“Southwest Ohio has history rooted in traditions of our German ancestors, including a Christmas feast centered on wild game easily available throughout the season,” said Bill Kilimnik, general manager for The Golden Lamb.
German for Merry Christmas, the Frohe Weihnachten menu features a first course of slow-roasted cabbage and beef soup; choice of Dijon and herb- crusted venison chop with potato puree, asparagus and black cherry jus or rabbit lollipops with parsnip and carrot puree and lemon thyme pan gravy; and German chocolate cake with pecan custard.
The second menu — Cratchit’s Christmas Dinner — will be offered from Dec. 12 to 18.
“If there is one Christmas dinner that springs to mind ..., it has to be the Christmas dinner shared by the Cratchit family in Charles Dickens’ classic tale A Christmas Carol,” Kilimnik said.
Dickens is one of The Golden Lamb’s more famous visitors when he visited the historic restaurant on April 20, 1842.
The first course features a butternut squash soup with essence of roasted chestnut and crème fraîche; choice of duo of goose — confit of leg and sliced roasted breast — goose fat potatoes, Dijon coated haricots verts finished with apple maple reduction or breast of Wisconsin pheasant stuffed with winter mushrooms, sweat pea puree and braised red cabbage; and finished with a serving of vanilla buttermilk chess pie with chocolate ganache.
The last menu, dubbed Christmas at Mount Vernon, is offered from Dec. 19 to 23.
“A menu of 30 items was typical of the grand feasts served by George and Martha Washington during their Christmas celebrations at their historic home in Mount Vernon,” Kilimnik said.
The Golden Lamb will recreate six of those items as a “Christmas salute to our nation’s first president,” Kilimnik said.
The first course features Indian corn and egg yolk dumpling soup; second course choice of Iowa Farms pork shank with Yukon gold potatoes, Cipollini onions and baby carrots and herb pan gravy or Butler County turkey roulade with chestnut sage stuffing, whipped golden potatoes and wild-grown cranberry compote; and finished with a hearty Washington apple spice cake with bourbon anglaise and caramel drizzle.
All of the Christmas dinners will be served in the main dining room. Space is limited. For more information, go to goldenlamb.com or call (513) 932-5065.