The food of the Alsace: Hearty and German... but French-ed up!

The Alsace is known for its amazing white wines. Talking about wine makes anyone sound like a pretentious bitch so I'll keep it brief: They are famous for Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Muscat d'Alsace. So it goes sweet, sweeter and sweetest. I brought home a Riesling and a Muscat, and Sarah and I had a jug of Gewürztraminer with the MOST amazing dinner either of us has ever had in our lives.
This is the place where I almost chucked it all in and married a chef who didn't speak a word of English... but who worked magic in the kitchen. In all seriousness, Sarah and I were trying to think of ways for me to stay in Strausbourg, marry the chef and drink white wine out of a jug, everyday.
Below are a few pictures of the experience. They don't do it justice. Sorry!

The restaurant I was standing outside of from earlier posts. We found a small description of it in our guidebook. It sounded fine, but when we went at 6 for diner it was closed. We figured we would just find something else. We were getting ready to leave when another party walks up and starts checking out the place. I ask in my broken French if they know when it opens. They reply in incomprehensible French... this alerts Sarah that they are German. The question is repeated (with better results) in German by Sarah. They heard about this place from locals and it doesn't open until 7, but it is sooo good that they came an hour early to make a reservation.

This is what the place looks like inside. There were only 6 tables. This kind of restaurant is called a "Winestub" and their focus is traditional, regional, seasonal cuisine. The name of the place was "Au Couchon" (I think it means ceramic wine jug, as that is what our Gewürztraminer came in).

This is Sarah with her Ham Knuckle... sounds kinda gross. I assure you, it was quite the opposite. This was the most delicious thing in the world. End of discussion.

My dinner came in a giant shell! It was a cheese soufflé with crayfish from the local river. So good!

Living in California, we have a plethora of fine eating options. Dinner at this tiny-ass restaurant in the Alsace blew everything out of the water. All the posh places in Napa try to emulate what that handsome Alsatian chef does in the kitchen on a nightly basis. They pale in comparison; it's really kind of embarrassing. If you've ever thought "Hey, I just had a really fancy meal at "fill in the blank expensive restaurant in California". And a great wine to go with it! I'm on top of the world!" You would be incorrect. Save your money. Buy a plane ticket to Paris. Take the train to the town of Stausbourg in Alsace, wait until 7pm, go to rue du Parcelles and find "Au Couchon". You're welcome.

PS Don't get any ideas about that chef. He is mine... or he is dating the pantomiming waitress, but that's another story.