At seven o’clock on Saturday night, Bill and I got dressed for our second gourmet dinner at Auberge au Boeuf. Having seen the menu on Friday night, I was a little nervous about what we would be having. Besides the tasting menu we had, there was also a truffle menu… and, well, I don’t do truffles. But I figured I’d find at least one item I hadn’t tried on Friday night that didn’t include the dreaded fungus.
Actually, I’m kind of glad we had two dinners at the restaurant. It gave us a chance to experience one of the other dining rooms. Saturday night was also a lot busier, with a very different crowd. There were a lot more French patrons on Saturday. Friday night, it seemed like there were more Germans.
We were waited on by the same trilingual waiter. He was a bit busier on Saturday night, so there were a couple of hiccups in the service. We ordered a beautiful bottle of Pommard to go with the a la carte items we chose. And, just as it’s been in all of the excellent restaurants we’ve visited, as well as a couple of crappy ones, our wine was “held hostage”. By this, I mean the wine was to be poured by our waiter or the sommelier. It was kept on a nearby mantle, within our line of sight.
I don’t mind having my wine poured by the wait staff, as long as they are attentive. Unfortunately, the waiter was so busy on Saturday night, we were left waiting to be recharged for several minutes. Finally, Bill discreetly made a move to get our wine, which was, again, next to our table and within sight. The waiter came over and stopped him, which I thought was kind of awkward. I mean, it was our wine… we paid over 90 euros for it. We don’t have broken hands. The waiter was clearly busy. He should have just let Bill pour the wine.
The second hiccup involved our water. We ordered a large bottle of sparkling water from Ribeauville. Somehow, a huge black fly found its way into the bottle, where we saw it doing the crawl. I stared at the bottle for several minutes before we were able to flag down the maitre d’ and ask her to take the bottle away. One would assume that in a situation like that, someone would bring us another bottle of water… or at least offer it. But no, I ended up having to ask our waiter, after we explained what had happened. I asked him for another, smaller bottle, for which we were probably charged.
As for the food, Bill and I both ordered one entree that we didn’t try on Friday. And we also had our favorite courses from Friday night, plus dessert. The meal came with the same hors d’oeuvres and amuse bouche we had on Friday night, as well as the fresh bread, sorbet, and candies at the end of the meal. Below are some photos from our second dinner. The food standard was, of course, outstanding.
The hall by our room. Bill checks the menu on his phone.We started with a Campari and soda for Bill, and rose champagne for me.You can see the QR stand, where we scanned to get the menu on our phones. Same hors d’oeuvres as Friday: snails, goat cheese, and tuna. Wonderful Pommard that got Bill in trouble with the waiter.ConsummeLook who came to dinner!I had the abalone with algae, gnocchi, and cheese sauce for my first course.This was the course I didn’t have on Friday. Red snapper with cannelloniBill had the smoked trout again for his first course. He said it was a bit too much, with the creamy mashed potatoes and egg.And then he had lamb with truffles, which was not part of Friday’s meal. For dessert, I had a trio of sorbets with fresh fruit.Bill went more adventurous with a chocolate kiwi dessert that included truffle flavored ice cream. Yes… truffles, as in fungus!Before I enjoyed this glass of Alsatian whiskey, we had the same candies we had on Friday night. I wanted brandy, but they didn’t have any. WHAT?!
When all was said and done, the total cost for Saturday night was about the same as it was on Friday night… roughly 300 euros. We don’t usually splurge that much on subsequent nights, but it had been so long since we’d last indulged in excellent food. If we visit Auberge au Boeuf again, we will make a point of trying Stammtisch.
Tomorrow, I will post about checking out and going home. See you then!
Saturday morning, after breakfast, we decided to visit a couple of other towns in Alsace. One of the places we visited is the quaint and picturesque hamlet of Obernai. I wanted to go there because many of the times we’ve stayed in Ribeauville, I’ve noticed that our WiFi signal pings from there. A woman I knew from Stuttgart also happened to visit Alsace back in January 2020, when we were also visiting. We met up with her at a winery and had a tasting, and I noticed that after we parted, she went to Obernai. I remembered thinking the photos she shared made Obernai look like a very inviting place.
So we went to Obernai, which was every bit as cute as I thought it would be. The town has a large parking lot, complete with a very nice looking public restroom facility, which was closed due to COVID-19. As I walked around Obernai, I was thinking that it reminded me a lot of Ribeauville, except it was a lot bigger and busier. I noticed there is a shit ton of new construction going on there. It looks like a lot of people are moving to Obernai, or businesses are relocating there. The old town area is very charming and adorable. We mostly just walked around there, but got bored before it was time for lunch. It looked like a good place for eating, tasting Alsatian wines, and shopping, and I did notice a lot of places of interest, complete with informative signs in French, German, and English. But I still got the urge to move on fairly soon after we arrived. We visited the free public restroom, where donations were being accepted for the people of Ukraine.
Bill and I ended up getting off course on our way back to the car, so we were a little “lost” for a short while. It suited me fine, since I got the chance to take more pictures. We did eventually find ourselves back on the right track to getting to the parking lot. Obernai is definitely a cute town, but I think I prefer Ribeauville, because it’s smaller, quieter, and less “peopley”. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be up for a return visit someday. Below are some photos from Obernai.
