A little gift left by our new landlords… They gave us a gift bag with a huge Lindt Swiss chocolate bar with hazelnuts and a bottle of locally produced Sekt.  

 

The sun came out today and, unlike last week, this past week was rather quiet.  Although I probably would have been happy to hibernate, Bill decided we needed to go out and have lunch.  It was after 2 o’clock when he made this decision, so we were kind of limited in where we could go.  Fortunately, our new neighborhood has an Italian restaurant that doesn’t do pauses and has a Monday Ruhetag.  So once Bill managed to convince me to get dressed and prettified, we beagle proofed the house and drove the one kilometer to La Fonte, the local Sportsplatz’s restaurant.

I have mentioned before that a lot of German communities have sports clubs, and many of the sports clubs have restaurants.  In our old town, Jettingen, I remember two sports complexes, both of which had Greek restaurants next to their sports fields.  The neighboring town, Haslach, had a German restaurant.  Likewise, our new community of Breckenheim also has a Sportsplatz, which has an Italian eatery.  I noticed it got great ratings, so it was easy to convince Bill to visit.  It turned out to be a nice place to spend a couple of hours.

The first thing I noticed was the smell of horses.  There’s a barn nearby.  It seems to be my luck to live in places where there are horses… which only serves as a reminder that I need to buy a place with land so I can have horses in my life again.  I spent the 80s showing horses.

 

When we arrived at La Fonte, it was busy.  It looked like there were a couple of parties going on.  Nevertheless, we were welcome, and once they realized we were English speakers, the staff switched to excellent English.  We’re pretty good at speaking food, but I have to admit it’s nice to run into English speakers, even if it cuts down on my German practice.  I am somewhat consoled, though, because I heard some German youngsters leaving the restaurant and actually understood what was being said.  A young boy was eager to get outside and play, but his older brother admonished him to wear a jacket, even though the young boy said he didn’t need to bundle up.  It’s funny… suddenly understanding German is like suddenly tuning into a clear radio station.

Bill checks the menu.  We were seated “outside”, but it was warm enough.  They had a heater out there and the area was enclosed by glass and an awning.  I never would have known we were “outside”.  I’m sure in the warmer months, it’s nothing to open up that area.

We settled on salmon with shrimp sauce and noodles for me and veal with Gorgonzola sauce and noodles for Bill.  Both dishes came with generously sized salads and bread.  My dish had a slightly different dressing.  Bill’s was the usual yogurt dressing, while mine was more like a red wine vinaigrette.  

This little guy, name of Milo, is obviously the restaurant’s mascot.  He’s well known and loved.  I noticed the place had many apparent regulars and they were all greeting this adorable dog. 

He was so cute in his “I love New York” hoodie.  I might be persuaded to abandon my love of beagles for this little guy.  I was impressed by how well behaved he was, too.

Bill enjoys veal, noodles, and Gorgonzola sauce.  He managed to finish everything, even the salad.  I had to take half of my stuff home, even though I was hungry when I went in.  They were happy to pack up my leftovers.

Grilled salmon with shrimp sauce and noodles… it came with tiny shrimp and the sauce had a hint of nutmeg.  I really enjoyed it, but only managed half before I was full.  

This couple came in with a black version of Milo… and obviously, the owner knew Milo, and so did his cute little dog.  I noticed Milo and the other pooch played nicely in the dining room.  This is a very dog friendly place.  I saw at least two other dogs visiting during our two hour lunch.

We had another glass of Sangiovese for dessert, as well as espresso.  Note the generous pour!

We really enjoyed La Fonte.  I have a good feeling that we’ll be regulars.  The food was good; there was plenty of parking; it’s dog friendly; the wait staff were welcoming; and we can literally stumble to our new home from there.  We told the waiter that we were new in town and he gave us this…

Panettone— Italian cake/bread, just for Christmas…  I guess these folks are from northern Italy.  This was a nice hospitable touch.

And he warned us that if we want to have dinner on a weekend night, to call ahead.  I could easily tell La Fonte is a very popular local hangout.  It was nice to see.  Lots of people seemed to know and love the staff, which is always a good sign.  I am certain we’ll be back repeatedly.  It appears to be a very kid friendly place, too… the kind of place where friends and families gather.  I love those kinds of places.

A moonrise…

 

So we no longer have the enchanting view from our house, but we can still see one not far from where we live.  And the bonus is, I can smell horses from here.  I trust none of them are on La Fonte’s menu.  I’m kidding, of course.  I feel better now, though… even if I didn’t really feel like going out.  It’s time to get back to normal and start having some fun again.  Of course, we did come home to a big mess caused by Arran, the troublemaker.  He got into the trash.  I guess our new system needs refining.