Au Crocodile, Strasbourg’s iconic restaurant, offers traditional but not boring gourmet cuisine, and seems well on the way to regaining its former lustre.

When it came to finding a Michelin-starred restaurant in Strasbourg, I hardly gave it a second thought. And yet there’s so much to choose from! But for me, Au Crocodile’s reputation and history made it such an iconic place that I figured the others would have to wait for another stay, and that I could only start with this one. Even if I may be disappointed, as the property has had its ups and downs over its more or less recent history, I just couldn’t pass it up.

You’ll find all the articles about this weekend in Strasbourg at the bottom of the page.

A bit of history first

What an odd name for this restaurant in Alsace, unless crocodiles once inhabited the Ill or Rhine, but I don’t think so.

In 1801, Captain Ackermann, on his return from the Egyptian campaign, bought this former convent and opened a tavern. As a decoration, he will install the stuffed crocodile he brought from the banks of the Nile. The hanging animal made the property famous, with customers visiting the property just to see the beast. We don’t know what Arckermann was worth as a cook, but when it came to marketing, he was 2 centuries ahead of his time.

He sold the property in 1840, turning it into a full-fledged restaurant, but the crocodile remained, and still holds pride of place in the entrance hall.

The restaurant won its 1st Michelin star in 1958, lost it in 1969, regained it in 1972, was awarded a second star in 1975, then a third – the ultimate accolade – in 1989. Then it lost its stars one after the other, only to become starred again in 2015. It started all over again without a star with a new team in 2020, a star it has since quickly regained.

In the course of its history, it has had no fewer than 8 owners, and the current team has been in place since January 2020.

So it’s to a monument of French gastronomy that I’m going to pay a visit, in much the same spirit as I went to Lucas Carton earlier this year: curious to see a historic restaurant reinvent itself for the umpteenth time.

The concept

Au Crocodile is a fairly traditional gourmet restaurant with a touch of originality. It also promotes local products from Alsace.

The setting

The setting is plush but neither dusty nor stuffy. Even rather light and modern. On the contrary, the room is very airy. A remarkable decorative element is an original painting by painter Adolphe Grison, “La fête au village”, painted in 1874.

At first glance, the room seats around thirty.

The menu

Quite traditional with a touch of creativity, it brings together two influences dear to the chef’s heart: the South of France and the Alsace region. There’s also a discovery menu and a tasting menu with a secret composition but made up of dishes that make up the menu.

The meal

Impatient, I arrive a little early in front of the property.

I’m warmly welcomed, my coat check is taken and I’m seated at my table. I really like the way it’s decorated and the fact that the tables are well spaced out and make the most of it. The painting on the opposite wall lends a touch of majesty and historical patina to a very contemporary ensemble.

A warm oshibori is immediately brought to me. Attention that is lacking in many properties…

A waitress, a very nice one by the way, comes to ask me if I’d like some water or an aperitif. It will of course be both.

It will be a Gimonnet Blanc de Blanc, not bad at all.

It will be accompanied by amuses bouches.

In the meantime, I’m discovering the menu, but my choice is already made: it will be the tasting menu without wine pairing, something I appreciate less and less as it forces me to finish my glasses too quickly to keep up with the service. The sommelier kindly suggested that I give her the number of glasses that would suit me, and she managed that (very well).

Another thoughtful touch: eating alone, I’m offered magazines to read. I’ll decline, but I appreciate it.

On the other hand, the service is a bit hesitating. One person gives me the menu, a second takes my order, the first comes back to ask if I’ve been taken care of. If I add the aperitif and the wine order, I’ve been here less than 15 minutes and already four different people have come to take care of me. At some point, a little continuity doesn’t hurt.

As I wait for the service to begin, I watch the room fill up little by little. Two things catch my attention: firstly, how comfortable it is, and secondly, the table next door, which although several meters away is quite noisy, but more on that later.

Before I start, I’m brought a warm puff pastry brioche.

Not bad, but it would benefit from being a little more melt-in-the-mouth, but then I’m quibbling over details.

The first waitress comes back and asks if I’d like a second glass before the meal starts. Let’s be crazy, I accept with pleasure.

