Tag Archives: Edeka

Hofheim

JustWine in Hofheim: Our first wine event with a DJ…

Lately, I’ve been following some local Facebook wine groups, besides the one I run. Thanks to events like the Wiesbaden Wine Festival, I’ve found a few local wines that I really enjoy. When I noticed that the Barth Winery was going to be attending this weekend’s JustWine wine tasting event at the StadtHalle in Hofheim, I told Bill we should pay a visit. I enjoy tasting wines, and I already knew I liked the products by at least one of the attendees.

The JustWine event is continuing today, starting at 1:00pm, and running until 6:00pm. Yesterday, it started at 2:00pm, and ran until 9. I had wanted to go early and maybe have lunch or dinner in Hofheim. Unfortunately, we got held up waiting for an Amazon delivery. I bought Bill an Alexa Echo for his side of the bedroom. I was hoping to pair it with the one on my side, and create stereo sound. I’m still working on making that happen. 🙁 It’s not as easy as it should be.

Because we were waiting for the delivery, we didn’t leave for the wine event until it had been going on for a couple of hours. One nice thing about this event is that it was at the Chinon Center, which has a huge parking garage. That made it much easier to get the wine to the car. We bought fourteen bottles, six of which will be shipped to us. Last May, we went to an event at the Kurhaus in Wiesbaden, and Bill almost killed himself getting the wine to the car, which was parked in a distant garage. Yes… the parking was the best part of the JustWine event. The rest of it impressed me somewhat less.

The entry fee for the JustWine tasting is 8 euros. For that, you get unlimited entry until the event ends for the day. You can taste wines by vendors from France, Italy, and Germany, as well as purchase gourmet food items from the SudTyrol and Hofheim. There was also a D.J. That was a first. I’ve never seen a D.J. at a wine tasting. The music was okay– sort of techno trance instrumentals– but it was turned up kind of loud, which made it hard to hear and be heard. There were also a LOT of people there, so it was hard to actually access the booths. We ended up only going to three before we finally decided to give up and see if we could find dinner in town.

Before we ventured into Hofheim searching for food, we stopped at the Edeka in the mall so I could get some hair conditioner. The guy running the register, Herr Rocky, looked pretty much over it as he asked Bill to put his “Geschlossen” sign on his conveyor belt. It must have been break time… or maybe it was time for him to go home.

Then, after we bought my hair product, we stopped at a couple of restaurants, both of which were totally full. We didn’t make any reservations, because we weren’t expecting to go to the event as late as we did. It looked like everybody was out in Hofheim last night, which is understandable. Less than year ago, things were still pretty locked down in Germany. Since I already had indigestion, I told Bill that we should just go home.

So that’s what we did… and I was soon confronted again with Alexa, and her reluctance to pair properly in our bedroom. Bill has to go away this week, so hopefully I’ll figure out how to get the speakers doing my bidding before he comes back Friday– temporarily– until he has to go away again for another three days. On the plus side, Arran and Noyzi were overjoyed to see us. Arran, in particular, was running around with unbridled joy. He has that big tumor on his side, and it seems to hurt when we touch it. Yet he still has the ability and the will to greet us with so much enthusiasm. He amazes me every day.

I might have enjoyed the JustWine event more if we had gotten there sooner, when it was probably much less crowded. We probably would have found food, too. There was food at the event, but nowhere to really sit, or even stand, because there were so many people there. Personally, I think they should have scrapped the disc jockey and put in a few more tables.

I did at least get to buy some sparkling Rieslings from the Barth Winery and introduced myself to Axel, the guy who represented the Barth Winery and alerted me to the event in the first place. He’s very active on Facebook and speaks perfect English.

I got a kick out of Axel, because as we approached his table, he was dealing with a very petite young Asian lady who seemed to be putting him through his paces. She also seemed to be a little bit “lit”. She ended up buying a bottle of sparkling rose before she stumbled off, looking a little bit cross. Maybe it’s because she understands Armenian or Spanish, as I used words from both languages to describe her rather familiar demeanor to Bill. I know… shame on me. But she was kind of hogging Axel’s attention, and it looked like maybe he could use an assist.

