In kimonos we sit on the terrace with a Swiss sparkling wine and can hardly believe our eyes: passenger boats glide past on the lake, gulls bob on the waves, a Ferris wheel by the KKL slowly turns, the mountains glow, the water glitters, and the sunlight bathes everything in gold. This view makes us quite forget that we have a table booked.
So we change quickly, even though in our kimonos – provided in the room in addition to the bathrobe – we’d have fitted right into the restaurant. For we dine at the Japanese «Minamo». In evening dresses we slip through the bar where, in dim light, people sit at the counter and couples at the tables. Three men rise and follow us into the small room – we’ll spend the whole evening with them.
The sommelière was already expecting us. Beside me sits Christian Wildhaber, director here at the Mandarin Oriental Palace. The building stood empty for a long time, which is really a shame, for its location on Lake Lucerne is unique. The Hong Kong owners spared no expense on the refurbishment of this 1906 Grand Hotel with 136 rooms. In the process, this Japanese dining counter «Minamo» also came about – where we are now sitting.
Japanese Finger Food
The chef, Toshiro San, is of German-Japanese descent and can explain everything in German. Explanations are needed, questions too: we take part in an eight-course omakase. Omakase translates as «I leave it up to you» – the chef decides the menu. For two hours we dive into this culinary world, accompanied by designer tableware and a sake journey. After the soups – including an umami bomb of chawanmushi – come mayo-marinated kingfish with a dab of caviar, gold leaf, shiso blossoms and Sichuan pepper. Meanwhile Toshiro San shapes the nigiri from two kinds of rice. We eat them by hand, for in Japan maki and nigiri are finger food.
After two hours of culinary wellness we step briefly onto the terrace. Music drifts from the speakers, the weather has lured people outside once more. My companion has worked here herself and remembers: back then the reception stood in the middle of the hotel; today it has been moved to the left end of the building and enlarged. As we arrived, a Chinese tour group was just being checked in – bad timing? Luckily it went swiftly, and we were attended to at once. We round off the evening with a nightcap on our terrace. In kimonos, of course. We sink into the beds and listen to sleep music from the small, portable speaker on the bedside table. Anyone who’d like to wake up this way is in from 783 francs for a double room; a suite like ours costs 1,499 francs a night.
The Spa Door Stays Shut
In the morning the rooms have completely changed function. Where we ate Japanese yesterday, there now stand muesli ingredients and warm dishes; yesterday’s bar looks more like a bakery and juice bar. The viennoiseries smell tempting, the cheese selection is lavish. Since the previous evening’s meal was light, we happily fill a plate and drink green tea from the pot. The morning, though, gets off to a bumpy start: having misremembered the spa opening times, I find myself two hours too early at a locked door – and, on top of that, I’ve locked myself out of the room. So all that’s left is the walk to reception, in a kimono, as if on a catwalk, eyed by a few baffled breakfast guests. Walking fast in such a kimono is impossible anyway – the long fabric prevents large strides.
30 «Gault Millau» Points Under One Roof
Towards evening I try again – all alone. A larger sauna, a steam bath, sensory showers and two relaxation rooms await. In the sauna I turn the hourglass, but have to give up after a few minutes: too hot, and the temperature is posted nowhere. Nor do I last long in the darkened steam bath, having failed to cool down properly first. In the evening I meet a friend who lives in Lucerne and knows anecdotes from the old Palace. As the bartenders serve champagne, she tells her stories. Later we sit in the Colonnade, where chef Gilad Peled and his team serve an eight-course menu. Peled has been awarded a Michelin star and 16 «Gault Millau» points – and at the Minamo, too, Toshiro San cooks at 14-point level. Today I eat vegetarian, my companion meat. With lovingly plated dishes we begin a promising evening whose end I’m in no hurry to reach – except, perhaps, to slip back into the kimono.
* The stay was supported by Mandarin Oriental.
This article appeared in MEN issue 2/23 (November 2023).
