Last night was Bill’s company’s Christmas party. It was the first one we’d had since 2019, thanks to the pandemic and last year’s “hectic schedules”. There was a company party last February in Mainz that was supposed to make up for not having a holiday gathering last year, but I wouldn’t call it a Christmas party. It was more like a company dinner, followed with trivia afterwards. We skipped the trivia part of the evening, because our elderly dog, Arran, was still with us and needed us at home with him.
Last night consisted of a wine tasting by Domdechant Werner Weingut, followed by dinner in a restaurant, a white elephant gift exchange, ugly sweater contest, and supposedly, karaoke at the end. I like karaoke, but I knew we wouldn’t be making it to that part of the evening, because Bill gets too tired. He actually tried to get us there by cab, but they were so busy last night that we eventually gave up waiting for a ride and drove there. Bill stuck to non-alcoholic beer and just tasting the wines, rather than drinking them.
The party took place in the nearby town of Hochheim, which is a very cute wine centric village. The vintners that did the wine tasting were the same folks who did a Christmas tasting for Bill’s company in 2018. I remember attending that party just a couple of weeks after our initial arrival in Wiesbaden. It’s crazy to think we’ve now been in Wiesbaden for five years! Time really flies!
After the wine tasting, which took place in a chilly “barn”, we went across the street to a very nice place called Restaurant Mediterran. Bill and I had never eaten there before, but I think we’d be pleased to try it sometime. The dining room was quite pleasant, and the food was decent. I’m sure we’d like it more a la carte. What we had last night was a buffet.
To be honest, neither Bill nor I were really in the mood for a Christmas party before we went out last night. It was very cold and dark, and this kind of weather tends to make both of us want to hibernate, rather than socialize. I also don’t know too many people Bill works with, so I end up sitting there making small talk with strangers. But we did end up talking to a really nice couple, and commiserated about once having to deal with shady landlords. Happily, we have much better landlords now.
The white elephant exchange was hilarious, too… Some of Bill’s co-workers are pretty ruthless when it comes to getting the funniest or most entertaining gifts. I was rather partial to the “dogs shitting in beautiful places” calendar, but we ended up with a “make your own gin” kit, which Bill stole from some other person.
We brought a bottle of Riesling and a small wheel of garlic and herb cheese from Henri Willig, which is a Dutch company we order from sometimes. I had an extra wheel from last week’s order, and that turned out to be attractive to a man who sat across from us and loves cheese. He stole it from a very fit looking woman who probably doesn’t eat a lot of cheese. It was, of course, one of the last gifts chosen, because people could tell it was wine, and here in German wine country, we have wines out the ass.
By the time the evening was over, I was glad we went to the party. It was getting kind of late when we left. I’d be surprised if anyone did karaoke, since today is still a work day. ETA: actually, some diehard folks did stay for karaoke, but Bill said they appeared to be dragging!
This morning, we have a slight dusting of snow on the ground, but I’m sure it will be gone by the end of the day. Below are some photos from last night’s festivities. I was mostly focused on the pretty lights, and how charming Hochheim is, especially at this time of year. We’ll have to consider visiting this weekend. They’re having their very small Christmas market, and it’s only going on this week. Or maybe we’ll stay home and hibernate.
A few days ago, I asked Bill if he might like to go out to dinner on Saturday night. He was agreeable to my suggestion, so we went on OpenTable.de to see what restaurants were available. One of the very first suggestions was Riesling Stuben in nearby Hochheim, an adorable wine town located about twenty minutes’ drive from Breckenheim.
When I mentioned the restaurant to Bill, he said he’d seen that place recommended a bunch of times. However, we haven’t gone to Hochheim very often, because parking in the town can be a challenge. The first time we visited there was at Christmas time in 2018, just after we moved from the Stuttgart area to Wiesbaden. Bill’s former boss, who had lived in Hochheim, had arranged for a wine tasting and company Christmas party at a hotel literally steps away from his rental home. I remember thinking the town was absolutely adorable, but we had a terrible time finding a place to park. We never did get around to visiting the town again the following summer.
