Amsel

Determined to break free from Alsace’s sauerkraut stranglehold, three wine-loving friends – Romain Delorme (the former maître d’hôtel for Julien Binz), Aurélie Fayolle (a winemaker at the Domaine Geschickt) and Rémi Ségura (a sales rep for Les Vins Pirouettes) – have taken over an old hotel-restaurant located at the entrance of a winemakers’ village. Here you’ll find them popping open an exceptional lineup of bottles, paired with dishes that are far more than just an afterthought. The result of their union? A bistro with the soul of a winstub, reimagined for a new generation (herringbone parquet flooring, muslin curtains, custom furniture, a small trolley stocked with Alsatian eaux-de-vie brandies), where the Japanese chef Ken Katsumi (ex-Troisgros in Tokyo), in residence until October, whips up delightful eats: cheeky wild boar terrine infused with gewürztraminer; simple but satisfying and perfectly cooked teriyaki chicken thigh, served with mashed potatoes; and pear poached in mulled wine, with crumble topping and Chantilly cream. It’s also worth noting that they host flammekueche soirées every Friday night. // Pascal Diagonale

FEELING THIRSTY? Grab a bottle for yourself from the big windowed wine cellar, stocked with local gems and tantalizing bottles from further away: Dessous De Table, a vibrant sylvanner-auxerrois by Catherine Riss (€6 a glass), Grand Cru Frankstein 2016, a pinot gris by Beck-Hartweg (€58 a bottle), or Frisson Des Cimes, a Savoie red by Marie and Florian Curtet (€45). For something non-alcoholic, there are sparkling mint or blackcurrant leaf herbal infusions from Symples (€5 for 330 ml).
PRICE: : Set menu €27 (lunch), à la carte €41-60, kids’ meal €12.