An amazing restaurant experience and a breath-taking wine cellar: Restaurant zum Gupf (23. November 2017)
The Gupf was on my to do list for approximately 10 years – and I had never managed to pay the restaurant a visit. And finally, the time had come! I went for “Walter Klose’s Gourmet Menü (5 course menu with two main courses)” (CHF 132.00) which started with “bread, curry butter, and olives”. The bread was fresh and aromatic and the curry butter was somewhat interesting.
As an amuse bouche, a “warm potato soup plus potato salad with beef slices” were served. The soup was delicious – and I especially like to get something warm to start.
As a first starter, I went for the “beef tartare prepared from their own beef with a quail egg”. The meat was lean and aromatic – what was a bit unusual was the fact that they didn’t really serve bread with it. But given the food was rich and aromatic, there was no need for that.
Next in line was a “variation of carrot served with a quail breast and curry foam”. The quail had a nice savoury flavour which went well with the carrot foam.
When we sat down, the truffles were already filling up the air in the room – so I was looking forward to the extra round and the “noodles with fresh truffles from Alba”. The truffle was fresh and aromatic and they were quite generous in applying it on the dish.
I loved the option to try two main courses – the “back of venison with creamy cabbage, spaetzle with lavender honey and cranberries” was the first to come and the venison was incredibly aromatic and had a perfect tenderness. The meal really showed the quality of the kitchen.
The second main was “veal fillet with veal cheek, served with autumn mushrooms and champagne risotto” and it was as good as the venison if not even a slight bit better. It really made me smile when having a bite of that veal as it was so rich and aromatic that all your taste buds start celebrating happiness in your mouth.
While it is not really a creative dish, the “brie with truffles from Alba” (CHF 34.00), again applied quite generously, was a great ending before the official ending to the dinner.
The “friandises” – while I admittedly can’t recall their exact flavours – were good too to finish off the evening.
What I like about the Gupf besides the high quality in food is the down-to-earth interior. The place is simple, nice, appealing, just somehow classy and classical while remaining traditional at the same time.
One of the true highlights of the evening at Gupf is their wine cellar which is led by Stefan, the sommelier, and which he was kind enough to give us a tour of. You find an incredible amount of different bottles and different wines from different regions from all over the world. And everything is organized so nicely, so lovely, so appealing that you would want to spend more and more time there.
The absolute highlight of the place is the ‘main wine cellar’ which is somehow also the min attraction. Not only because you find many different high class wines here but also because …
… the largest wine bottle made out of glass can be found here. It is 2.40m high and has properly bottled wine. There are larger bottles in the world but made out of plastic. I didn’t try the wine but even standing next to the thing is somewhat impressive.
And obviously there is an official certificate confirming the authenticity of the size of the wine bottle.
What I like about the sommelier and his concept of selling wine is that you don’t get the most expensive bottle of wine recommended but something which will be max. up to CHF 200.00 – unless you specifically ask for a more expensive bottle. And I think this is exactly the right way to go about it. We had the “15 Xisto Cru Seabra” (CHF 98.00) as a white wine first and then the “Maronea Casa Terra” (CHF 99.00) which were both excellent wines.
In terms of service, the staff at the Gupf is very well trained and professional while keeping the friendliness and care. However, when it comes to serving and taking the plate, it is not always done from the proper side.
I must say that my experience at Gupf was absolutely amazing – so I decided to book in advance and booked in about a year from now. And well, guess what? Yeah, almost booked out already! For November 2018! So, if you want to go to Gupf for a weekend, you should better book in advance and quite a bit in advance. What was most astonishing for me is the price level. Somehow I haven’t done my research in terms of pricing so I was quite surprised about how much we ended up paying – way less than expected which also shows in the prices for a “double espresso” (CHF 7.00), a “Paolo Berta” (CHF 20.00), a glass of “Barbaresco Roccalin” (CHF 13.00), a glass of “Malans Grauburgunder” (CHF 11.00) or a bottle of water Goba (CHF 11.60). Still, not exactly on the cheap side but in terms of price performance definitely at the upper end.
Rating:
| Atmosphere: |   |
| Service: | |
| Dishes: |  |
| Price-Performance Ratio: | |
| Overall Rating: | |
Contact Details:
Restaurant zum Gupf
Gupf 21
9038 Rehetobel (CH)
Tel.: +41 71 877 11 10
Fax: +41 71 877 15 10
E-Mail: info@gupf.ch
Homepage: http://www.gupf.ch
About the Author: Sven
I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org.
Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City. 