Then came the pandemic, which kept us pretty close to home for a couple of years. Hochheim is close to where we live, but we didn’t have enough experience with it to just go there to look around. We didn’t actually do that until last August, when we randomly showed up there on a summer day and stumbled across a wine stand. We had a couple of glasses and walked around. Once again, I wondered where Hochheim had been all of my life and why we weren’t hanging out there more often.
Last night, Bill was a little worried about parking, but it turned out to be a non-issue. There’s at least one lot where it’s free of charge to park. It’s on the edge of town, and maybe a five or ten minute walk from where we were going. The weather was gorgeous last night, so it wasn’t a hardship to stroll through the quaint village. We passed Bill’s ex boss’s former home, past the hotel where we had our Christmas party, and the winery where we had our tasting, and soon easily found Riesling Stuben. We were about twenty minutes early for our 7:00pm reservation, but decided to show up anyway, since I was hungry.
Below are some photos from our walk around before we got to the restaurant. As you can see, this is a place where German wines are produced and sold. It’s also very stylish, with lots of beautiful homes owned by people with money. I don’t think I would have been sad to find a home in Hochheim when we were looking!
We ran into a couple getting wedding photos done.If not for the nearby sound of the Autobahn, I might think we were in Heaven.
When we got to Riesling Stuben, we noticed a couple sitting in the adorable courtyard. A large chalkboard with the word “Cheers!” greeted us, along with grape vines, and a string of lights. I easily spotted our table, as there was a sign with our name on it and the time of our reservation.
Bill went looking for someone in charge, but the proprietor found me before he saw Bill. I told him we had a reservation and pointed at the table. We sat down, noticing that there were faux fur outdoor blankets on each chair. We sure didn’t need those last night, although maybe they were provided to make the metal and plastic chairs slightly more comfortable.
It looked like the restaurant had a lot of reservations, as I took note of the signs on the tables. Not everyone seemed to show up, though. The 6:45pm table near us was never occupied.
On OpenTable, it said the suggested dress at Riesling Stuben was casual. Bill wore jeans and a t-shirt. I wore shorts and a t-shirt. We noticed the couple near us was similarly dressed. However, we noticed an upper deck, where more people were sitting. Some of those folks were dressed with a bit more flair. I mention the dress because the food turned out to be fancier, and frankly much better, than I was expecting it to be!
I read that the Riesling Stuben used to have different owners and its reputation had slipped somewhat since new people took over a few years ago. I once worked at a rather famous restaurant in Williamsburg, Virginia whose chef owner was very well-known and liked. When that restaurant was sold, but the new owners kept the old name, a lot of people complained about how the quality had slipped and everything had changed. It looked like Riesling Stuben might have had the same issue; people who had been used to the old owners hadn’t liked the way the restaurant had changed with new people running it. But, since Bill and I had never been to Riesling Stuben before last night, we had no preconceived notions. And, as it turned out, we had a wonderful evening. I’m glad I didn’t read about the restaurant’s old reputation before we actually visited.
A young and sweet looking server greeted us and took Bill’s order of our standard sparkling water and a bottle of locally produced Riesling. Then, when she came back with our water and wine, we were ready to order food. I don’t often bother with starters nowadays, since I usually don’t have room and I don’t need the extra calories, anyway. However, I couldn’t resist the cold apple-cucumber soup, which sounded perfect and refreshing for a warm evening. And, since it’s now the tail end of “Spargel” season, Bill had the asparagus soup.
For our main courses, I ordered the smoked pork cheeks with herbed risotto, strawberries, and balsamic vinaigrette. Bill went with Parmesan encrusted corn fed chicken breasts, served with Romaine salad, smoked tomatoes, and tarragon “Schmand” (sour cream). While we waited for our food, we enjoyed bread with butter and Spundekäs, a locally produced cheese spread usually served with pretzels.
The server didn’t do a formal wine presentation. Instead, she just brought the wine out, opened it, and served me first. She looked like a teenager, so my guess is that she doesn’t yet drink wine herself. She might not yet know to offer guests the opportunity to taste the wine before it gets served. However, in spite of her youth, I thought she was very charming and did a very good job serving everyone.
