Thanks to our ever-generous study abroad program, my fellow CUPA students and I spent the weekend in Alsace. Those of you who remember your European history will remember that this region has passed back and forth between French and German hands over the past few centuries. It's a region still known for its white wines (more on that in my next post!), German-sounding Alsatian dialect, and hearty German-influenced food, among other things.
As you stroll through the charming streets of maisons aux colombages under signs with the old names for guilds (corporations in French), you might think you'd crossed the border into Germany...
ESPECIALLY if you wandered into the area known as (somewhat contradictorily) "La Petite France"...
Strudel and pretzels (known as "bretzels" in France) abound - even a bretzel crocodile!
Three of us stopped into a cute little restaurant, tucked away behind a large wooden door on a side street.
We were offered a little appetizer of head cheese (read description at your own discretion!), so I amused myself with spoonfuls of the strong mustard from the little ceramic jar on our table. S. ordered this little fella...
...and ordered this feuilleté with Munster cheese and choucroute (sauerkraut), after double-checking with the waitress that it was vegetarian...
...but S. double-checked the sauce for me and confirmed my fears: the sauce was definitively beef-based! I let the waitress know, but she seemed unconcerned: as long as a sauce doesn't have chunks of meat in it, and just has beef broth à la base, it's considered vegetarian in Alsace! Ça me fait chier!!!
Still, I tried not to let the fact that I had ingested cow distract me from enjoying Strasbourg. We met up with the rest of the group in front of the cathedral - one of the most intricately-decorated Gothic cathedrals I've ever seen!
Lucky puppy - touch his nose!
Astronomical clock! We missed the big show at noon, but we still got to see the 1pm.
We then continued our walking tour out in town...
The skinniest house in all of Strasbourg:
Look what we found: the best of pretzels and donuts, all rolled into one! I'm kind of surprised the Americans didn't think of this one first...
Aaaand...if you're wondering if a Nutella-filled beignet is a good idea, just look at how many were left by the time we got there:
S. tries on some traditional Alsatian garb...well, sort of...
~
Oh hey, it's me in my 10euro hat, checking out vintage cameras at a flea market! [Photo cred. to Miss S.]
Now, my story gets interesting...all of CUPA had reservations for dinner at a highly-recommended restaurant, Au Tire-Bouchon:
Pleasant enough interior, and there was both red and white wine on every table. Our large group was scattered amongst several tables throughout the restaurant, and S. and I just happened to sit with the directrice of our program!
As we were a group of about forty, we had ordered our food beforehand through CUPA. Since there's usually only one vegetarian option on the list, my decisions were quite easy! The first course (for me) was a lovely and typically-French plate of crudités: carrottes rapées (grated carrot salad), beet salad, and celeri remoulade (celery root grated in a creamy mayonnaise-y sauce). Delicious and refreshing.
All I knew about my next course was that it was supposed to be some sort of "assiette de légumes" (vegetable plate) - that's what I had selected from the group menu. But what I got was this:
A tureen (there's never been a more appropriate occasion to use that word) of bibeleskaas (the Alsatian version of fromage blanc - literally "white cheese," is the yogurt-like substance lacking yogurt's bacteria cultures that French eat either savory or sweet), garnished with raw onions, AND an almost-empty plate with four little mounds of parsley, chopped onions, chives, and minced garlic.
WHAT!?
Everyone at my table stared at this strange offering and wondered what I should do with it. Was something else still coming? Was I supposed to add the toppings to the bibeleskaas, or mix them on the plate?
In my head, I was also wondering, Will I be able to digest that amount of un-cultured dairy product without extreme discomfort?
Madame la directrice stopped a passing waiter to ask for an explanation for my bizarre dishes. The waiter assured us that some sautéed potatoes were coming.
While I wasn't exactly keen on the thought of eating simple carbohydrates with a mound of dairy that would surely upset my intestines, I was willing to do it for the sake of the cultural experience...
And so we waited...and waited...and waited.
Finally, it became clear that the kitchen had forgotten about my sautéed potatoes; so I seized the opportunity to order an omelette. This beauty arrived:
A+ for presentation, no?
A lovely omelet aux herbes fines, garnished with purple basil and flanked by some sautéed carrot ribbons in butter.
I thus ended the evening as the very happy envy of every CUPA vegetarian.
~
Four of us spent the later part of the evening at L'Academie des Bières, where we sampled four varieties in 50cl glasses, and enjoyed the cozy pub atmosphere - what more could one want?
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