Anyway, I’m not sorry we got out of the house and went to the JustWine event. It was a little too loud and crowded for my tastes, but it was definitely a unique affair. And we did pick up some wines, which I will be avoiding during Bill’s TDY. I like to temporarily get off the sauce when he’s not home.

Below are some photos…

Standard
Uncategorized

The last summer Saturday of 2021… lunch in Hofheim…

I am shocked to see that September 2021 is now more than halfway finished. The time is flying by… and we still haven’t done our usual long vacation this year. At this rate, I’m not sure if we will, although fall is a nice time to travel, especially as global warming makes Germany more pleasant during the “ber’ months. I distinctly remember being here in 2007 and 2008, and thinking September was COLD. Not so much anymore…

We had nice, sunny, and somewhat warm weather today, so I wore shorts on our brief outing. Originally, we planned to go to Mainz, and we even drove my MINI, since I managed to find a lightening cable hookup for my car to replace the one I used for my iPod. I bought an iPod touch a few months ago, and when my iPod classic croaked, I figured it was time to enjoy a more modern setup. But really, I think it might be time for a new car. At the very least, a new car will have a built in GPS system, so Bill can quit fucking with the portable one he uses in my car, which constantly unsticks itself from the windshield. Personally, I never use GPS. I get around by my wits and cracker jack sense of direction.

Anyway… we got to Mainz, and it was super crowded. Then we ended up in this godawful parking garage. The first level was full, but if you went all the way around to the other side, you couldn’t access the next level and had to exit the garage. You could only access the next level when you first entered the garage– searching for parking on the first level meant you were locked in to staying on that level. It was a mess. I don’t know who designed that garage, but I give him (or her) an F.

Hell… we could have gotten fried chicken at KFC. But Bill says they don’t have buckets here.

I was feeling cranky after that experience, so we decided to head back towards Wiesbaden. I was thinking maybe we could hit that Biergarten in Mainz-Kastel we visited a few weeks ago, but Bill misunderstood and thought I wanted to go to Wiesbaden, which I didn’t want to do. I like Wiesbaden fine, but I’m a little tired of it. I compromised and suggested Hofheim. We got there at about 2:00, which wasn’t good, since that’s when a lot of restaurants take their pauses. I did notice that Hofheim was decorated with lots of colorful umbrellas…

I like Hofheim. It reminds me of some of our favorite small towns in Baden-Württemberg. Hofheim was also busy, but not nearly so much as Mainz was. I was definitely not in the mood for a lot of people or confusion.

After walking around for awhile, we finally found a place to have lunch that wouldn’t be closing at 2:30pm. Zum Turmchen was a new place for us, but it’s definitely not new for the town. The building dates from the 14th century. The premises were once used as a Büttelturm and, from 1788 to 1938, as a synagogue. It became a wine bar in the 80s, and at this point, it’s a German restaurant with lots of Schnitzels, potatoes, and Pfannkuchen.

We sat at a table with a view of a pleasant fountain. A friendly waitress took our orders as we watched two adorable little girls who looked like twins, as they played with a bright, blue balloon. Actually, I don’t know if the girls were twins. One was a little bit taller than the other. But they both had long, brown hair that covered their butts; they both wore glasses; and both moved non-stop. I was a little jealous, watching how much energy they had, and how easily entertained and happy they were, just playing with their balloon and chasing each other. I was glad we came to Hofheim, where it was safe enough for them to be playing in such a carefree manner.

Then the food arrived…

  • The fountain where the little girls played.
  • Bill flashes a goofy grin…
  • because I asked him if he wanted a “date”, as if I was a prostitute. But then I said I wanted one wrapped in bacon.
  • I had marinated turkey breast with salad, and salted potatoes drenched in Krauterquark. (basically dill scented cream)
  • Bill had a Pfannkuchen (potato pancake) with smoked salmon and sour cream.
  • Germans love their condiments, but this was a bit much for me.

We both enjoyed our lunches, although I’m not overly fond of tons of sauces or condiments. A little dab will do me just fine. I also have a bit of a hangup with it comes to white stuff. It probably comes from my traumatic childhood, when I couldn’t digest dairy products. To this day, I don’t eat a lot of dairy. I like cheese, but only mild ones that are melted. I don’t drink plain milk or eat yogurt. I do like butter and ice cream, and cream in my coffee, though. In any case, the potatoes were good. So was the salad. I just could have done with about a third of the sauce. Edited to add: my German friend says I missed the point and was supposed to mash the potatoes and herbed quark together. That thought did occur to me…. But I like my mashed potatoes pre-mashed.