A few minutes after she brought us our wine, the proprietor came out and checked out which wine we ordered. He spoke English to us, which was much appreciated, and apologized that he didn’t have menus in English. We didn’t need English menus anyway, thanks to years of dining out in Germany, and the availability of smartphones with Google Translate! Besides, although my ability to speak German is extremely limited, I do understand a fair amount of it when I’m paying attention. Bill can speak basic conversational German with confidence.
Here are some photos of the food… It was a real hit with us!
Cheers!Spundekäs! Chilled apple and cucumber soup! I loved it.Asparagus soup, complete with strawberries.Parmesan chicken with Romaine salad, smoked tomatoes, and tarragon sour cream.Smoked pork cheeks with herbed risotto, strawberries, and Parmesan crackers.
We both really enjoyed our dinners. I hadn’t been expecting the food to be as good as it was. Since the restaurant was called Riesling Stuben and the dress was casual, I was expecting more traditional, stereotypical German fare. I was pleasantly surprised, both by the originality of the dishes and the way they were presented. They tasted good, too, although I think some of the reason we enjoyed everything so much had to do with the weather and the cool “cocktail” music they were playing– think old school jazz, from people like Desi Arnaz, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra. Yes, I did a lot of “Shazaming”. In fact, I even downloaded an album while we were eating.
As you can see from the second set of photos, we did get some clouds, and a few raindrops. One party moved into the restaurant. Another paid up and left. We waited out the very short rain spell, along with the couple who was there before us. They were drinking a lot, and it was soon pretty obvious that they were friends of the owners, who even joined them for a couple of rounds. I felt like we were watching a dinner party.
After we were finished with dinner, we decided to order dessert, but told the proprietor that we would finish the wine before it was time for the Nachtisch (dessert). He took our order and left us to enjoy the rest of the Riesling. About ten or fifteen minutes later, we were finished with the wine. The waiter came out with what looked like dessert for us, but then he walked out of the courtyard to– I’m not sure where!
This was where dinner became a little strange, as the service went off the rails. We sat in the courtyard for a long time, with no sign of anyone in charge. I didn’t mind it at first, because the weather was nice, and the music was entertaining. But, after awhile, it did get a little bit awkward and weird. I was wondering what was going on. Finally, the guy came back and asked us if we were okay. We reminded him about dessert, and he smacked his head. He had forgotten! And he had noticed me noticing him with the desserts he carried out of the courtyard, but it didn’t occur to him that we were waiting for ours.
He gave us a round of dessert wine for our troubles, which was much appreciated. The dessert wine went well with my chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce, and Bill’s apple “Kuchle”, which was basically slices of apples dipped in batter, fried, and dusted with sugar and cinnamon, then served with vanilla ice cream.
I have had better chocolate mousse, but I really liked Bill’s dessert. The mousse would have been improved with less raspberry sauce, which overwhelmed the chocolate somewhat. I didn’t even taste the chocolate at first, until I got past the intense raspberry. I noticed that raspberry was a prominent ingredient at this place. All three of my courses had elements of it. I think if we went back, I’d have what Bill had. Unless, of course, they have the lemon tart listed on the menu available again.
I visited the ladies room while Bill handled the check. It gave me a chance to take a couple of photos on the interior, which is very cute and cozy! I got a kick out of the ladies room. I will warn that getting to the restrooms could be a challenge for those who have limited mobility. They are located up a creaky staircase.
A toilet seat for winos.I wonder what prompted them to put this on the wall.Cool effect!One of several cute dining rooms.
We enjoyed an on the house round of wine liqueur as Bill paid the 112 euro check with his credit card. As we were about to leave, the people at the next table asked if we were on vacation. I said, “No, we live in Breckenheim. And we’ll be back!” They laughed and wished us a pleasant evening. We really enjoyed ourselves, in spite of the wait for our desserts. The waiter handled that situation with grace. Fortunately, we weren’t in a hurry, and the weather and charm of the place made waiting less irritating.
