Restaurant, with a charismatic host, good service and a good location. Some of the food was excellent, some resonably good and some bad. What seemed to be one their signature dishes the ‘Baeckaoffa’ was very...
Read moreLe cadre n'est pas trop mal, quoique typé assez familial avec des objets qui ne sont pas du tout en harmonie avec le style de la pièce, mais ce n'est que mon avis bien sûr… Ils font (je pense toujours encore) d'excellentes tartes flambées, ce qui est rare dans le Haut-Rhin, puisque le Bas-Rhin est nettement plus qualifié pour cette spécialité. Quoique je n'y suis plus jamais retourné depuis 2014, pour la simple raison que lorsque le patron est fatigué d'un long we de travail et qu'il veut fermer boutique, eh bien il passe pas par quatre chemins, il vient à votre table sans demander votre avis, avec le terminal de CB pour encaisser et vous dire qu'il ferme ! C'était un dimanche soir 21h30. Alors ça, moi on ne me l'a jamais fait dans aucun établissement que j'ai pu fréquenter et croyez moi j'en ai fréquenté ! Tout au plus de venir nous informer que l'établissement fermera bientôt ses portes, mais de cette façon aussi cavalière…je le répète ;...
Read moreDelicious Flammenkuchen, the traditional Alsace specialty. A thin sheet of pastry with a variety of toppings. The one in the picture is a sweet one with apple and calvados. The lady who served us was extremely friendly, switching between English and French. A great...
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