Bill liked his stuffed pancake. Actually, if we go there again, I might have that. Or maybe a Schnitzel will suffice… I thought of getting one of those. I appreciated that they had small ones. I can never eat a whole Schnitzel.

While we were finishing up, a tall man with a mustache that had curly ends approached. He had an interesting look going on. He wore denim shorts, a vest with a short sleeved shirt under it, open-toed, navy blue knee socks pulled all the way up, and Birkenstock sandals. We spent a minute wondering if he had hot toes or needed compression socks or something. Everything matched, though, so he was stylin’. He was very confident, too.

The dogs were a bit sad that we left them, so after lunch, we decided to hit the Edeka and pick up some wine and buttermilk. The buttermilk is for tomorrow’s breakfast. I like shopping at Edeka. I think it’s my favorite German supermarket chain. I wish we had one in Breckenheim.

Anyway, lunch was enjoyable. It came to 33 euros. Afterwards, we came home, driving with the top down on the MINI (maybe for the last time this year, as it’s getting cooler)… tomorrow, Bill may brew beer, depending on the weather. If that happens, I’ll probably do laundry. Maybe we’ll stay in. Or maybe we’ll go somewhere for lunch. It’s tempting to stay in, but going out is good for the blog, and my disposition. I must admit, though, my enthusiasm is waning a little. But then I see two cute little kids playing with a balloon, having a blast, and realize that going out is good for the soul.

Standard
Uncategorized

Lunch in lovely Hofheim!

We have pretty weather today, so Bill asked me if I wanted to go out. I did want to go out, as I have a bad habit of being reclusive when I should be out enjoying Germany. Unfortunately, Aunt Flow showed up this morning… about a week delayed. I was hoping for a reprieve but– NOPE– no such luck. It always happens on a Saturday, too.

Anyway, I mention Aunt Flow only because we were on our way to Hofheim in my Mini Cooper convertible (which really needs to be driven more), when I realized I had forgotten to arm myself with the necessary feminine hygiene supplies. Fortunately, Hofheim has a very nice Edeka located in a shopping mall that has a nice parking garage with low rates. We parked there, stopped by the store, visited the restrooms (50 cents), then took a stroll through Hofheim, which is one of the nicest towns near where we live.

A few months ago, when we tried and failed to adopt a dog from a German pet rescue, I joined the Wir in Hofheim Facebook group. It was one of many groups I joined in an attempt to try to locate the dog we hoped to adopt who escaped from his pet taxi as he was being unloaded. Unfortunately, the dog met an untimely end on the Autobahn, but I stayed in the groups, anyway. The Wir in Hofheim group is one of my favorites. I regularly follow it, because there’s a lot of helpful information in it and the people are very nice. It was from that group that I got the idea to go to Hofheim.

It’s not that we hadn’t been there before. Bill and I visited the outskirts when we first moved up to the Wiesbaden area and ate in a now defunct Italian place. Bill also visited the town to get take out for us when the COVID-19 restrictions were very strict. Unfortunately, one of the places we discovered in the spring, Blanca Bistro, is now closed. We passed by there today on our way into the old town. I was sad to see it sort of abandoned… there’s still liquor and glassware in there, and signage is still up, but the restaurant stopped serving food a couple of months ago. Several places have had to close due to COVID-19, including the excellent German place near our house. We only ate there one time because it was always packed! But it couldn’t keep going during the pandemic.

We did manage to find lunch, though. We ate at Ristorante L’Opera, an attractive establishment in a little alcove on the main drag. No one else was there when we arrived at about 12:30pm, but we were soon joined by a German couple who enjoyed smoking.

  • The inside. We ate outside.
  • Attractive spiral staircase to the restrooms. No masks required because no one was in the restaurant.
  • Nice menu and we can confirm, good food and service.