On the way back to the car, we passed a wine stand being held at one of Hochheim’s many Weinguts. I got a kick out of the vending machine, which sold wines and wine glasses. Sadly, though, one needs a German “Ausweis” (ID card) to make a purchase. I guess that machine is only for true locals! Oh well.
We were raving about the evening all the way back home, promising to spend more time in Hochheim, not just for dinner at the Riesling Stuben, but also to try other restaurants in the town and, of course, buy some wine!
The liqueur softens the blow of the check.Cute restaurant!Hochheim is charming!Every neighborhood needs one.We’ll have to try out this wine stand sometime.No ID, no service!
Well… I can’t say our dinner at Riesling Stuben was perfect, but we did have a wonderful time. And it is a very unique and cute eatery. Atmosphere and presentation count for a lot. I do think the weather helped a lot to make last night so special. Regardless, we left Hochheim smiling, and promising ourselves to return sooner, rather than later.
Because I run a food and wine group on Facebook, I often find wine fests, food fests, and other food and drink related stuff, which I share with people in my group. Last weekend, we went to Limburg, which we might not have done if not for that group and my realization that having it encourages me to go out and see Germany instead of sitting on my can at home. I was kind of hoping for a similar discovery today, as there are two wine fests going on that I know of, and probably more if I were to do a deep dive into the calendars of communities around us.
I knew that a couple of the wine fests looked like they would be open at 5:00, since that’s when they opened last night. However, this was not stated on Facebook, nor was it the rule last weekend. So Bill and I decided we’d go to nearby Flörsheim’s wine stand, mainly because it’s super close to us, but also because we had never been there before. I decided that because we’d never been to Flörsheim, I was curious to see if it was “cute”, especially since it’s on the Main River. Maybe we missed the cute part of town, but to me it looked boring and suburban, and aside from a few interesting looking churches, I saw no reason to hang out there, especially today. The weather today is PERFECT… almost no clouds, and about 77 degrees, with a pleasant breeze.
We ended up driving past where the fest was to be… and clearly later in the day, probably in about a half hour as I write this, they will open up and people can sit at a table overlooking beautiful vineyards and sip wines from the region. But we decided that it wasn’t absolutely imperative that we go to a wine fest, so we ended up in very cute Hochheim, which is a town just a few miles from where we live. We went there in late 2018, when Bill first arrived in Wiesbaden. His boss at the time lived in Hochheim, and had arranged a wine tasting and holiday dinner. The boss has since moved on, but the town is still adorable, as evidenced by today’s photos. We need to spend more time in adorable Hochheim, especially when they have wine stands. We stumbled on one today! Below are a few random shots of Flörsheim that I took from th
A turret!Beautiful church!Not sure what this was, but it looked impressive.Tiny chapel, maybe?Another church. I suspect maybe it was Catholic.
When I think of Flörsheim, I think of shoes. In the USA, that was a brand name of shoes, especially in the 70s and 80s. Google says Florsheim (no umlaut) is still around. I don’t know if there is a connection. If there is, I saw no obvious evidence of it.
Anyway, we went through Hochheim on our way home, and noticed there was a wine stand going on, so we decided to stop, walk around a bit, and later, try some wine… And now I know that we need to visit this town more often, since it’s very close to us, super cute, and full of wine tasting opportunities. Seriously… where has Hochheim been all my life? See below to see how cute the town is.
We spent probably a good 90 minutes or so, quaffing whatever. Bill was good, and had a schorle (wine and sparkling mineral water) and a glass of grape juice with sparkling water. I, on the other hand, decided to abuse my liver. I tried a lot of what they had. We left when it was getting closer to 4:00pm. The dogs needed to be fed, and it looked like things were winding down. Several people brought their dogs, and it was just a really pleasant day.
Well attended and very friendly wine stand.Bill has a Schorle.Local wine for me.Really fun ladies bike group.Friendly wine guy.Always a provider.Limoncello Spritz.Convertible hair.Excellent grape juice.Free and clean potty!
