La Vie (Osnabrück, Germany)
The Place
Restaurant La Vie is a gastronomic restaurant located in the historical centre of Osnabrück. It is awarded with 3 Michelin stars & 19/20 points in the Gault&Millau guide. The restaurant is housed in a beautiful, imposing eighteenth century old building known as ‘Haus Tenge’. Its classical style makes it a perfect setting for a top restaurant. The building and interior exudes class and grandeur – elements that will also come back during your meal.
Inside restaurant La Vie one will notice classical elements as well as with modern art. The main dining room seats around 30 covers on the ground floor. The tables are very spacious and comfortable. On the first floor, there are different private dining rooms for private appointments and bigger groups.
The Chef
Chef Thomas Bühner was born in the Tecklenburger Land region in Germany. He gained experience in top houses such as Schwarzwaldstube in the Black Forest and Restaurant La Table in Dortmund.
He took over La Vie in 2006 and the restaurant quickly became a culinary landmark in Niedersachsen Germany.
The Food
Thomas Bühner’s cuisine retains some elements from the classical French cuisine, but, in true German fashion, it features a lot of attention to the small details on each plate. Punctuality and a well-thought structure are important! Luxurious produce is processed into technical dishes, and combined with German as well as more international ingredients.
You can choose from two different menus at La Vie. The first one, menu ‘Tradition & Qualité’, offers classical and signature dishes from La Vie. The menu ‘Le Grand Chef’ is a tasting menu where innovation and avant-garde cuisine are key. We enjoyed the last one:
Amuses
Menu
Wagyu dry aged for 30 days, fresh salad and cod consommé
Scallops with mandarin soy butter and lemon thyme
Octopus, confit of kimchi, and wild boar emulsion
Cured crayfish dish, combined with Bellota ham, egg yolk marinated with soya, and finished with black Périgord truffle
Winter mushrooms, “pickled leek”, impérial caviar, sweet potato, smoked squid fond
Oyster (Gillardeau), sweetbread, and purslane oyster sauce
“Etouffée pigeon, juniper smoke, and caramelised pumpkin juice
Le phébus, pine nut ice cream, persimmon, and soy sauce
New gold from Kalkriese
Beetroot, a little bit of coconut, spiced cookie, and parsnip
Mignardises
The Team
In the kitchen, Chef Thomas Bühner is assisted by Head chef Timo Fritsche to lead La Vie’s kitchen. Creative chef Hawan Jung creates new dishes that are ideal for the international style of La Vie. His dishes are a mix of excellent, intensely flavoured products and a perfect fusion of Asian and European cuisine.
Today ex-sous chef Tobias Pietzsch is responsible for the new second restaurant, which opened next doors. La Vie ‘Tastykitchen’ started as a pop up but is now constantly open for dinner. We enjoyed a nice dinner there the day before our lunch at La Vie:
The “Belgian Taste Buds” Experience
La Vie restaurant offers a unique take on the German cuisine and is definitely worth the detour to the remote Osnabrück area in Germany. German punctuality, luxurious ingredients, great wines and a highly skilled team are blended into one of the best dining experiences of the region.
Belgian Taste Buds:
- Food Buds 8.5/10
- Wine Pairing Buds 8.5/10
- Price/Quality Buds 8.5/10
- Service Buds 9/10
- Experience Buds 8.5/10
La Vie
Krahnstraße 1-2
49074 Osnabrück
Germany
Phone: +49 541 33 11 50
www.restaurant-lavie.de