European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 14, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Review a crazy kind of Guy with wonderful sense of lunacy by sgt ret Clement Lounder i got this Tattoo on my left fore Arm that says born to eat and there Are very few things in this world truer than that except maybe the fact that there is a surprising number of sickos around these Days. I m talking your authentic dyed in the Wool sickos people who Are out there running their cars Down crowded sidewalks and discharging firearms in shopping malls and generally doing your mental Type things that Are causing grave bodily damage to usually innocent persons. And that is not even to mention people like this Navy family that gave our military secrets away to the bolsheviks for the Cost of a new Hairpiece. Yep you read right for a Hairpiece. They sold out our great country Lor the Price of a new Toupee. Arc we talking Grade a morons Here indeed we Are. But luckily there Are some not quite right people in this world whose craziness is to the Benefit of Mankind and one of them is a Guy named Wilfried Nestle who is the owner of a Little restaurant called la because in the rheingau that Brewster Doody and me ate at the other week. I say Nestle is crazy Only because he could be the top chef at any number of Fine restaurants in Paris which is where he got his training but he is instead running this place in Binge Bruck Germany a town which is probably never going to be picked As one of the Sites of the world s fair if you get my Drift. Worst of All the restaurant looks like a Gasthaus from the outside because before Nestle took the place Over about a year ago it was a Gasthaus run by the Henninger Beer people. So not Only is it hard to find but you Are always having your German worker types in overalls or them Blue lab Coats coming in looking for something that s pan Fried and got noodles on the Side. Despite that Brewster and me found the place pretty easily parked his to As far off the Road As possible and settled Down inside with a couple of dry sherries while we perused the menu. The place has Only six tables so it s kind of cozy and it s got Oriental throw rugs and lots of Wicker and dried plants and antique photographs around. I especially liked the fact that All the wines and cognacs Are stacked right out in the dining room so you can kind of be planning your drinks while you re  and i finally settled on the daily menu which kicked off with a Duck Pate laced with truffles them Little Black mushrooms that Are a real delicacy delicacy is i think originally a French word meaning expensive because they grow underground and you have to use dogs and pigs to snort them out. Despite that the Pate was very tasty and came served on a Large plate surrounded with lots o Little bits of things for color. A sprig of Oak Leaf wih ried Nestle brings French cooking to his fix table restaurant in the rheingau. Coming up had her open us a 1979 chateau Fouscas Dupre a red Bourdeaux. Before we moved on though we had a Little quince sherbet to take the taste of fish out of our Mouths. It s a trick called cleansing your palate and i d be willing to bet the French invented it the breast of Duck thai arrived a Little later was another visual masterpiece this time in shades of Orange and Green. Try to picture slices of Light Orange Gold Duck topped with a couple of Orange Pink shrimp then Sweet carrots a solitary Brussels sprout a few More of them straight Beans and a Little chunk of turnip on the Side. Plus a Little Square of deep Fried potatoes. The whole works was in a very Fine sauce also Orange in color that Nestle told us later was mostly Basil and Butler mixed in with the Duck juices. Brewster promptly said he wanted to be buried in Basil and butter. Dessert was your homemade Caramel ice Cream with hot raspberries served in a port and grand Mariner sauce which we had with a couple of glasses of Champagne. We would be stayed for Coffee and Cognac but Brewster had just got the new Mantovani docs Mick lettuce a Little slice of Kiwi some tiny and very straight Green Beans plus a bit of Tomato. Very pretty. A soup was next made from Krause Gluck which according to my let s get wild in the Kitchen Cookbook is one of them Large european mushrooms that sort of resembles a sponge. The soup also featured some Cress a Plant i have Al quays put in the same grouping As Young women that is of Little use in the Kitchen. Here though it was a Nice Garnish and wrinkled pieces of both the Cress and the mushrooms were floating in the liquid a Light Cream that had taken on the color of the herbs and was a Pale Green about the same Shade As stretch pants or Lime sherbet. Again Fine tasting and with striking colors. This Guy Nestle is a real artist who paints his plates with food and this is one occasion i got to say that just looking was nearly As Good As doing. After we d knocked off the soup the waitress brought in the fish course which All by itself i got to Tell you right now was Worth the entire trip. We re talking Little fillets of Pink and White Salmon Here sprinkled with caviar and wrapped tight in spit Kohl a cabbage that Only tastes a Little bit like cabbage. It was All floating in a Cream sauce and that fish was so tender that if you just rested your knife on it the Blade would slice through easier than wind through a Kmart sweater. Even Brewster whose general idea of a tender moment is watching a Charles Bronson movie had to admit that this was delicate and very major Chow. We d been sluicing Down a half bottle of White wine a 1982 Rully recommended by the waitress and in anticipation of the meat course that was record and was anxious to get Home to his turntable. Driving Back listening to the slight Knock in the Goat s no. 3 Cylinder Brewster and me worked out our rating for Nestle and la because. First off the food is lovingly and very beautifully prepared. Brewster and me Felt sure that if we d tried some of the other stuff he s got beef and veal files plus the House specially of oxtail and Many other things they would All be As Good. Location is a minus though and with just six tables you re basically going to have to get reservations. Still Nestle Speaks some English and i have met few restaurant owners who seem to enjoy entertaining people so much. La because is at 11 Stromberger in Binge Bruck just outside of Bingen Germany. The restaurant is closed monday. It opens noon to 2 . For lunch and 6 to 11 . For dinner. Call 06721-36175 for reservations. Expect to pay around $20 per person not counting wine. Me and Brewster give the place four pointy fingers. Rating b & b is q awesome eats we re talking Paradise on a plate Here. Of is h s one dining. Crack service and memorable food and drink. H b b solid Chow. Good food of atmosphere and pleasant service. 3 q decent. About equal to a Ponderosa Steak House. Of path butt. Crummy Chow so so service Semi ratty Interior. November 14, ims stripes Magazine 17