Bill filled out the contact tracing paperwork and the waiter handed us the laminated menus, obviously much abbreviated compared to normal. There were still a few dishes that were attractive, as well as some specials that were advertised on a sandwich board by the passage. Unfortunately, the uncomfortably narrow chairs, which are the kind often found at gelaterias, reminded me that I probably ought to cut back on my groceries.

  • Bill fills out the contact tracing form, in case someone tests positive for COVID-19.
  • He ordered a Peroni, an Italian beer, which was served in a wine glass. I made him laugh for the picture.
  • And would you look at this? Turns out the trip to Edeka wasn’t even necessary! How considerate! Actually, it wasn’t necessary anyway.
  • I went with a Margherita Pizza, which I almost never get. Bill had a pulled pork sandwich from the smoker. It came with potato wedges and a savory cabbage slaw.
  • We ended with a round of espresso.

I don’t usually get pizza in Germany, mainly because it’s always more than I can finish and I don’t always like the kinds of pizzas that are available. I will say that today’s pizza was excellent. I especially enjoyed the crust, which was absolutely perfect! I’m sure they have a pizza oven to get such perfection. Light, yet chewy with a slightly crisp crust, delicious mozzarella cheese, and a light layer of tomato sauce made that very simple pizza creation a delight! And I even skipped the meat.

Bill enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich, which had a housemade bun. He especially liked the slaw, though. Bill likes cabbage very much. I noticed he cleaned his plate, while I had leftovers, which our attentive server was happy to wrap up for later.

The bill for lunch came to about 41 euros. Bill gave the guy 45, and we took a walk around the town. Hofheim is maybe nine kilometers from where we live, but it’s very charming. We probably ought to visit more often, if only because we like the Edeka better than Rewe.

  • A place for culture…
  • And a youth home.
  • Blanca Bistro– so sad to see this closed. I hope someday they can reopen. They had a great menu with fresh, colorful food. I actually felt good after eating there.
  • A good Greek place where we got take out. The inside is also very nice. We need to visit for an eat in meal soon.
  • Book exchange!
  • The main square.
  • All around town…
  • Lots of houses with interesting and colorful architecture.
  • A beautiful church, where I heard organ music playing and church bells ringing incessantly…
  • This is the Parish Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, which is Catholic.
  • Next to the church…
  • I couldn’t get the whole building in one shot.
  • Don’t smoke or let your dog play here.
  • My mom would like the wool work shop… she used to run a shop much like it at home in Virginia.
  • Another main drag photo. A hen party was going on.
  • We had to visit the other landmark…
  • This is the Evangelisch Kirche Hofheim Wallau…
  • It’s for us Protestants…
  • Actually, I believe it’s a Lutheran church. I am Presbyterian, myself.
  • Just across the street is a psychiatrist’s practice. Bill is checking out the signs, probably for future reference, next time I freak out. Kidding!
  • I don’t know why I took this picture.
  • It does look very serene, though. I am sure the psych patients feel peaceful there.
  • Seen on a hair salon’s building.
  • Hofheim is nice!

Anyway… it wasn’t long before we needed to head home and rescue Arran from his loneliness. Although Hofheim isn’t a substitute for some of our favorite little towns in Baden-Württemberg, like Nagold, Esslingen, Ludwigsburg, and Tübingen, it’s not a bad place to spend a couple of hours. There are several nice restaurants there, charming ambiance, places to shop, and enjoy the last days of summer. I’m glad we took the time to go there today… and for any readers who are looking to move to Wiesbaden, this is one town I would recommend seeking a home nearby. It’s a very pleasant little hamlet.

Standard
Germany, restaurant reviews

Lunch at La Meo in Nagold…

I was needing a couple of hours out of the house this afternoon.  Originally, we were considering going  further afield than Nagold, but then I took a look at the time and the fact that one place we were considering trying for lunch was only open for dinner.  Since it was almost 1:00pm, we decided to go to Nagold, which is one of my favorite cute towns and super convenient to us.  I had a restaurant in mind, La Meo, which is an Italian bar/cafe/bistro right next to Nagold’s big Edeka store and convenient to the nearby Ibis hotel.  It’s open every day and does not take a pause in service.

As we approached the restaurant, I had a funny thought about the sign.  The restaurant is called La Meo, but the sign says “Lameo”.  That made me wonder how to pronounce it.  Was it La-Meh-O?  Or Lame-oh?  But I see when I look it up on Google, it’s actually two words– La Meo.  And Google Translate doesn’t tell me what La Meo means.  Oh well.