We finally get down to business with an amuse bouche: buffalo mozzarella cannelloni, asparagus velouté.

It’s nice and fresh and light. The velouté is quite light… well, it’s nothing to get too excited about, but it’s a good start.

Finally comes the first starter: grilled “Calçot”, mackerel and Violette mustard ice cream, with Alsace muscat vinaigrette.

Calçot is a Catalan vegetable somewhere between a leek and an onion, and before we start I’m invited to taste a grilled and smoked one.

The dish is served smoked, under a cloche.

It’s fresh and very tasty. Mackerel and calçot go very well together, and the violet mustard ice cream adds freshness and pep.

Taken independently, each ingredient is good, but the combination makes all the difference.

Then the second starter: Ebersheim snails with Alsace Pinot Noir sauce.

It’s good, light and tasty. I regret, however, that the taste of the snails fades so much behind that of the sauce.

Basically, there’s nothing special about snails with wine sauce, it’s the finesse of the cooking that changes everything.

First main course: Roasted monkfish, wild garlic and green asparagus from the Meinau islet.

The monkfish and asparagus are perfectly cooked, but I regret that the smokiness of the sauce blunts their flavor a little too much.

On the other hand, the sauce and emulsion are perfectly balanced, but I regret that for this reason the monkfish is not the star of the dish.

I’m convinced but not thrilled.

Second main course: Jersiais beef tenderloin from the “Belles robes” farm and lemongrass jus.

The meat is good but not excellent (I still remember the wagyu eaten at Cilantro in Kuala Lumpur a few months earlier), but the lemongrass sauce makes all the difference.

The stuffing of the origami, on the other hand, was superb! That alone transforms a dish.

The first truly surprising dish of this dinner.

Then comes the cheese cart.

My selection: Camembert with goat’s cheese, Comté 36 months, Fumster, Livarot. All served with homemade pear jam.

Pre-dessert: pear brunoise, lemon, pana cotta, pear chips and fermented pear juice.

Pleasant flavour and welcome freshness at the end of a meal.

Finally, the dessert: Madagascar vanilla crystalline and Madagascar vanilla-infused olive oil.

Fresh and light. An original idea, but I’m still wondering what the oil is for.

When it’s time to order a digestif, I’m delighted to see that they still have some Chartreuse Verte VEP, which is very, very hard to find at the moment. It’s the perfect accompaniment to my coffee.

This will be an opportunity to have a long chat with the sommelier about the difficulties of sourcing Chartreuse in the industry. Very nice.

I finally ask for the bill, which takes a long time to arrive.

All in all, a traditional and fine cuisine, well executed, which could only be criticized for being a little too classic. On the other hand, when everyone plays the creativity card, it can be a good thing. It’s a bit like the 28+ in Gothenburg or the Cilantro in Kuala Lumpur (to mention only my recent experiences), but better.

Compared to Philippe Etchebest’s Maison Nouvelle, I’d say it’s more conventional and less emotional. Not a reproach, just a choice and an observation.

The service

Nice but polite, unlike the livelier and warmer Maison Nouvelle where I was recently. Again, it’s a choice.

In any case, the staff are very pleasant and friendly, and our discussions contributed to my overall positive impression of the dinner.

The atmosphere

Muffled and pleasant, not heavy at all.

On the other hand, I had a table a few meters away that was so noisy that at one point I could hear their conversations so clearly that I felt like I was dining at their table.

Clearly a table of elected officials or local civil servants, with a few notables. No discretion, it talked a lot about a weekend of political negotiations and reflections that didn’t speak to me as a tourist, but I’m not sure their colleagues and constituents would have liked to hear all about it. It just goes to show that the people who behave worst in restaurants aren’t the ones you might first think.

At one point they even made my experience quite painful.

Bottom line

If the Crocodile is on the way to regaining its former lustre, we can be confident for the future. The menu is classic but well executed, even if a little more fantasy would be nice, and the service is in the same vein.

Irreproachable in substance, it lacks perhaps a little emotion in form.

The articles about this weekend in Strasbourg

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