I wanted to try this wine bar.
As lunchtime got closer, we decided to head to Saverne, a town Bill discovered and was curious about exploring. Saverne is about a 45 minute drive from Obernai, but it’s kind of in the right direction for getting back to Sessenheim. That was important, since we had reservations at seven o’clock for our second gourmet dinner at the Auberge au Boeuf restaurant.
We easily found another free public parking lot in Saverne, although there was a two hour time limit. The lot was right next to the Presbytère Protestant, which was inaugurated in 1897. It is a very beautiful church, but we didn’t take time to visit it, because we were on a mission to find lunch.
As soon as we walked into the little town, which is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a pass over the Vosges Mountains. It has a very different feel than Obernai does. The main drag is on kind of a steep hill that actually reminded me more of the Alpine town of Chamonix than Alsace.
Licorne Beer!
I had never heard of Saverne before we visited there, but I was impressed by what I saw during our short trip. For one thing, Saverne is home to the Brewery La Licorne. Licorne is the French word for unicorn. We didn’t stop in for a visit there, but we did pick up a six pack of their brews to bring home with us. We also visited Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité, a beautiful old Catholic church that dates from 12th century. Bill was in a hurry, because he was worried about the time limit on our parking. Of course, no one was standing there with a stopwatch when we arrived, and I doubt people were chalking tires. He’s still big on following rules, though.
Saverne is also home to Rohan Castle, which is known as the “Little Versailles of Alsace”. It really does look like Versailles! And we almost had lunch at Taverne Katz, which is in a beautiful, historic building built in 1605 on the main drag through the town. We decided not to eat there when I noticed how many people were having lunch at that time. Instead, we dined at a place called Le Bistronome. Le Bistronome gets mixed reviews on Trip Advisor, but we had a good experience there. Curiously, the complaints on Trip Advisor seem to be about a “lazy, inappropriate, and grumpy boss/waitress”. We didn’t have that impression of the service at all.
During our visit, a very pleasant lady was handling all of the tables. She kindly suggested a table to us, and I noticed everyone in there appeared to be a local. I heard one woman even murmur “American” when she saw Bill and me. A large French family, complete with the obvious matriarch, sat kitty cornered to us. She gazed at us, looking either grumpy or curious. I couldn’t tell, but she did seem to be much beloved by the people she was with.
Below are some photos from Saverne and our lunch at Le Bistronome, where we enjoyed the musical stylings of Billy Paul and Barry White. I swear, it’s not a trip to France if I don’t hear the song “Me and Mrs. Jones” at least once! That restaurant is where I heard it on this trip to France. It also occurs to me that it looks like Bill and I only eat beef, fish, fries, and chocolate mousse. That’s not true at all, but that was how it worked out during our trip. Lunch ran us about 70 euros. The waitress was clearly very pleased when Bill tipped her generously.
Presbytère ProtestantNotre-Dame-de-la-NativitéTaverne KatzObligatory carousel!Rohan CastleBill!Amuse!Moi!Cheesy risotto with Skrei (cod) and vegetables. No mushrooms.Bill had sliced beef with gravy and delicious frites!Chocolate mousse! This was better than what I had in Bitche.The tart of the day was apple!This is the place!Check out the cool turret!
By the time we were finished with lunch, it was mid afternoon. Bill was also worried about the parking lot time limit. So we headed back to Sessenheim, where I took a nice nap before our second big dinner. Bill went to the store and picked up some beer and wine. Stay tuned for the next post…
Before we came to Sessenheim, I booked dinner in Auberge au Boeuf’s restaurant for Friday and Saturday nights. If I had it to do over again, I would have booked one of those nights for the Stammtisch. Not only does the Stammtisch offer different choices, it’s also considerably less expensive and formal. But this isn’t to say we didn’t enjoy both of our dinners in the one starred Michelin restaurant. In fact, going twice gave us the chance to try a couple of different items, and have repeats of our favorites from the tasting menu we had on Friday night.
I wasn’t going to dress up for the experience on Friday, though I brought two dresses. I changed my mind when Bill decided to put on a jacket. It was a good decision to do that. I noticed that people were dressy at the restaurant– casually elegant attire was the norm. That’s definitely one difference between France and Germany. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone to nice German restaurants and people were wearing jeans.
We arrived at the dining room promptly at 7:00pm, which is when service begins. On Friday night, most everyone there, except for us, was speaking German. One family brought their two dogs, who were making adorable grunting noises the whole time. Our waiter was the same young man who checked us in on Wednesday night. He spoke English just as well as he spoke German and French, which was very impressive to me. I used to work in a nice restaurant, and it was all I could do to remember the specials every night. But here he was, seamlessly flitting from table to table, speaking three different languages.
