Scalottas Terroir

Article in collaboration with Hansjörg Ladurner

Eating with soil awareness

The Restaurant Scalottas Terroir is located in the heart of the holiday destination Lenzerheide and is part of the Hotel Schweizerhof Lenzerheide. The building was constructed in 1911 by the Bergamin family and taken over by the Züllig family in 2001. It has been lovingly renovated and serves as a staff house. The Bündnerstube, built in 1930, was originally a fondue restaurant, and the second establishment became Restaurant La Scala, specializing in Italian cuisine. During noise protection renovations, La Scala was transformed into Carn & Caschiel, where high-quality cheese fondues and Grisons specialties were served. The Terroir concept emerged in the Bündnerstube.

Hansjörg and his team serve dishes made from products of their producers in small portions. Guests can create their own menu according to their preferences. Their menu consists of regional products and is adjusted to the available offerings. They also use animals (marmots) which, although shot for population control, rarely end up on the plate but are disposed of. Their dishes are enhanced with self-collected wild fruits and herbs. Naturally, they have also adapted their beverage selection, with a focus on Graubünden, Switzerland, and neighboring countries, without being dogmatic.

Due to the table spacing during the coronavirus crisis, they have relocated the Terroir concept to the premises of Carn & Caschiel and are continuing this practice. The Bündnerstube is offered for groups of up to 20 people. For the past five years, they have been cultivating their own field in Lain at an altitude of around 1300 meters. In collaboration with three organic farmers (Marcel Heinrich, Andrea Parpan, and Bruno Hassler), they plant potatoes, corn, rye, barley, poppy seeds, bread clover, and other crops according to old customs. The soil is gently cultivated with horses by Bruno Hassler, the potatoes are grown in permaculture under mulch, and cover crops are used for all other cultures. Naturally, they have a strip of wildflowers with corn poppies, buckwheat, cornflowers, flax, and other insect-friendly plants. The idea behind the BergAcker is not to be self-sufficient but to show farmers that instead of highly subsidized dairy farming, there are other options for food production. Since last year, Hansjörg has also kept bees in the BergAcker. They have also maintained six beehives for four years, which Hansjörg manages together with beekeeper Regula Mani. The honey is processed in their kitchen and partly sold on-site and at the Schweizerhof.

"Our goal is to leave the smallest possible footprint with the highest possible enjoyment."

Hansjörg Ladurner (head chef)
© Tina Sturzenegger

FOCUS TOPICS

Seasonal and Regional Cuisine
The products for Scalottas' kitchen are sourced from producers nearby and are either used fresh, preserved, fermented, dried, or frozen, depending on availability.

Food Waste / Food Utilization
They value the work and products of their producers and understand the effort and passion behind production. They process everything sensibly, both from animals and plants. Through their concept (small portions and guests choosing what and how much they want to eat), there is rarely any food left on the plates. Naturally, they prefer fruits and vegetables that do not conform to "norms." Taste is more important than appearance.

Organic Products and/or Other Sustainable Labels
Almost all of their producers operate under a label (organic, Demeter, etc.). However, this is not a requirement. They attract people with similar mindsets. A label alone is not sufficient to work with them. Organic vegetables from Kenya are just as nonsensical as vegetables from greenhouses in Switzerland.

Vegetarian / Plant-Based Cuisine
Hansjörg and his team cook Alpine cuisine, which for centuries has been plant-based (gruel). Meat was available in autumn/winter when large animals were slaughtered and could be stored in cool temperatures.
About half of their menu items are vegetarian and change depending on availability and season. They do not cook vegan dishes at Scalottas Terroir because Alpine cuisine relies on cream, milk, eggs, and cheese. Additionally, they reject all products that turn good plant-based products into poor meat imitations through complex processing steps.

Use of Fresh and Minimally Processed Foods
They use food in its entirety whenever possible and process it further. Trimmings are further processed or used as animal feed/fertilizer as appropriate.

Close Relationship with Regional Producers
Hansjörg has known most producers for years or even decades. They are not just partners but also friends. This partnership also allows them to develop new products or implement unconventional ideas.

Utilization of the Entire Animal
Hansjörg works with farmers who raise animals according to his specifications. He knows the animals usually from around 18 months (pigs), goats, and sheep (6 months to 8 years), chickens (around 4 years), yaks (also around 4 years), understands how they grow up, accompanies them to the butcher, and promises each animal to make the best of them. For them, the stew or braised meat is a premium cut. Fillet or ribeye steak never come alone on the plate, always accompanied by a braised piece.

Fair Working Atmosphere & Compensation System & Welfare of Employees
As part of Hotel Schweizerhof Lenzerheide, they are also part of a company where employee appreciation is not just on paper but is lived daily.

Attention to Sustainability in Kitchen and Restaurant Equipment
This is a given for Hansjörg. They value durability and efficiency in furnishings and equipment. Tables and chairs in the Bündnerstube date back to the opening year of 1930.

THEIR PRODUCERS

Marcel Heinrich

Forestry worker, master farmer and farm manager of Biohof Las Sorts

Marcel Heinrich: forester and farmer, has been running the organic farm Las Sorts, where he also grew up, since 2001. Probably the best-known mountain farmer in Switzerland thanks to his Albulatal mountain potatoes. Runs his farm according to the principles of regenerative agriculture with suckler cow husbandry, horses, and chickens.

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Marco Giovanoli

chestnut producer

The method of preserving chestnuts with smoke originated in the Bergell centuries ago out of necessity, to preserve chestnuts in the damp and warm climate, as these fruits formed the basis of winter sustenance. Marco Giovanoli manages around 70 trees. Approximately 1.5 tons of chestnuts are smoked, while the rest serves as feed for his animals. From the milk of the Hinterwald cattle, his wife Heidi makes probably the best Mascarplin.
Irene Parpan

wood-fired-bread

For over 10 years, Irene Parpan has been baking bread for us in the oven of the bakery in Zorten. The grain comes from the GranAlpin cooperative and is mixed according to Hansjörg's recipe. The oven is fueled with wood from their own forest, which her husband Andrea Parpan, also a partner at BergAcker, cuts, saws, and splits.

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Marléne und Jörg Brügger

meat-factory

As one of the last of its kind, the Brügger family in Parpan dries meat according to ancient tradition. Without climate-controlled rooms, without the addition of sugar, with a lot of expertise, and even more love for the craft, top-quality air-dried meat is created from fresh meat. Scalottas processes whole animals, and a portion of this meat goes directly to the Brügger meat factory in Parpan. Through the drying process, they obtain a unique product months later, which represents preservation at the highest level.

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Bruno Hassler

small animal farm

As a small animal farmer, Bruno Hassler in Zorten utilizes old barns that no longer meet the requirements of modern large animal husbandry. In doing so, he saves these buildings from decay. His herd of goats and sheep consists of old breeds and is protected from wolves by herding dogs. Bruno Hassler is also a partner in BergAcker and helps with soil cultivation using his horses.
Andreas Züllig

owner of standard fruit trees

In the garden of his house in Maienfeld, the host, Andreas Züllig, has created a paradise of standard fruit trees. Plums, apples, or quinces ripen here in the sun of the Rhine Valley without the use of pesticides. What is not processed by Mr. Züllig into jam ends up on the menu at Scalottas.
Lindenhof Gemüse

organic vegetable producers

Most of the vegetables at Scalottas Terroir are grown by the Good family in Mels without artificial fertilizers and the use of pesticides. What grows in the field ends up on the plate, and if the harvest, for example with tomatoes, peppers, and the like, is abundant, they dry or preserve them for the winter.

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