Great food and wine pairing with a cool head waiter: Restaurant Hanse Stube @ Excelsior Hotel Ernst (1. September 2021)
I love meeting friends I haven’t seen in years and this was one of these occasions and he picked a lovely restaurant. Although it started with a few ‘complications’ like me running late from Frankfurt so we only were able to order around 9.15pm where they would usually not serve a five course tasting menu anymore which we wanted. And when we expressed our disappointment in our eyes that his was not possible anymore, the waiter returned shortly after and said the chef had agreed to preparing the “5 course signature menu” (EUR 104.00) and we had the “wine pairing” (EUR 69.00) with it. Which I considered an amazing move!
The evening then started with bread and butter which was not only very delicious but also a convenient momentum since we still had to wait a little bit for the first course.
The “amuse bouche” (I can’t quite recall what it was) was definitely a great start into the dinner since it triggered all the senses and flavor components and made you excited for more.
The “oven braised eggplant, lamb’s lettuce emulsion, pickled mushrooms and roasted buckwheat” really accounted for a great dish although the lamb’s lettuce emulsion didn’t bring its strongest players to the match.
The “foam soup of young leek, St. James Kaviar, pickled salmon, yogurt” ..
… finalized with soup turned out to be a very good happy dish.
The “fried scallop, blood sausage, roasted pearl onions, planed green apple and Blue Swede” were the next course in line and also rather enjoyable. I think nothing ever beats the scallops I had at the O Paparico 7 years ago.
To cleanse the palate, a small “peach sorbet” was served which was refreshing and really did the trick.
The main course was a “young deer’s back, mirabelle sauce, glaced peas, flamed mirabelle, and lardo-semolina strudel” and I must say, I liked it a lot. The deer back was cooked to perfection, the strudel was highly enjoyable, and the greens which came on the side were actually delicious. The combination of peas and the intensity of the underlying cream was just mouth-watering.
Last but not least, I had the “cheese selection by Maître Affineur Volker Waltmann from Erlangen” and I must say it was good but it wasn’t anyhting out of the ordinary.
The “petit fours” selection though was rather amazing. The selection was large and they were super generous (I suppose, also due to the fact that we were the last guests that evening) and I must say they had a few quite amazing chocolates to try – loved it.
I think I wouldn’t have walked into the Hanse Stube myself since I usually don’t chose hotel restaurants if I don’t stay in that specific restaurant. However, the Hanse Stube in the Excelsior Hotel Ernst in Cologne is definitely a place I will willingly visit again. A bit old-fashioned in terms of interior design and atmosphere but definitely appealing as the whole setting is consistent and the service personnel is actually quite amazing since they are super friendly, swift, and professional.
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Contact Details:
Restaurant Hanse Stube @ Excelsior Hotel Ernst
Trankgasse 1
50667 Cologne (DE)
Tel.: +49 221 270 34 02
Homepage: https://www.excelsiorhotelernst.com/restaurants-bar/hanse-stube/
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. 