Bill ordered a nice local bottle of Riesling from the sommelier, who was also trilingual. We were invited to use our phones to scan the menu, which was on a QR code on a glass square that was affixed to a metal stand. I guess the QR code is one innovative way of getting around printing menus, which can apparently be vectors of diseases. It probably also makes it much easier to change the menus. No need to print anything. For those who don’t have capable smartphones, a tablet can be borrowed. The menus were in German and French. No luck for us English speakers. 😉
We decided on the tasting menu, which was called “Confession d’un Cuisinier”. Priced at 105 euros per person, this was a seven course tasting menu designed and created by Chef Yannick Germain, whose family also owns the hotel. It was quite adventurous for me, and the waiter was shocked when I told him I don’t eat mushrooms or truffles. Actually, I only had six courses, because one of the courses had mushrooms in it. The course count doesn’t include the extra goodies. I think the waiter might have worried that I would be a picky eater, but I did okay. Below are some photos from our first dinner.
A little pre-dinner wine.It was our first elegant dinner in many months. Bill was excited.A trio of hors d’oeuvres– tuna, snails, and goat cheese. I tired all three.This amuse bouche was a consommé with cranberries, radish, and beef.We had fresh bread…And scallops with artichoke hearts and caviar.You can see this was on a scallop shell, which was set upon ground scallop shells.This was my favorite course. Abalone is served with algae, gnocchi, and a delicate cheese sauce made with local cheese.This was smoked trout with creamy mashed potatoes, roe, and an egg. The white part is the white, topped with Riesling gel.You can see in this photo under the white, there was the yolk… And that was Bill’s favorite, even though he doesn’t usually like soft yolks! Time for a palate cleanse with black currant sorbet.This was the monkfish course I skipped due to mushrooms. And then we had pigeon… It reminded me of very lean and tender duck.Bill skipped the cheese, but the Germans at the table next to us had some.Dessert… And candies before the bill came...
This was definitely a very impressive dinner… although it wasn’t my favorite Michelin starred meal. Bill said he liked it better than the dinner we had at the Schwarzwaldstube at the Traube Tonbach Hotel in Baiersbronn last August. All told, we spent about 300 euros, not including the wine we had during our “afternoon pause”, which we got at the hotel. Was it worth it? I’d say yes, it was. It had been so long since our last night out. Service was excellent, yet unpretentious, and the quality of the food was outstanding. I got to try new things. We didn’t have to drive anywhere. And we did it again the following night. Stay tuned for that post.
Friday morning, after yet another excellent and much smaller breakfast, we decided to visit the town of Bitche. I first hear of Bitche when an Army friend visited there with her family. My friend and her husband are both retired Army officers who were still on active duty when they were living in Stuttgart. We met them years earlier, when we were neighbors at Fort Belvoir, an Army post in Virginia. It’s always funny to run into people on military installations worldwide!
My friend, who is now living in Hawaii, had a habit of taking road trips with her children, and one of the places they visited was Bitche, which is of particular interest to military enthusiasts. The town, which is located very close to the German border in the Moselle department of Lorraine, features an enormous citadel that dates back 800 years. I knew Bill would be interested in the citadel, but I wanted to go there because of the name of the town. I’m immature like that. 😉 Remember, I also made a point of visiting Fucking, Austria, before its name changed to Fugging, thanks to obnoxious American tourists. We even made a pilgrimage to Fuckersberg, Austria, which is basically a big field. You can easily search for and find my blog posts about those adventures from September 2015.
Bitche has the distinction of having had its Facebook page erroneously and unceremoniously shut down. It was probably because of the name, and what “bitch” means in English. Maybe some Facebook bot thought Bitche was a bullying page. The page was later reinstated, and the mayor got an apology. Anyway, Bitche is not pronounced the way we pronounce it in English, just as Fucking, Austria was not pronounced the way it was spelled. Below is a video with the pronunciation of Bitche.
It sounds kind of like “Beet’sche”
Bitche is about an hour’s drive from Sessenheim. It’s also about an hour away from Ramstein and Kaiserslautern, so it probably gets a lot of American visitors from there. We didn’t do much more in Bitche than walk around the charming village, where I saw yet another adorable European beagle. He looked like he could have been the brother to the one we saw in Sessenheim. I didn’t get a picture of him, since he was being walked by his human, who noticed me admiring his pooch. He said “Bonjour!”
A first look at the citadel as we entered the town.Zoom is a good thing.
I did notice a nice looking restaurant on the main drag of the town. It was called Aux Gourmand ’10. We happened to be passing it just as it was about to open for lunch. I looked them up on TripAdvisor and noticed they got encouraging reviews. Plus, regular readers of my blog may know that Bill and I have a bad habit of putting off eating for too long. I’m glad I made a point of looking on TripAdvisor with the restaurant’s actual name, since typing in “Bitche” and “Gourmand” got me porn results. Below are some shots of the village.
Self-explanatory!Bakery?I was intrigued by this chapel, which was in kind of a weird place. Someone mysteriously left flowers on someone’s car.
