Tanja Grandits or as it was called Stucki is spread over several rooms in a large mansion in a residential neighborhood of Basel. The restaurant was named for Hans Stuki who opened it in the 1960s and ran it until passing away in 1998. Chef Tanja Grandits took over in 2008 and has since obtained a 2 Michelin Star rating. It is a modern looking place inside with gray walls and carpet. The good sized tables are well spaced and set with white clothes and napkins. There were votive candles and small flowers on the table but both had broken blooms included. The lighting was slightly softened and the windows to the outside were covered with drapes. There was no music in the background and the room had a small center service table. They serve only a tasting menu of 8 or 12 courses and offer wine pairings as well as non-alcoholic pairings. We got the longer tasting and ordered our own wines. Pacing was awful, starting really slow, speeding up and then moving to painfully slow but portion control was good.
A welcome was a plate with pickled pumpkin in a cup shape filled with orange. It was warm and lovely. Also on the plate were pumpkin croquettes which were fried balls with a soft, mildly flavored filling. A broth of pumpkin was brought out by Chef Grandits.
Bread service was housemade baguettes and brown bread. They were served with lemon pepper and seed butter as well a plain salted butter. The baguette had a great crust.
The tasting started with Mackerel, green tea oil and green beans. The beans and fish were nicely cooked and the dish had lots of textures but really mild flavors.
Wagyu with Honey Tataki and shiso radish were both cooked perfectly and good together or on their own. The radish was crisp yet tender and the sauces mixed nicely with all. The excellent wagyu beef was the beef butter I’ve come to expect.
Corn with anise essence and peanut Sot-l’y-Laisse and corn cream were in a bowl with chicken. It was topped off with excellent broth. It came with a fried filet of chicken dotted with passion fruit and mango. It was an excellent bite of chicken with the fun sauce.
Goat cheese, beetroot gnocchi and longpepper whey was served warm. The gnocchi were slightly gummy but the tender crisp beets had no hint of earthiness. It was a sweet and sour combination of things with lots of texture variations. An interesting plate.
Zander (Walleye like fish) was plated with lime cabbage and bay broth. The fine flake fish was moist and tasty with a really crisp skin. The broth was quite tart and the cabbage a bit tough to cut but not so bad to eat. Overall it was a good combination.
Langoustine was paired with oven tomato and grapefruit laksa. A bisque of shellfish was deeply flavored with a hint of bitterness. The langoustine was cooked nicely.
Ceps were served with juniper dumplings and cedar kernels. The ceps were muddy and the flavor was astringent. The onions had a crisp to them but came off greasy. The kernels (seeds) didn’t sing to me. This was not a favorite.
Shank of lamb was seasoned with cumin gremolata beside spinach ravioli. The lamb had a very gelatinous quality and the green goo underneath was overkill to go with a spinach pasta. The lamb was cooked nicely but overall this course would only rate okay.
Veal filet was with a purée of parsnip topped with parsnip tempura and a black sesame glaze. The glaze was on the salty side; the veal was nicely cooked but tasted dull. The fried parsnip were tasty but they quickly got soft from the sauce and purée. Some of the parsnips were woody.
Brillat Savarin (cheese) was with celery relish and tarragon hazelnut. It was a creamy mild cheese with strongly flavored crisp celery and a hint of tarragon. Overall this one was not a winner.
Broccoli was served with peppermint ice cream and buttermilk mousse. Bits of broccoli were next to a meringue-type pile. The ice cream was next to some seeds which gave it texture. There was a lot of green on this plate (and in the meal).
Apple, fennel sorbet and caramel spelt brittle made up the second dessert. Raw bits of apple were mixed with the apple juice and then mixed with herbs. This one was too acidic for my tastes and not a very satisfying sweet fix.
The last treats included pumpkin lollipops on a crunchy bottom which were good, chocolate with yuzu that was chocolatey, an olive oil tart on a crunchy cracker that was buttery good and a red beet root coconut cracker that was a nice combination of texture and tastes.
