Bodo Müller
Google
An adventurous and breathtaking journey on an extremely narrow road leads up to the Kogel 3 restaurant in southern Styria just before the Slovenian border.
The view is certainly unique during the day, which I was unfortunately not granted to see and evaluate.
The interior is tasteful and kept simple but noble.
The staff is friendly attentive and shows humor.
To give a final and fair evaluation is with scheduled and regularly changing chefs with a one-time visit - in a cheerful group and on top of that at Corona times - at the beginning of 2022 certainly not achievable with a visit, yet I would like to try.
Since we had booked a menu with a fixed beverage selection, my evaluation is limited to this.
There was an amuse-gueule in the form of a tuna tartare, which was very subtly seasoned, with a piece of rye bread. Unfortunately, the waiters were not very pro-active in taking the appetizer selection, so that many of my fellow guests, through ignorance, neglected to explicitly order the liver dumpling soup (very low-sodium flavored) or even a side salad (which I deliberately chose not to have). The beef tartare was well done in terms of craftsmanship and appearance. I looked in vain for a separate egg yolk or one that stood out from the tartare, as well as fresh pepper and salt from the shaker to adjust. Taste-wise it was - you guessed it - very fine, almost timid, seasoned, so to speak "á la nature". The liver dumpling soup consisted of a subtly salted beef bone broth which was provided with an insert of crunchy root vegetables and the eponymous liver dumplings. The dumplings - along with the sumptuous caper of beef tartare - were the most characterfully flavored components of the evening's menu.
The main course was simple and unerringly selectable. As is generally known, you can never go wrong with a schnitzel in Austria. The term "Kalbswienerschnitzel" in the composition "Surf & Turf", which was my choice, unfortunately led to a misunderstanding. It was a meat plantlet on a potato puree garnished with two slices of truffle. My next-door eater had opted for a schnitzel, which fortunately came with a slice of lemon. I could use this only too well for my breaded and deep-fried squid, since it lacked any acidity, as well as the classic mayonnaise/sauce. To quote a well-known Bavarian top chef: There was a lack of speed. "In love" was the chef in any case apparently not, because everything was generally very restrained salted and spiced. Tastes are - fortunately - different, for me personally it was simply too "sparse" tasted. To my relief, from shortly after the beef tartare, before the soup or for most before the main course, salt and pepper were on the tables, so that I could at least season this both. The quality of the products was absolutely top: freshness and recognizably best choice. Nevertheless, I must clarify here once, just because you distribute two neat slices of truffle over a dish, it does not make it - at least to my taste and understanding - a world-class dish. I am an absolute mushroom lover, truffle has never been able to inspire me. It's kind of like garnishing a chicken egg cooked any which way with a teaspoon of sturgeon caviar and expecting to be judged a cooking genius in return.
I couldn't get excited about a dessert because, according to our table waiter, there was only a sweet selection and/or coffee to choose from and I'm more of a cheese dessert type.
If I had to sum it up, I would say: the chef acting at this time is tender with salt and absolutely sparing with any spice to the ingredients and leaves everything to its natural flavor, similar to the classic Japanese cuisine.
I enjoyed the evening at Kogel 3, but I would not actively go there a second time. It was good, but just that, not outstanding or impressive and inspiring to colorful memory and rapture. For this simply lacked outstanding flavor peaks, corners and edges, with which all good cuisines play contrary and mutually supportive in taste.
Therefore, well-intentioned 3/5 stars.