Aux Gourmand ’10 is clearly a popular place in Bitche. It’s very stylishly decorated, although it’s not a very large establishment. A lot of locales were dining there and appeared to be enjoying themselves and the food very much. The menu changes daily, and was presented on chalkboards on the walls and on little easels that were placed on the table. Bill and I knew we would be enjoying a gourmet meal at the hotel on Friday night, so we were a little hesitant in ordering too much. We didn’t have to worry. The portion sizes were just right, and the food and service were very good. I had a faux filet with frites and a simple green salad (which I actually finished). Bill had a salmon filet with creamy risotto and grilled vegetables. His dish was great, except the vegetables included the dreaded mushrooms. I’m glad I avoided ordering that– I have learned that a lot of “vegetable medleys” include mushrooms.
The menu on our table.Faux filet and frites with herbed butter and salad.Salmon with risotto, vegetables (zucchini and mushrooms), and creamy sauce.Menu on the window.Frnech decor.Chocolate mousse.Burnt creme… 😉The outside.
I think our waitress was a little surprised by us, though. When we came in, Bill spoke German to her. And, like a lot of French citizens who live in that area, she spoke fluent German. It wasn’t until after we ate, and she asked if we wanted dessert, that she heard us speaking English. It turned out she spoke English, too, but she didn’t seem to know what language to use with us. I think she might have actually had Bill pegged as German! He does speak restaurant German pretty well, although I’m sure he has an American accent. But maybe it’s not as obvious to a French speaker. Or maybe I’m just humoring myself.
We did indulge in dessert and espresso. I had chocolate mousse, and Bill had creme brûlée, which was excellent, because it was very fresh. Bill said he liked that it didn’t taste like it had been sitting in a fridge for hours. I think the total bill for a sumptuous lunch with wine and dessert was about 70 euros. It was money well spent. We could have gotten out of there cheaper, though. The restaurant offers plates of the day (plats du jour) that are three courses for a low price.
After lunch, we drove up to the citadel to have a look around. It was closed, although that didn’t stop some people from walking around in it. According to a sign I saw, the citadel will reopen until December 11th on March 13th. We were just a little too early! Oh well. It really isn’t very far from where we live. Maybe we’ll visit again. The citadel is massive, so I know there would be many pictures taken during a proper visit. I did enjoy the views of Bitche from the hillside on which the citadel sits. It’s worth going up there for the views alone. There’s plenty of free parking, and a garden to explore.
This looked like a snack bar. It was closed.One last look.Highland cows!
After our afternoon visit to the citadel in Bitche, we went back to Sessenheim for a short pause before dinner in their much venerated Michelin starred restaurant. Since that meal involved several courses, and there are many photos, I will write about that in the next post.
Tuesday afternoon, we decided to go to Lake Bled to see if we could find some lunch. There were some places open, but we were flummoxed because at that point, we hadn’t found the large public parking lot in Bled. I’m not sorry we went, though, because I got more beautiful photos. And then, maybe fifteen or twenty minutes from Ukanc at Lake Bohinj, where our rental house was, we found lunch at Gostilnica Štrudl, a cute little eatery in the touristy town of Bohinjska Bistrica. This restaurant offers local specialties– real “stick to your ribs” food, with lots of beans, cabbage, sausages, and potatoes. We coupled lunch with a couple of excellent locally made craft beers. I loved the dark beer. Should have brought some home! It also has apartments for rent, and sells locally produced gins, jams, and liqueurs. Below are some photos from our Tuesday outing.
A climbing wall for wouldbe mountaineers. We saw a class being taught there as we left on Friday.
I was glad to be able to get a few sunny shots of Lake Bled, even though we were passing in the car. We later found the public parking lot for Bled, so we came back on Thursday.
Bled CastleBled IslandWaterfall…
And then we found lunch, which stuck with us for the rest of the day. If only I’d had this lunch before we left Croatia!
Gostilnica ŠtrudlNot only does it have a cool label, but it was also delicious!One of those sausages was enough for me. Bill had to eat a good part of the second one. The beans mixed with potatoes were a hit! We need to try it at home!Bill had a stew with cabbage, potatoes, and sausage.Cute place. We brought home some gin and jams.And it even has a playground for your kids.Nearby souvenir shop. Too bad it wasn’t open.
There appeared to be several open restaurants in the Bohinjska Bistrica area. That’s also where the Aquapark Bohinj is. We decided not to visit there, mainly because of some poor reviews and concerns about sickness (the reviews mentioned that it wasn’t very clean). But, if we’d wanted to, we also could have gone bowling. We decided to go back to the house and finish watching The Crown instead, as the weather was getting crummy.
Unfortunately, Wednesday, we didn’t do much of anything because of high winds and rain. We did take a short drive, though, and I got some more photos. And we also found where the entrance to Mostnica Gorge is, as well as a few more eateries. One didn’t open until 4:00pm, and the other didn’t open until 1:00pm, so we ate leftover pizza and drank local wines.
Fortunately, even in inclement weather, Slovenia is so beautiful… it’s hard to be bored there. There’s always something to see, even if the weather makes being active more difficult. And the lack of crowds, especially during COVID-19 times is especially appealing.
I have to admit, I was kind of inclined not to do anything today. Bill and I started binge watching Squid Game on Netflix yesterday and we were kind of wanting to watch the last few episodes. But today’s weather is absolutely glorious, with agreeable temperatures and lots of sunshine. It would have been a crime not to get out of the house for a couple of hours. It had been awhile since our last visit to Villa im Tal, a wonderful restaurant in the woods on the outskirts of Wiesbaden. We’ve been several times, and have enjoyed every meal we’ve had there, but thanks to the pandemic, it had been over a year since we last dined there in person.
