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LASplash.com: International St. Moritz London Review - Get Your Fondue Fix By Splash Magazines Staff Writer
Made for dipping, nibbling, and sharing, Fondue just might be the perfect way for friends, families or couples to get together on any occasion. St. Moritz is the best place in London where you can get your Fondue fix. Located on Wardour street in the heart of London, St. Moritz offers several different varieties of fondue choices as well as bratwurst and the best rösti outside of Switzerland. The menu at St. Moritz also includes a plethora of other mouth watering “comfort food” style traditional dishes and a full Swiss wine list. For those of you not familiar with Swiss cuisine, “rösti” is a delicious potato dish soft on the inside with a perfectly crispy top layer.
Named after the exclusive ski resort town in Switzerland, St. Moritz was established in 1974 by renowned proprietor and chef Armin Loetscher. Mr. Loetscher’s employees all refer to him as a lovely man who more often than not is on site at the restaurant making sure that everything is running smoothly. The décor in St. Moritz is reminiscent of a 60’s style European ski lodge with Swiss music in the background lending to the lively yet authentic atmosphere.
History of Fondue: Fondue is a popular dish which comes from Switzerland where villagers in the mountains had to rely on local produce, like cheese, wine and home baked bread during the long winter months. The name fondue comes from the French word "fondre", which means to melt or blend. Fondue meaning melted cheese in wine. A recipe for a sauce made from Pramnos wine, grated goat’s cheese and white flour appears in Scroll 11 of Homer’s Illiad and has been cited as the earliest record of fondue. Swiss communal fondue arose many centuries ago as a result of food preservation methods. Switzerland, known for its long, cold and treacherous winters was the place where families and extended groups would gather around large pots of cheese set over fire and dip wood hard bits of bread making the bread quickly become edible. By the 19th and 20th centuries fondue was already popular all over Europe and was introduced in the mid 1960’s to the United States after American tourists discovered it in Switzerland.
At St. Moritz there are so many different choices that you will have to go back again and again to fully experience the menu. For an appetizer you must try the rösti but be sure to split and share it with everyone at your table for it is so delicious that you may end up eating it all and not having room for the rest of your dinner. The prawn cocktail is amazing, with its non-traditional pink cream dip it veers away from boring old red tomato cocktail dipping sauce, leaving you wanting more.
The most important part of your feast will of course be the fondue! With the great number of options you can choose traditional bread for dipping into your fondue or you can take the healthy route and choose seasonal vegetables to dip (perfect for vegetarians). While carnivores can elect to order strips of meat to dip. If you opt for strips of meat, your maître-de will bring out a pot of boiling water which you will souse your meat into until it looks well done and perfect to your liking. You can then slide the stick of meat into your Gruyere fondue pot or one of the several cream dips that come with the dish –delightfully scrumptious. Any one of the crisp yet light white wines on the wine list will compliment the cheese so nicely and won’t feel heavy. Make sure to leave room for chocolate fondue (“fondue au chocolat”) for dessert. Next time you’re in London make sure to stop by St. Moritz! St. Moritz For More Information Please Visit: www.stmoritz-restaurant.co.uk
Published Jun 7, 2008 © Copyright 2003-2004 by LA Splash.com |
