For the Love of Foraged Food by
CHANTAL PANOZZO
How a celebrated Swiss chef has turned high-end dining into a down-to-earth experience VIDEO
INTERVIEW
MUSIC
RECIPE
COCKTAIL
BOOK
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ENSEMBLE TR AVELER ’S TABLE 2021
VIDÉO In July 2019, when chef Sven Wassmer opened his latest restaurant, Memories, in the Swiss spa town of Bad Ragaz, he began a new chapter of his life. But before doing so he had to leave behind the two hardearned Michelin stars awarded to his former employer. That didn’t worry ENTREVUE Wassmer, who was also awarded 18 Gault Millau points in 2018. Despite all the accolades, he is still humble enough to personally serve guests, including me, the food he cooks. What happens before MUSIQUE your meal ever hits the dining room is what matters most. Imagine this – Wassmer, wandering the steep slopes and deep woods of Bad Ragaz. In all types of weather, there he is foraging for wild fruit, herbs, RECETTE– the best of which end and mushrooms up on diners’ plates at Memories. Saying he has an appreciation for produce is an understatement. Wassmer isCOCKTAIL a guy I might have a drink with – if he wasn’t so busy. He operates his kitchen with such precision it almost appears as if his crisp, white-collared team is performing surgery instead of preparing hay kombucha for my first course. LIVRE
The amber liquid is served in a plain bowl. On its inner rim is a small bouquet of hay. I hold the bowl up to my mouth and inhale. I’m immediately transported out of the dining room and into to the surrounding Alps while the flavor of a freshly picked apple swirls around in my mouth and a surprisingly spicy aftertaste cleanses my palate. For the next course, all that matters to Wassmer is that my carrot tastes like a carrot. But a funny thing happens when a chef makes a carrot taste like itself, it’s no longer a carrot. It’s a culinary piece of art. “The longer I cook, the more I leave out,” he explains. He sets the “Carrot from Pratval” in front of me.