We decided to make a 2:30pm reservation at Villa im Tal, which was the tail end of lunch service, mainly because we weren’t ready to go out until about 1:45pm. Traffic through Wiesbaden was a real pain, especially for a Sunday, but then we turned onto the country road with limited access that leads to the historic building where Villa im Tal is… Every time I go out there, I miss country living, and having a horse. There’s a riding stable right next door, and many people go out there to ride horses, bikes or take luxurious hikes. The setting really makes me miss living next to a nature park, like we did in Jettingen.
Anyway, below are some photos from today’s visit… And as I share them, I realize that we really need to take a Saturday and do something besides eating in a restaurant. It’s time we went to a museum or climbed up to a Berg or something…
A lovely peek at the restaurant… Some horses were also passing. Made me wistful.Bill checks out the menu…Our waiter, who had been very busy, brought out some fizzy water and bread, with Spundekaese, a local cheese spread delicacy.I started with my favorite soup, mango lemongrass. It’s vegetarian, and a little spicy, but so comforting. The curry chip is a nice touch.Bill had a smoked salmon and avocado tatar with apples. I almost ordered this appetizer myself. I was pleased to get to try it.A beautiful chilled, crisp Riesling accompanied our fish heavy entrees. This wine was an excellent choice!I had grilled halibut with pureed parsnips and root vegetables. It was very hearty and buttery.Bill had sea bass (Branzino/Wolfbarsch), which isn’t the same as sea bass in the United States, It was served with cauliflower puree, beans, and tomatoes. The chefs are wizards with these purees, which taste as rich and decadent as potatoes. Must be all the butter!The digestive cart… we didn’t have one today.For dessert, I had a chocolate creme brulee with coconut Raffello ice cream and fruits. The cookie was a delicious buttery phyllo creation that was just slightly sweet.Bill had New York cheesecake with apricot compote and fresh fruits.
Service was very kind and professional, and our waiter was so gracious and friendly. He spoke excellent English and went out of his way to see that we had a nice lunch. I suspect we’re done eating for the day, but what a nice way to finish off one’s calories! I wish I could live out where the restaurant is… it’s just so beautiful and rustic, and it makes one forget that the city is not even two miles away.
Dog lovers will be glad to know that dogs are warmly welcomed and accommodated at Villa im Tal. We saw two canines enjoying lunch with their people at the restaurant. Our dogs aren’t quite well mannered enough to visit Villa im Tal, but I always enjoy the ones we see when we eat there.
We dined inside today, but there’s also have a really beautiful patio available. I saw some folks enjoying the outside area this afternoon.
This wasn’t a cheap lunch. With a generous Trinkgeld (tip) added, we spent 220 euros. Fortunately, credit cards are accepted. But it was well worth the money, and we left there smiling and happy. I hope we can visit again sooner. As long as the pandemic stays somewhat controlled, I don’t see why we wouldn’t. In fact, we need to go out more… and I need to get back to conjuring up our next trip, which I hope will happen within the next few weeks.
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.
Ahhh… I love September in Germany. The first time we lived here, it was from September 2007 until September 2009. We were in the Stuttgart area. I remember flying over here from Virginia, where it was still hotter than four hells, a warning from a former neighbor still in my head. She’d told me it would be much cooler in Germany. Sure enough, I soon found myself on Panzer Kaserne, at AAFES, buying a cheap suede jacket that made in China. It lasted five years before I tossed it out in Glasgow, Scotland, because it had a big rip in it.
Seven years ago, we moved into our second German home, located in lovely Unterjettingen. I still remember the smell of fermenting apples and the sight of the trees gently turning gold as the month progressed. And now, here we are in Wiesbaden, where the weather is just PERFECT. It was about 80 degrees today, with lots of sunshine and a cool breeze, promising that very soon, the weather would be more like it is in Germany the rest of the year. 😉 Although, I have to admit that global warming has changed things here, even since 2007.
Anyway… I might have been tempted to vegetate and drink in the back yard. Bill decided he wanted to go out. So at about 12:30, we dog proofed the house and set off for Wiesbaden. Bill wanted to check out the park behind the Kurhaus. I don’t know how we’ve missed it for the past almost three years we’ve lived here, but we have. Today, we discovered a lovely oasis, where paddle boats can be rented, picnics and sunbathing can be enjoyed, and beer can be consumed at the 1907 Lounge, a Biergarten that is affiliated with Benner’s Bistronomie, where we had lunch a few weeks ago.
Below are many photos from today’s outing. I think they mostly speak for themselves!
