Our ongoing excursions about Europe continued this weekend with a trip to Luxembourg. The city holds many treasures for the visitor, but none more pleasurable than the great food, sights, and people at the city’s center. We stopped off for a light lunch during filming at a fascinating little spot called à La Soupe. As it turned out, this chic yet simple eatery is something of a culinary experiment people should know about.
Luxembourg has its share of superb restaurants, cafes, bistros, and brasseries to tempt any palate or temperament. For those who don’t know the city at all, it is a cross between Paris, Bucharest, and the banking district of Zürich. And, Luxembourg is a “money” place, let’s not make any bones about that. Here is where à La Soupe (and her parent restaurant La Brasserie Speltz) depart from the ordinary.
It’s like this; once organic food has been delicately and carefully cooked, and presented, once the atmosphere for a great dining experience is set – there is the service. As the reader already knows, service defines any venue – particularly places to eat. Soup of the Day – Excellence.
At à La Soupe we not only found innovation, the finest organic ingredients, and Luxembourg prices a Walmart shopper could live with – we found people who decidedly care. My first thoughts about the staff at à La Soupe was; “Whoever hired these people knew what they were doing.” We discovered how true this perception was later in the evening, but for now let’s talk exquisite and affordable soup and service.à La Soupe is a modern spot, sporting an open kitchen and simple but elegant seating arrangement.
On entering one cannot help but be slightly overwhelmed by so many soup concoctions brewing behind the counter – or the clean visual picture of the staff preparing no less than a dozen different recipes – their classy aprons notably pressed and crisp. If not for the special prices clearly displaced out front, the new visitor would fully expect a fleecing – the location and feeling are that nice. And the soup?
Somehow on this day fresh fish soup seemed right, but deciding seemed more than half the battle here. There is something about watching soup being made, I never actually thought about it before, à La Soupe actually capitalized on something Earthy and genuine I finally realized. Soup made this way? That is what “homemade” is all about – no matter where you are from.
I said the service defined this place. By that I meant the multinational staff were extraordinary for a gourmet restaurant, let alone an inexpensive soup bar (my new term). How can I characterize these nice people, so you see them I mean? Well, what if I call them, expert, friendly, kind, knowledgeable, helpful, fast (but not too), and eager – eager to answer any and all questions.
When was the last time you ate at a place where the staff actually took note of your movements – your interests? Imagine someone cooking a new soup recipe, as you sit across from them eating your fish variety, and then taking note of your interest – pouring a small bowl for you to try. Like I said, differentiation is the key to success, and à La Soupe has many such variables. But let’s move on to the “why” of this positive restaurant experience – the owners of La Brasserie Speltz and à La Soupe.Knowing and Doing, That’s Success
Our tour of Luxembourg’s center took us pretty far afield, but we were do interested in the people behind à La Soupe, we revisited La Brasserie Speltz at opening. We caught one of the proprietors, Carlo Speltz, entertaining a guest at a table outside the restaurant, and on our approach extended a friendly hand. We asked him for some details about his establishments, which prompted him to lead us amid a rather large dinner party going on inside.
As you can see from the images and video, La Brasserie Speltz is a very elegant yet down to Earth venue. Again, the silver being exactly in place, and the wine glasses being sparkling clean – these are things to expect, differentiation here means your standards are low. The striking thing here was the Carlo, his staff, and particularly his partner – chef Pascal Henrot, the man who created all those fantastic soups across the way.
Carlo’s guests awaited, so he left us in the capable hands of Pascal – who despite having 60 guests outside, took the time to answer our questions. Pascal and his staff were in the midst of preparing a salmon dish straight out of a magazine spread. What struck me about him, besides his kindness, was his calm and kind way. His son ran into the kitchen at one point, unflustered Pascal patted him on the head – his wife (whom I recognized from à La Soupe) spiriting the child away – sweetly.
Oh, I mentioned the question of “how” some restaurateurs differentiate themselves by hiring the right people? It’s obvious, they pick people just like themselves.