An Englishman in Strasbourg

Here’s some trivia for you: ‘ass-drainage’ is the perfect anagram of ‘Andre Agassi’; but I digress, that’s not what this post’s about, but I thought you might want to try dropping that in to an awkward silence sometime?

Ass-purge on the other hand isn’t the anagram of anything; it’s the phonetic pronunciation of ‘Asperge‘ which is French for ‘asparagus‘, and once more the asparagus season is upon us. Though unlike in the UK the only asparagus you will find on the market stalls in Strasbourg today is the white variety.

White asparagus is cultivated entirely in the dark, or beneath the soil, and tends to be a lot thicker and fibrous than the regular green variety, and the French would argue - tastier. There is a catch of course, white asparagus needs preparation: the outer skin / layer is so stringy and bitter that it is necessary to peel each shoot before cooking.

Happily for us, Alsace happens to be the French capital of l’asperge blanche, with it’s epicentre in Hoerdt, where the Strasbourg Hippodrome is located. So ass-purge is fairly easy to come by. What’s annoying however is that the local variety tends to be quite expensive, it is usually cheaper to buy foreign (Italian/Belgian).

It says a lot about the French attitude to food, when fresh local asparagus leaps off of the shelves, not matter what the price. Forget ‘buying power’ and fiddly preparation - a Frenchman will go to any lengths for a fleeting taste sensation.

I’ve been here long enough now to know a good ‘pain‘ when I touch/taste/chew one. Initially, way back in 2006, my talents could only (just about) distinguish a super-market stick from a bakers wand, and therefore not begrudge (too much) the additional 50 or so centimes that it would cost.

Now however, having tried a good many baguettes from a good many of Strasbourg’s finest bread-shops, I feel I am sufficiently informed to make a recommendation. While I certainly would not pretend to be a connoisseur I am a bit of a gourmand.

Today, there are only two Bakeries in Strasbourg that I am prepared to make a detour/extra hike to in the name of acquiring a distinctly good baguette for my lunch:

• Au Petit Boulanger, rue de Barr | near the Musée d’Art Moderne | light, soft and fluffy in the middle, crust - thin and crispy; 10/10 - perfect!
• Fleur du Rhin, rue des Juifs | near the Cathedral | light, soft and fluffy in the middle, crust - thick and crunchy; 9/10 - near perfect (I’d prefer a thinner crust)

Of course - not everyone will appreciate the culinary recommendations of an anglais, particularly when this particular one is also a fan of Black Pudding, Haggis and Tako Sushi?