Saturday… big day for weddings and wedding photo shoots!Lovely garden in the park.There’s a small lake behind the Kurhaus…You can rent boats or watch the ducks.The Kurhaus was handy for having a bathroom…The 1907 Lounge/Biergarten.The menu. We had burgers, but we probably should have had snacks, instead.Kid friendly! There’s even a bubble blower!We arrived at a good time. I was enjoying the music, which was quirky jazz and blues.Self-service dining. Bill had a vegan “beyond burger”. I had a regular beef burger. Both were very messy, but not bad. I’ve had better.I probably should have worn gloves! Glad they came with handy wipes.Unusual bride…This was the first time we had ever been in the historic Kurhaus.The ceiling and stained glass is very impressive.No wonder we saw so many brides and grooms. They were getting their pictures taken.And if you want to gamble, you can do that too. Just be sure to be dressed in “smart casual” attire.There’s also an amphitheater. The park is so pretty and peaceful, but it’s not very big. I felt like I was back at the Horseshoe at the University of South Carolina.There’s a WC, too. Handy knowledge for next time we’re in the city and I have to pee.A shady spot.I am always surprised by the squirrels.There are no gray ones here.They all look like this fellow, or have black fur.There’s also a little creek.Lots of families were enjoying the sun as we left the park for the main square.We thought about getting ice cream, but wound up at a wine stand.Self-service here, too. The area was crawling with police. We heard what sounded like a band warming up.Ice cream probably would have been better.I love this time of year. Wiesbaden is so beautiful.I think the Arcade came straight from 1983.
It was getting close to 4:00pm, which is when Arran and Noyzi eat their dinner. I was loving the weather, but not the cigarette smoke. Also, because Wiesbaden’s COVID cases are on the rise, new restrictions are in place. Everybody has to show that they’ve been vaccinated, tested negative, or recovered from the virus. Of course, medical masks are required, too. They’re a bummer, but people cooperate.
That’s one thing I like about Germany. Nobody enjoys wearing masks, but people do it without causing a ruckus. And, when the threat is no longer, they won’t require masks anymore. Nobody pretends they’re more or less virtuous for complying with the health measures. The masks aren’t political, nor are the vaccines. People accept that this is about health, not politics, and there’s a minimum of fuss. I expect that if and when the pandemic peters out, Germans will enjoy being mask free if they want to be. But until then, people simply do what they’re supposed to do, mostly without getting violent or obnoxious. It helps to have a lot of cops around, of course… and here, the cops are generally not belligerent or violent unless they have to be.
On many levels, I’m so glad we’ve been able to be over here for this particular time in history. I will always be grateful to Germany for being kind to us Americans who don’t want to raise hell and just want to get through this crisis with our lives and health intact.
I’m glad we went out. It’s nice to see Germany functioning again, and people out and about. It would be a crime to miss this wonderful weather. I’m sure we’ll do something similar tomorrow.
We had no plans at all for Saturday. It was rainy and chilly, though, so we figured people would probably be hanging out in the spa area. We decided to take a drive instead. I can’t even tell you exactly where we went. Bill just got on the road, heading north, and we drove through several nice, picturesque towns. At one point, I was enchanted by the sight of rushing water, so we stopped so I could get some pictures. We eventually turned around when we got to the town of Rastatt, which looked to be pretty decent sized.
A small shrine near the rushing water…I enjoyed playing with my camera’s settings…Got plenty of cool photos of this picturesque area north of Baiersbronn…This is the Murg River.And then we passed through Gernsbach, where Schloss Eberstein sits on a hilltop.
After a couple of hours of good music and conversation, we headed back toward Obertal. It had started to rain and it was time for lunch. Despite all of the eating we did on Friday, we were hungry. I decided that I really wanted to stop at the Forellenhof Buhlbach, a restaurant owned by Hotel Bareiss.
If you are a food lover, you might know the Bareiss because it is where Baiersbronn’s other Michelin Three Star restaurant is. That restaurant, also known as Bareiss, is led by Clauss-Peter Lumpp, who has been working there for decades. I read about Chef Lumpp in that amazing New York Times Magazine article about Baiersbronn I posted at the beginning of this series. Now that I’m looking at the hotel’s Web site, I’m thinking that maybe if we go back, we should look into staying there!
In any case, we had driven up to the Forellenhof Buhlbach restaurant earlier in the day, so I got a good photo of it before the crowds showed up. It’s only open from 11:30 until 5:30 every day, and it’s a popular place that specializes in serving fresh trout. Reservations are not accepted. When we arrived, the place was pretty full and there was a line to get in. Since we didn’t have anything else to do, we decided to stick around. That was a good decision. Our wait was only about ten minutes and the meal was outstanding. No, it wasn’t fancy gourmet fare, but it was still very good food. I love fresh fish, and it doesn’t get much fresher than what is served at the Forellenhof. We did enjoy trout that was just as fresh when we visited Slovenia in 2016. The place in Slovenia was a bit more rustic, though.
Here are some photos from a fantastic lunch!
There was a covered area near the front door where people could wait. We signed in using Luca and the server checked our COVID pass.Wines by the bathroom…Too bad they are only open during the daytime.The menuThey have them in English and probably French, too. France is very near.Bill was very happy he listened to me.Wine list.This was a nice wine– very crisp and went beautifully with the fish!Bill’s smoked trout came with horseradish sauce and roe.He got parsley potatoes and market vegetables as his two sides.I had my fish Müllerinart– dredged in milk and flour and lightly fried in butter.And I had the market vegetables and creamed potatoes with scallions. Those potatoes were delicious! They were small chunks, slightly mashed.For dessert, Bill had Grandma’s cheesecake, which was served plain, but had raisins in the crust.And I had Schwarzwaldschnit… more Black Forest cake, more modestly cut.The drive out… Happy sheep.I would love to live in such an idyllic place.
