Atmosphere is important when selecting a place to dine. Doubly so when the establishment is geared toward a regional food. Indeed, part of the charm and appeal of eating out is an opportunity to escape through all your senses — sight, scent, sound and taste — to someplace far away from the ordinary. Arkansas’s wine country offers avenues for sensual escape on all levels.
Gentle turns and soft hills lined with vineyards around every corner are hallmarks of wine country across the globe, and they define this Ozark ridge as well. And then you come upon Wiederkehr’s Village. Here, tucked under a knoll and looking for all the world like it was plucked straight from a subalpine village near the Jura Mountains, is Weinkeller Restaurant.
The transportation is almost complete when you step inside. Hardwood beams and candle light are what you see. Savory and robust aromas of authentic Swiss cuisine are what you smell. Hospitable voices and soft conversations are what you hear. Only one sense left.
So as you peruse the menu for an entree, you order the Swiss onion soup to start. It looks hearty and it smells divine, and then you break the bread and dip a spoon. It’s thick, more of a savory gravy, and then you taste. It took eight hours of careful preparation to create this flavor. You instantly know it was worth every second because it tastes like the mountains and Old World secrets. And you realize you are there.
No passport required