Lame-o?  

The first thing I noticed about this restaurant, besides its very contemporary ambiance, is that it smelled great.  The air was permeated with the aromas of fresh bread and garlic.  Indeed, since this is an Italian restaurant, you will find pizza, pasta, and other dishes that smell of garlic.  We had a seat at a comfortable table on the lower level, affording us a good view of the open kitchen where a very good natured chef was at work.  There’s also an upstairs dining area, should you want to take in Nagold’s fabulous views.  I also noticed loud dance/pop music, which was a little annoying, but not surprising.  The staff appeared to be young and hip.

Bill takes a look at the menu, which was sitting on the table.  

 

This inexpensive eatery offers lots of pizzas, pastas, salads, and a full range of beverages.  It appeared to be very kid friendly and casual.  Naturally, since it’s next to the supermarket, plenty of people were stopping there before hitting the Edeka for their Saturday shopping chores.  Service was okay, although the servers weren’t as attentive as they could have been.  They were chatting with the bartender and not noticing when we were ready to order.  Also, we ordered a bottle of sparkling water and they brought us one big glass instead.  However, it was served with lemon and Bill was fine with forgoing water.  We both had nice glasses of red wine.

Here’s a view of the window where food is picked up.  The chef appeared to be very pleasant.  He’d ring his bell and if one of the two servers didn’t answer, he’d deliver the dish himself with a smile on his face.  When I dropped my napkin, he kindly brought me a clean one and disposed of the one that fell.

Bill decided to have Romana Pizza, which was made with ham and cheese.  The crust on this pizza was really good.  It was probably among the best I’ve had in this area.  I don’t like German pizza as a rule, but this wasn’t bad at all.

I had Penne alla Vodka.  To be honest, this wasn’t exactly what I was expecting.  Vodka sauce, to me, is kind of like a creamy tomato concoction.  This tasted more like plain old tomato sauce that was a little heavy on the onion.  It had little bits of bacon in it.  I would have appreciated some Parmesan cheese and noticed they had some in the fridge by the chef’s window.  The waitress never asked, though, and I decided not to trouble her.  

 

Bill was hungry and ate most of his pizza.  Unfortunately, I feel like I might be coming down with something and only managed about a third of my dish.  They gladly packed up our leftovers for us.  Total damage was about 28 euros before the tip.  I probably wouldn’t order the pasta dish again, but I would get a pizza there or try one of the other pasta dishes.  Overall, it was a good experience.  When the weather warms up, they’ll offer seating outdoors, which will make for good people watching.  We’ll go back and try it again another time.

After we ate, we decided to go to Edeka.  Bill wanted to find some barley because he wants to try to replicate that insane garlic soup we had in the Czech Republic a couple of weeks ago.  We didn’t know the word for barley, so I consulted Google and learned that the German word for barley is “Gerste”.  We went looking for Gerste, but never did manage to find it.  However, I did find something else…

Oh why did I have to find chocolate sandwich spreads?  Talk about a present for my ass!

 

This stuff was a thing twenty years ago.  Deadly!  It needs a warning on its label!

Before anyone asks, yes, I know all about Nutella.  In fact, I know about those deadly chocolate candy bar spreads, too.  When I lived in Armenia in the 90s, I used to be able to find both Snickers Bar and PB Max spreads.  I’m pretty sure PB Max has been discontinued.  Snickers bars are still made, of course, but their devilish spread is no longer.  That’s good thing, because that stuff was the devil!  It contained about 50 grams of fat per serving!  However, nothing was better for slaying the onset of PMS.  As it was, today I did pick up a jar of the Twix spread, which I haven’t tried yet.  We also got some other fattening treats, just in case I am coming down with whatever crud is going around.

When Bill spotted these bottles in the line to pay for our stuff, he thought it was motor oil.  Upon closer inspection, it became clear that these plastic bottles are full of some kind of liqueur.  Marketing is a funny thing! 