One of the other guests at the Forellenhof was a nun. She seemed to be enjoying her lunch with her companion. This restaurant is quite reasonably priced, especially compared to where we ate on Friday. I think we got out of there having spent less than 100 euros. There are other menu choices besides fish, too, although the trout is definitely the star attraction at the Forellenhof.
Since we were pretty full and lunch was later, we decided to hang out in the bar instead of having dinner. The crowd changed a bit. There were many French people there, no doubt wanting to eat some excellent cuisine. I did notice that there weren’t many Americans around, especially in our hotel. In fact, most of the people in our hotel didn’t speak English, which I found rather refreshing. Bill got to practice his German a lot, and I found that I understood more than I realized.
I got to try out a new dress, too…I got a kick out of this art by the restrooms by the hotel.
There were a few things that made our trip a little more stressful than it should have been. All of it had to do with my inability to unplug from social media. I was especially nervous after having read about a gang of women in our neighborhood who have been trying to break in to people’s houses. One of Bill’s co-workers even caught someone trying to break into his car a few weeks ago. After reading about the neighborhood creepers, I ended up buying more renter’s insurance. I am a BIG believer in insurance.
We checked out of Hotel Engel Obertal at about 9:00am yesterday. As a parting gift, they gave us water, a small loaf of fresh farmer’s bread, and salt. Our final bill for the bar and restaurant, taxes, and one night of parking in the garage, was about 400 euros. All in all, we spent about 2000 euros on the hotel. I would stay at that hotel again, although if we go back, I’ll probably book somewhere else for the different experience. To anyone who is looking into visiting Baiersbronn, I would recommend the Hotel Engel Obertal. It seemed pretty popular with seniors, although we also saw a number of young families there. It has a nice family vibe.
Our drive back to Wiesbaden wasn’t bad at all, although I did a fair amount of bitching… mainly due to stuff that was completely unrelated to our weekend. Overall, we had a wonderful time, and now I’m thinking our days of staying in downtown Stuttgart when we need to see the dentist may be over forever. I’m all about staying in the Black Forest now, and am even thinking of other towns I’d like to explore next time. A bonus was that when we got home, our house was fine, and the dogs were delighted to see us. Noyzi even jumped into the back of the Volvo all by himself!
I hope anyone who’s been following along enjoyed this look at Baiersbronn. There are plenty of reasons to go back… more “stars” to see, if the opportunity presents itself. Until next time!
Using a reservation app called The Fork, Bill made 7:00pm reservations at the Michelin one starred restaurant, Restaurant Köhlerstube. This restaurant is one of two at the Traube Tonbach Hotel, located in Baiersbronn. The other Michelin starred restaurant at this hotel is the Schwarzwaldstube, which has THREE stars. That’s as high as the Michelin star system goes. I’m not sure how far in advance one has to plan for a table at the Schwarzwaldstube, but as it has just eight tables and is a very famous restaurant, I’m sure it takes a lot of lead time and perhaps a bit of luck. The Schwarzaldstube is not Germany’s, or even Baiersbronn’s, only three starred restaurant, but it is the venue in Germany that has had the distinction for the longest amount of time, having earned its stars in 1993. It is currently led by Chef Torsten Michel, who took over from long time chef, Harald Wohlfahrt, in 2017. The Köhlerstube, just down the hall, is led by Chef Florian Stolte; it gained its Michelin star in 2019.
The Traube Tonbach Hotel has a long and storied history, beginning in 1789, when Tobias Finkbeiner began the business that would stay in his family until this very day. This hotel has been family run for seven generations, and according to its Web site, is committed to excellent service, luxury, and sustainability.
The Traube Tonbach Hotel is also noteworthy, because on January 5, 2020, there was a devastating fire that destroyed the original Schwarzwaldstube and the former Bauernstube venues. The Bauernstube was special, in that it was the original tavern opened by Tobias Finkbeiner, who aimed to provide sustenance to the lumberjacks who had come to the Black Forest. In 1812, Tobias Finkbeiner was recruited to fight in Napoleon’s Russian campaign, as Württemberg was part of France at the time. Of the twenty-five people who left the Tonbach Valley to fight, Tobias Finkbeiner was the only one to return, and he continued the business and passed it to his descendants.
The hotel is currently in the process of rebuilding the restaurants that were destroyed in the fire. Meanwhile, the Schwarzwaldstube and the Köhlerstube are both operating out of the Temporaire building– basically the top floor of a Parkhaus that has been converted. There’s also a lot of other construction going on at the hotel, which I’m sure will make it a very nice place to stay when it’s finished. As for now, I’m kind of glad we didn’t book our stay there. Parking is in short supply and there’s a bit of a mess due to all of the building being done. We ended up having to park down the hill at the free public lot.
