Most people might prefer to stay out of courthouses as much as possible. However, in Saarlouis you should change that opinion. We highly recommend you to walk into the old courthouse which has been transformed into the magnificent Hotel La Maison and where chef Sebastian Sandor is serving his truly delicious modern European cuisine with Japanese influences.

Concept & location

Saarlouis is a small city that belongs to the Saarland region in western Germany, very close to the border with Luxembourg and France. Maybe more famous in that area is the city Saarbrücken, which is only twenty-five kilometers away. The region around Saarlouis is mainly known for its industrial activities. Historically the metal industry has always been very important in this part of Saarland. But nonetheless the industrial activity, it has also always attracted a lot of hikers thanks to the great nature that can be found in the neighborhood. Those hikers find a wonderful place to stay in Hotel La Maison, a very luxurious hotel, which found its home in an old courthouse, less than five minutes away from the city center. Upon entering the hotel, one cannot avoid being blown away by the stunning interior design and the unique art pieces that are scattered around the whole property.

La Maison is the brainchild of Günter Wagner. As his name discloses, Günter was the former owner of the famous German pizza brand Wagner Pizza, a company which was created by his father Ernst in 1968 and which in the meanwhile has been sold to the Nestlé group. It had always been the dream of Günter to own a hotel. With La Maison he realized that dream. Wagner is very much involved in the management of the hotel and visits it daily. Part of the dream was also building a renowned fine dining restaurant in the hotel. With Restaurant Louis, that is located on the first floor of the hotel, also that dream has been realized. Once you walk into the hotel and you cross the lobby, you walk straight into the stunning restaurant. The restaurant consists of one room and overlooks the garden in the back. The decor feels classic at first glance, but large photos and unique art elements create a modern and very pleasant, upscale atmosphere.

The Chef & the team

The kitchen team of Louis is being led by a young chef who only arrived beginning of 2023 in the restaurant. Sebastian Sandor has Hungarian roots but was born and raised in Germany, not far away from the Black Forest. When he was young, Sandor totally had no idea that a future as chef would be on his path. He went for a classical education and even started to study geo-ecology sciences. But very soon he found out that this was not the right choice. He felt the ambition for a job in which he could really use his hands. After six months of geo-ecology, it was clear he had to change his future. Sebastian decided to drop out and he registered for culinary school. He was already twenty years old at that moment. The training program he registered for, was not the kind of traditional culinary school which can be found in other countries. In this German system, the training program takes three years, but from day one you start working in a restaurant. Only one week per month you are supposed to go to school and the rest of the time you learn by doing. The first year and a half Sebastian worked in Schlosshotel Friedrichsruhe, a five-star hotel in Zweiflingen, which had a bistro but also a Michelin starred restaurant. For Sandor, this was the place where he got exposed to traditional French cooking.

The second part of his training happened at Russell’s Landhaus in Naurath, where he would learn everything about meat. After a short stint in the area of Hamburg, the young chef would move to Japan for internships which would for ever change his approach as a chef. He was able to learn in the kitchens of Kichisen in Kyoto and Les Créations de Narisawa in Tokyo. Two internships which have strongly impacted the way he is cooking today. After his time in Japan, the chef would move to Austria and back to Germany for a short period of time, before relocating to Belgium in 2016, where he became the sous-chef in two Michelin starred restaurant Pastorale of Chef Bart de Pooter. It is also in Belgium that Sandor would run his first own restaurant, which was called Hermitage, and which was located in Ghent. But the chef would not stay in Ghent. After returning back to Russell’s Landhaus for a short period of time, he would eventually become the chef of Restaurant Louis in Hotel La Maison. In Louis, Sandor is cooking for maximum twenty-two guests or seven tables. It is a rather small restaurant with a strong family atmosphere and a friendly vibe. Sebastian is assisted by Guillaume Depoortere as sous-chef and has in total a kitchen team of twenty-three people. His team is that large because they have to cater for the entire hotel and also for the hotel bistro. The team that works specifically for Louis consists of six people.

Gastronomy

The cooking style of Sandor is clearly influenced by his broad experience in different kind of restaurants. However, the strongest impact clearly comes from Japan. We could describe what comes on the plate as  modern European cuisine with Japanese influences. These Japanese influences are very evident in almost every dish and come from the cooking techniques that are being used, but also from the products and spices the chef is cooking with.

Even though this strong Japanese influence, it is the ambition of the chef to move more and more towards a regional cuisine. He wants his cuisine to represent the region he works in, also because he is convinced that working with products that come from around your restaurant and of which you know the suppliers personally, helps you to better understand them and to cook better dishes with them. And those suppliers, he always finds and chooses himself. However, even though this ambition to work regionally, the Japanese influences will never disappear. The chef also finds a lot of inspiration in vegetables. He considers this the perfect drive to work seasonally. Once a vegetable is out of season, the dish immediately disappears from the menu.

The cooking style of Louis is very technical. They use techniques such as fermentation and even spherification happens when it has added value for the dish. The main thing for Sandor however is that every dish is very tasty, and he succeeds perfectly in that ambition. What is also important for the chef is the color palette on the plate. This is often an element that plays a crucial role in the creative process when he creates new dishes. Usually the creative process starts with the vegetables. Once he has the products in mind he wants to work with, he starts writing out the recipe before getting into the kitchen and trying it out. Then it is tasted and adjusted until it is completely finished. In the kitchen Sandor is strongly assisted by his sous-chef Guillaume Depoortere. Depoortere, a Belgian chef with experience in top restaurants such as De Librije, clearly plays an important role in the creation of the culinary signature of Restaurant Louis.

The restaurant serves only menus and has no à la carte. Sebastian Sandor’s cuisine in Restaurant Louis has been awarded with two Michelin stars. Some of the dishes we tried :

Service & Wine

The service in Louis is rather casual without being really loose. The team keeps some polite distance from the guests and delivers service which is classy and which perfectly fits in the entire upscale style of Hotel La Maison. But during the service, if they feel it is appropriate, they don’t shy away from making small jokes, which creates a very pleasant atmosphere. The restaurant is very small and that leads to the environment being very quiet throughout every lunch or dinner.

Maître and sommelier is Robert Jankowski. He created a wine list for Louis, which consists of many natural wines and often small and unknown labels which work perfectly with the dishes of Sandor. The wine list boasts five hundred labels of which the most are German. In the pairing they not only surprise with great wines, but they also incorporate beer. Next to that, they have a non-alcoholic offering which is truly remarkable. The service team in Louis consists of four people.

Why go? 

Saarlouis was not immediately at the top of our bucket list of places to visit. But we also dare to admit that we were wrong… We truly loved our stay in the stunning Hotel La Maison. The unique atmosphere and the magnificent artworks, make this place a true gem. Even higher on our bucket list will be a returning visit to Restaurant Louis. The inventive, creative and modern cuisine of Chef Sebastian Sandor, characterized by many Japanese influences, is truly delicious and makes Saarlouis a destination that everyone should discover.