Take a look inside a mysterious Swiss castle serving delicious bites with a stunning view.
By Lilit Mkrtchyan
Mysterious, sublime and inconceivable… Three peculiarities denoting the Burg Hohenklingen standing on top of the hill in the charming medieval city of Stein am Rhein in Switzerland. This castle, originally built in the Middle Ages and reconstructed in 2005-2007, is a jubilant landmark of the medieval Stein am Rhein, which can be seen from the very heart of the city and the banks of the river Rhine. 
The castle is notable with many regards, in particular because it was formerly owned by the Lords of Hohenklingen who ruled the city of Stein am Rhein. Nowadays, this whimsy castle attracts visitors with its splendid restaurant on the top providing gourmet dishes, prepared through investing a special kind of culinary art. French cuisine, marine delicacies, meat and vegetarian specialities are on the menu list of the restaurant. Pia and Roman Bach-Rasmussen who presently manage the restaurant have created enticingly warm ambience inside this special venue.
Earlier this year, I had the honour to visit the faerie Stein am Rhein and sense the overwhelming temptations in the restaurant of the castle Hohenklingen. Enticed by the scent of delicious spices, I followed the waitress through the inside venue of the restaurant who accompanied me to the tenderly-designed balcony: small round and quadrate tables decorated with gentle tablecloth of mint colour, cream colour serviettes and plants on each table. All these attributes accompanied by panoramic scenery of the faerie Stein am Rhein, Lake Constance and the river Rhine.
The server gently offered me to look at the varied assortment of the dish list in the menu. My eyes glazed upon the starters and main course list and surfed through the tenderly fried French duck breast with spicy paprika sauce served with black rice and vegetables; then I went through the dessert list and swallowed with my eyes the delightful homemade Catalan cream with cacao, raspberry sherbet and nut brittle. Though in the pursuit of temptations, I eventually focused my attention on the juicy Salmon in the fish-dish list of the menu and ordered Scottish salmon, grilled to perfection, served on peperonata and spicy Genoese pesto with parsley potatoes. As an accompanying note, I wished for the local wine Blauburgunder, which I was advised to taste earlier that day by an experienced tour guide from the local tourist office: a dry red wine with tender notes of delicacy, an ideal company for a truly memorable romantic evening.
The restaurant adapts its cuisine according to seasons, serving dishes in line with each season’s tastes and aromas.
There is no better way to stimulate your appetite than climbing up the restaurant on the hill through the steep stairs in the lovely forest, which might take you approximately forty minutes to reach there (according to locals, Stein am Rhein has an old-fashioned way of life and is a purely safe place to live in and walk around during the night). Either way, you may take a taxi and arrive there in nearly five minutes from the centre of the town.
The restaurant has its worth to be named as a high-class dining venue where you are welcome with Swiss elegant hospitality. This castle-like restaurant offers a wide range of possibilities: from spending an intimate romantic evening with your sweet half in the balcony salon with truly memorable views of the river Rhine, to celebrating graduation or wedding ceremony in the inside venue… The choice is yours. Whenever you opt for the elegance of the balcony salon, be sure: you have selected an idyllic place for an absolute relaxation.
If You Go:
Burg Hohenklingen
http://www.burghohenklingen.com/restaurant.php
Schaffhausen Tourismus
http://www.schaffhauserland.ch/en/
Photo Credits:
Lilit Mkrtchyan