On our way to the restaurant, Bill almost had another accident. The main drag in one of the villages is being repaved, so there’s a temporary stoplight on either end of the construction zone. At the time we were passing through, there was a terrible glare on the stoplight, making it impossible to tell what color the light was. Both Bill and I thought he had a green light. No traffic was oncoming, so we started to make our way through the construction zone. No sooner had Bill said, “I’ve just got to clear this zone as quickly as possible” than we were confronted by oncoming traffic, including a guy on a scooter who blew past us in the opposite direction. Fortunately, there’s a roundabout at the end of the zone, so other drivers could circle back and come through once we were out.
Then, the GPS sent us on a shortcut through a village. The views on the way were beautiful. I would have loved to have gotten some photos. But Bill was so wigged out by the near miss in the construction zone, I missed the opportunity.
Once we got to the hotel, we were confronted by all of the construction and the lack of parking. Bill asked an employee where to go. The guy pointed to the Temporaire, and took off. It didn’t leave a great impression. I was also relieved that I wore comfortable shoes, since we had to walk uphill from the public lot to get to the restaurant. Nevertheless, when we arrived, there were two smartly dressed young men at the door, ready to greet us, check out COVID vaccinations, and take our jackets. And then we joined about two dozen other people who had booked the restaurant that evening.
The staff at the Köhlerstube were all dressed smartly. The ladies wore Dirndls, while the lower ranking men wore traditional dress. The sommelier who took care of us wore a regular suit. Everyone spoke English very well. We had a choice of the regular or vegetarian versions of the menu, along with several side options that could be ordered a la carte or used as a substitute. Below are photos of the menu that was offered on the night of our visit.
We were allowed to substitute dishes from the vegetarian menu…The American lady at the table behind us substituted a vegetarian dish for the venison.I might have been persuaded to try the duck, but decided to just get the venison, which is something I don’t usually eat.
There was a variety of people at the restaurant on Friday night. One table hosted a party of people who were celebrating a wedding, including the apparent bride in her gown. There were several couples, a couple of families with children, and a couple of groups of four. The American couple behind us brought their son, who looked to be about three or four years old. I was shocked by how quiet and well-behaved the boy was. He sat quietly and let his parents enjoy their meal with barely a fuss. He had headphones, and at one point, had fallen asleep. At the end of the meal, the wait staff brought him ice cream, which he didn’t seem to enjoy very much. They also brought him housemade chocolates. He chose a cool looking one that was blue, but it was a bit too much for his developing tastebuds and he spit it out in disgust. Bill also chose that one and said it was bitter chocolate. No wonder! I can remember not liking dark chocolate either when I was a child!
Here are some photos from our second foodie experience on Friday. Everything was delicious, although personally, I think I preferred what we had at the Meierei. I did appreciate that the portion sizes were manageable, especially since we weren’t quite recovered from lunch! We did opt to get the wine pairing with the courses, which I noticed a lot of other people were also doing. Each course was beautifully presented and the service was very good, although by the end of the meal, I was getting pretty tired and it took us some effort to flag down our check!
Checking out the goods.A little gift of tuna from the kitchen!Since we were going to be drinking a lot, we had aperitifs made with prosecco and tonic water. They were very refreshing and not too boozy.Whipped butter presented beautifully.The amuse– buffalo mozzarella with aubergine, tomato, and basil.Followed by perfect salmon with tiny frozen green apple balls, oysters, and daikon.Another shot, since Bill had his topped with caviar for an extra twenty euros.Next we had a langoustine with cauliflower. This was originally served with shitake mushrooms, but I don’t eat mushrooms. They were told ahead of time, and remembered when we mentioned it, but didn’t remember in time for the meal. It was no problem to get a new one.Next came sturgeon. This was my first experience with thistle fish matched with bok choy and Tom Yam. I think Bill liked this course best.Next we had venison, which came with a “finger” carrot. I was getting pretty full at this point, so Bill ate about half of mine. It was delicious, though. I made our server chuckle when I quipped, “Time for Bambi.” as she brought us the venison.Venison served a second way– braised with Thai curry.This was my favorite wine of the night, a lovely Spanish Syrah that went with the venison. I am going to look for it locally.I skipped the cheese course. Bill enjoyed it very much, along with a glass of semi sweet wine.And finally, dessert, which was called “curd cheese” in the menu, but really reminded me of cheesecake. It came with apricots, pistachios, Citrus Thyme ice cream, and an Earl Grey essence.Chocolates at the end, including the dark chocolate blue one not enjoyed by the little boy at the other table.
The total cost for this sumptuous meal was 521 euros before the tip. Thank God they take credit cards! Was it worth it? I think so… although this is the kind of meal that really should be done for the experience of it. I prefer more “comfortable” foods myself. But the delicate flavors and unusual combinations made this a very memorable and enjoyable experience for us. I liked the Meierei more, mainly because the service was so kind and personal. But I would absolutely recommend the Köhlerstube, even if the venue did remind me a little of a kindergarten. I hope we can visit again when the hotel has finished rebuilding its permanent locations for their restaurants. And, on another note, the Köhlerstube has now surpassed the now defunct Alte Post in Nagold for the most we have ever spent on a meal!
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