 

When we go to Edeka, I usually get a kick taking pictures of the cigarette packages.  Here in Germany, the warnings include pictures and cover the whole package.  I didn’t take any pictures today, but did notice one funny warning that showed a crestfallen shirtless man looking down, along with a stern warning that smoking causes impotency.  Leave it to the Germans to pull no punches!  I think they should put warnings on candy bar spreads, too, because eating that stuff will make your posterior spread in short order!

Anyway, I hope to get to a more mainstream restaurant soon.  Hopefully, tomorrow I won’t be laid out with an illness and there will be a fresh review.

Standard
Uncategorized

Lunch at Il Due and I finally signed up for a cell phone contract!

When Bill and I first moved back to Germany in 2014, we resisted signing up for a cell phone contract.  It was mainly because we didn’t know how long we’d be living here and we knew cancelling contracts in Germany can be a pain in the ass.  For three years, Bill has been buying me Vodaphone pay as you go top ups.  They run 25 euros each and I usually need at least one a month.  I get one GB before the speed is throttled… or, at least that was the way it was at first.

I got a new phone for Christmas.  In honor of the occasion, Bill decided to take me out today to sign up for a contract.  He chose O2 because they have a deal where you can get 10 GB of data a month for about 20 euros.  He later said it was closer to 30 euros, probably because they add a VAT or something.  I don’t know.  I am not the one paying the bill.

Before we went to the shop, located in Nagold’s fabulous Edeka supermarket, we stopped at Il Due for lunch.  I decided on the duck special.  Bill ordered swordfish.  He had a Pinot Grigio and I had a Barbera red.  Sadly, the duck came with hated mushrooms all over it, so we ended up trading plates. These are photos from my new iPhone 8+.

 

The swordfish was originally Bill’s choice, but I ended up eating it.  It came with a nice healthy side of vegetables and was covered with a tapenade with onions, capers, and black olives.  I was good today. I even ate the Brussel’s sprout.

Bill had the duck breast with its mushroom infested gravy.  It came with a side of cheesy potatoes, which Bill said were nice, and a side of vegetables.  I actually enjoyed the vegetables, which were cooked al dente and were very flavorful.  If I ate more vegetables, I might be less hulking than I am.

 

This was our third trip to Il Due.  Our first visit was a couple of months ago, even though we had been wanting to try the place for most of the time we’ve been here.  So far, we have not been disappointed by the food.  It’s always been excellent.  Service can be a little slow, but it’s always friendly and competent.  It’s a nice place to stop for lunch when we’re in Nagold.  Today’s lunch before the tip was about 60 euros.

We went to the O2 store after we ate and had to wait about fifteen minutes or so, since the young man who was working there was helping someone else.  When it was our turn, Bill asked if the guy spoke English.  He said a little.  Bill said he speaks a little German.  Then he proceeded to speak German for about 90 percent of their collaboration.

I was waiting for Bill to find the IBAN (account number), since he did not take my advice and get a German bank account and an EC credit card.  He says he’s going to rectify that mistake pronto.  I hope we’ll be here long enough to make it worthwhile.

Bill brought his passport and a utility bill, but neglected to write down the IBAN.  Fortunately, he found it on our water bill.

 

The guy the O2 employee had been helping before he helped us offered to translate if we needed it.  It turned out he spoke perfect English.  We have found that fewer people in Nagold speak English.  In a way, it’s kind of refreshing.  They don’t automatically slip into English when they hear Bill speak German and he gets in his practice.  I am myself learning more of the language, but can’t really speak it.  I understand a lot more now, though.  It’s good to watch the German ads on YouTube and the odd video my German friend, Susanne, shares with me.

We stopped by Edeka to pick up some Champagne for tomorrow night.  We left with several bottles of wine and a box of chocolates.

I was amused by the sweet, well-behaved dogs sitting outside the store.  I wish mine were like that.

We were checking out… and once again, I noticed the warnings on the boxes of tobacco.  I snapped this picture to remind myself to look them up online.  In one warning, there was a shirtless man pictured looking down.  I couldn’t help but wonder what he was looking at.  My guess is that the warning is that cigarettes cause impotence due to heart disease.  I love how blunt the warnings are.  They aren’t simple text like they are in America.  No… here, you get photographic evidence of how nasty cigarettes are.