I got the sense that the people at the wine stand were locals who knew each other. I enjoyed how the biker ladies, all in matching t shirts, welcomed one later joiner. It was all fun, convivial, and I felt very safe and welcome there. Once again, I thanked Bill for bringing me to Germany to live. It really is a nice place to be, especially these days.
The Limoncello Spritz, by the way, is easy to make. One part limoncello, one part Sekt, finish with sparkling water, and rub lemon on the rim of the glass. Garnish with lemon. It was even served with ice, which is a rare thing here. Very nice!
It’s been an unusually social week for Bill and me. On Monday, we drove to Schwetzingen to meet Bill’s former co-worker and current friend, Tim, and his wife, Melody, who had come to Germany to celebrate their anniversary. On Wednesday, we saw the Scottish Music Parade in downtown Wiesbaden. And last night, we gathered with Bill’s new co-workers in the picturesque city of Hochheim am Main, which is where Bill’s new boss lives.
Bill’s boss’s landlords own a winery, so they had arranged for us to do a wine tasting before dinner at the hotel directly across the street. We were a little bit late to the wine tasting, since Bill wasn’t able to get home as early as he’d hoped he would. We also went to the wrong place at first. Apparently, Hochheim is loaded with wineries and wine stores. The first place we went, the guy was just closing up for the evening. But he was so friendly and kind that when we go back to Hochheim, we will definitely stop in and check out his wines.
It was fun to meet some new people, although I have to watch myself in social situations. Sometimes I get carried away and say more than I should. Below are a few pictures from the event.
No… Bill wasn’t falling asleep, although this week of activities has worn him out a bit. We aren’t used to socializing as much as we have this week.
I learned last night that Thomas Jefferson once visited Hochheim. This wine was named after that event, although we didn’t arrive early enough to hear the history of his visit, which the landlord/winery owner explained. Later, we were quizzed on this… Bill and I didn’t fare well.
The wines flowed freely. This was the price list. I liked several of them.
I was feeling a little envious of where Bill’s boss lives. It’s the kind of cute town I was hoping to find when we were searching for our current house. I guess we just weren’t destined to live in a super cute town this time. I wish it hadn’t been so dark during our visit. Hochheim looked like a really quaint place.
We had a buffet dinner at Hochheimer Terrasse, a restaurant located directly across the street from Bill’s boss’s house. There were a few Christmas parties going on last night, and they also had their bar and restaurant open to the public. Our buffet dinner consisted of pumpkin soup, which was creamy and delicious, goose leg, Rotkohl (red kraut), bread dumplings, and apple strudel for dessert. We also got all the beer and wine we wanted.
I ended up talking to a few people at the party, and Bill’s boss mentioned my blog, which Bill had told them about. I think when they had their first meeting back in September, Bill had our visit to the elevator testing tower near Rottweil in mind. I was explaining that the tower offers Germany’s highest observation deck, as it’s also a place for elevators to be tested. I’m not sure people quite understood the appeal of visiting an elevator testing facility in southern Germany, but nevertheless, that was how Bill introduced my travel blog to his boss.
As things were winding down, we were visited by this guy… He recited a poem, tried to get us to sing “O Tannenbaum”, which no one knew in German, and then handed out tangerines and chocolates. Afterwards, he asked for money. Bill said the restaurant owner came over and shooed him out of the dining room. I missed that part, but I will admit that he kind of put an unusual accent on the evening. In all my years of living in Germany, this was the first time I ever ran into a German Santa.
My German friend says this was the poem he recited… I think she’s right.
I grabbed a parting shot of the restaurant’s sign as we were leaving.
I enjoyed the goose last night, which surprised me, since I had only had goose once before and I hadn’t liked it at all. It was too gamy. This time, it reminded me of duck, only with a longer leg. I know goose is popular in Germany this time of year, but somehow I missed it during previous Christmases here. I may have to try it again, but not at a buffet. It turns out several of Bill’s new co-workers also spent time in Stuttgart, although we were told that usually people move from Wiesbaden to Stuttgart, and not the other way around. For that reason, I won’t be surprised if we move to Stuttgart a third time someday. But then again, maybe we won’t.
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