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Right away: No, there is no egg in today's gastro story - even if the architecturally striking exterior view of the Oversum Vital Resort certainly suggests that. Chef Christoph Kuhs took us into his realm, where delicacies large and small are prepared for the hotel restaurant, the "Veltins Lounge" and also the bistro in the hotel's directly connected wellness area.
Opened in 2012, the Oversum Vital Resort with 76 rooms, sauna, swimming pool and SPA landscape on 3,000 square meters as well as rooms for large conferences and celebrations is a congress and wellness hotel with international guests. Accordingly, the kitchen also sets its priorities, says Christoph Kuhs: down-to-earth with regional ingredients and an international touch at the same time. He has been head chef here since February 2017.
While he grates white cabbage for the day's four-course á la carte menu, cuts roast beef into thumb-thick slices and decoratively arranges dessert on slate platters, he tells how he got into cooking. The desire and a lot of basic knowledge about it came from his grandmother. The 36-year-old then trained at the Alte Klosterschänke in Chorin near Berlin. From Chorin, Christoph Kuhs went to a Bavarian brewery. After further stations - among others at Andechser, the German Armed Forces, in Switzerland and Austria and on the Kahler Asten - he learned in South Tyrol via the Winterberger Köche-Stammtisch that there was a need for good cooks in the Hochsauerland. That was almost seven years ago. At the Oversum Vital Resort, he now heads a staff of twelve in the kitchen, with another ten employees working in service.
In the meantime, Ralph, the sous-chef, fries salmon and prepares Jackson potatoes for gratinating. The Dutchman's last name is van Drogen - but the name is not a program for him, as he laughingly assures us. There is a lot of laughter in the kitchen, the atmosphere is relaxed, although every handshake has to be right. After all, at large events, which are not uncommon in the 700-person congress hall, several hundred guests have to be fed in a very short time.
Today it is much quieter. A business conference group is here for lunch, as well as several hotel guests and some locals. The restaurant in the basement seats up to 120 plus an outdoor terrace when the weather is nice. In addition, there is the "Veltins Lounge" next to the reception in the entrance area, where both the regularly changing four-course menu and all other small and large dishes from the menu are served, with another 50 seats.
The unusual architecture of the hotel continues in the restaurant. The leather-covered armchairs and upholstered benches have an inviting effect. The spacious, long room is divided by lightweight organza blinds that can be pulled aside with a few swipes. Interesting idea to visually shrink the room if needed or to use the full size! Exciting contrasts in the otherwise very modern style are the nostalgic photo canvases with typical Winterberg landscape and sports motifs.
Fanny Grüning and Dorothee Schütte serve the guests plates and drinks with practiced handles, have an open ear for special requests and also the one or other tip for activities in the area.
For dessert, a change of scenery to the "Veltins Lounge" one floor up is in order. Dimmed lights, cozy plush armchairs and Art Nouveau-style sofas at low tables, a long bar - 24 hours around the clock and seven days a week, you can linger here for longer than anywhere else in Winterberg. And here, too, the crowd is quite colorful: a group of young mothers treat themselves to the delicious waffles with cream and hot cherries with their toddlers, two hikers fortify themselves after their tour by the fireplace with a roasted whitefish and a beef roulade as well as a mug of freshly tapped Grevenstein country beer. A woman sits at the window with her laptop, working intently, a glass of latte macchiato beside her. The elegant, leather-bound menu also promises a surprisingly large number of beers, spirits and cocktails - actually, it's a pity it's only afternoon. Because bar manager Jörg Sygulla is also famous beyond the Oversum for his colorful creations from the mixing cup. His special recommendation: Oversum Strawberry Daiquiri with strawberries, Bacardi and lime juice. Instead, a coffee flavored specialty - with a non-alcoholic shot in seven different flavors - is probably more appropriate for the early hour of the day.
Christoph Kuhs comes by and asks if everything tasted good. What a question! His credo is: "Cooking has a lot in common with art. Picasso or Michelangelo could both paint. But who is better is ultimately decided by the taste of the beholder."
Perhaps one can let a completely objective voice speak, for example, from the reviews of the Oversum Vital Resort: " Excellent hotel. Wellness facility very well maintained. Restaurant offers unusual dishes that are very tasty in a pleasant atmosphere."
Text: Rita Maurer
Photography: Steffi Rost
Video: Jannik Fischbach