 

Below are a few photos from Nagold today.  It’s still decorated for Christmas.  I always enjoy visiting Nagold.  It’s hard to believe we live only a few miles away and the landscape is so totally different.  I definitely think we should shop at Edeka in Nagold over the Real in Jettingen.  It’s a lot more pleasant.

Standard
Uncategorized

Herrenberg… and lunch at Cafe Atelier…

The weather is a bit gloomy again today, so Bill and I decided to keep today’s outing low key.  We went to Herrenberg for lunch and tried a place new to us, but not to the city.

The morning market was just finishing up when we arrived.

Herrenberg is such a cute little city.

 

We came upon Cafe Atelier, a cute little place I’d noticed a few times over the years but had never tried.  They had a bunch of chalk boards and a menu outside that made the place look inviting.  I could also see a large display case full of desserts.  Desserts will lure me every time, so we ventured inside.

A little cafe with lots of yummy looking baked goods out front.

 

When we walked in, we noticed a man standing behind the counter reading the paper.  There were two tables with ladies sitting at them, conversing animatedly.  I get the sense this cafe is very popular with ladies who lunch.  The inside is very feminine looking and cute.  Bill wondered if maybe the front room was only for people having coffee and pastries.  He walked toward the back room and the guy behind the counter stopped him and told him we could sit in the front room.

The encounter was a little bit awkward… but we had a seat.  I knew what I wanted immediately, a glass of Greek cabernet and the gyrosteller.  Bill ordered a different red.  The guy took our menus before we had a chance to order food.  Below is Bill’s expression at that…

Actually, he had a funnier one, but I was too slow on the draw to capture it.

Lots of good looking desserts!  We didn’t try any, though, because lunch filled us up.

 

The guy came back over after pouring my wine and told Bill that his choice was not available.  So Bill had a glass of the same cabernet I ordered.  We both settled on the gyrosteller.  I guess I must speak my limited German with a terrible accent, because I had to repeat myself a couple of times.  I should get someone to teach me to say “gyros” at the very least.  Happily, I no longer pronounce it “guy-rohs” like I did many years ago.

The little salad that came with the gyrosteller.  It had a rather strong mustard vinaigrette that was oddly sweet.  It wasn’t bad, but the flavor was more intense than I would have expected.  I appreciated that the salad wasn’t really big.  I prefer little salads.

 

While we were waiting for our gyros, I noticed the man behind the counter, who seemed to be a little bit over it.  He sneezed.  I was relieved when I saw him go to the sink.  But then I watched him rinse his hands without soap.  The public health educated side of me cringed a little.  A few minutes later, he blew his nose.  Then he went back to the sink and rinsed his hands again.  I guess I should be that grateful that he did that much.  Some people don’t.

Behold… the gyros with pommes and tzatziki.  These weren’t too bad.  They were well seasoned, at least, and I didn’t get the sense that the pork was really intended to be a schnitzel.  However, I don’t think the gyros were prepared the way they are at my favorite taverna, on a spiese.

 

We had a leisurely lunch and when it was all said and done, it cost just 29 euros before the tip.  Hopefully, we won’t be catching a cold.  Bill visited the restroom and noticed that the proprietors are okay with non customers using their toilet if you give them fifty cents.  I figure that’s fair, as long as the toilet is clean and stocked, which it evidently was.  I didn’t visit it myself.  We walked around the corner and passed a fruit and vegetable market, where there was some excellent looking fresh produce was offered.

I should have gotten one of these.

Produce worth getting excited over.

If we hadn’t purchased over two pounds of cheese in Alsace last weekend, maybe we would have stopped in…

Unique gifts for Christmas!

We decided to walk back to our car via Edeka.  Herrenberg has a large, impressive one that sells all manner of food, drinks, bras, and underwear.  They also have beer Advent calendars.  I already have a calendar full of liquor that I ordered from Master of Malt.  I like beer calendars, I guess, but German beers mostly taste the same to me in each of the few styles available.  But I can see why people get excited about them.

We bought ice cream instead.

 

A very considerate lady noticed we only had one item, so she let Bill go ahead of her.  It always makes me feel good when people are unexpectedly kind like that.  On the way home, I noticed the very dramatic skies…  Winter is on its way.

Looks like a spaceship is about to land.

I love it when sunlight streams through the clouds like this.

Standard