Tag Archives: The Auld Rogue

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My very first visit to the Corso Kino in Vaihingen…

I don’t go to the movies very often anymore.  Before this afternoon, I had not been to a movie theater since June 2011, when Bill and I visited a theater on a whim while vacationing in Portland, Maine.  I recall we saw Midnight in Paris because my back was hurting and I didn’t want to walk anymore.  It was a good film, but it didn’t make me want to go to the movies again.  For whatever reason, I just don’t enjoy them that much… at least not in a theater.  I’d rather watch movies at home on my couch, where no one blocks my view, talks too much, or gets mad when I need to get up to pee.

The place to be if you want to see movies in their original language…

Still, even I couldn’t help but notice all my friends gushing about Bohemian Rhapsody.  I happen to love Queen and am very grateful that I was born at a time when there were still so many legendary bands in their prime.  Freddie Mercury was a genius.  I remember when he died, just one day after he told the world that he was suffering from AIDS.  I grew up at a time when a lot of great people were dying from AIDS.  He was just one of many beautiful souls who passed when he was much too young.  Bohemian Rhapsody is the story of Queen, and how Freddie Mercury made that band his family, creating amazing music that was distinctly its own.

The official trailer…

 

Bill loves to go to the movies, so he was only too happy to reserve tickets for us at the Corso Kino, a movie theater in Vaihingen that shows original versions of films, sometimes with English or German subtitles.  I had heard a lot about the Corso Kino over our time living in this area, but today was the first time we ever actually saw a show there.  I must admit, although I still don’t necessarily love the movie experience, I’m glad we paid a visit today.

Before we went to the movies, we stopped by The Auld Rogue for one last Sunday lunch.  The Auld Rogue is an Irish pub in Vaihingen, very popular with Americans because the staff all speaks English, the menus are in English, and the food is not German.  They also offer music, whiskey/whisky and beer tastings, and sports.  When we first moved to this area in 2007, The Auld Rogue was a Greek restaurant called Taverna Faros.  We used to love eating there during our six week stay at the Vaihinger Hof.  Taverna Faros didn’t last, though, because the proprietor didn’t pay his taxes.  It later turned into a club, then became the Irish pub we all know and love.

It had been awhile since our last visit to the popular pub, but we managed to have a decent lunch, even though they were unable to make me a Black and Tan.

Bill was still full from breakfast, so he had nachos with cheese.  They were a lot more than he was expecting.  I went with the chicken Caesar wrap.  It was the first time I ever ordered it and I mostly enjoyed it, although it didn’t taste like it had any Caesar dressing.  It kind of needed something to jazz it up a little.  Still, it wasn’t bad.  I’d get it again.  Not sure why my camera is suddenly sporting lines on my pictures.

Bill and I each had a Fuller’s London Porter and a Guinness.  I probably shouldn’t have bothered with the Guinness, but I kind of got it on a whim when the waitress said she couldn’t make me a Black and Tan.  The London Porter was awesome.

My favorite veteran.

 

We parked at the Schwaben Galerie and walked from there to The Auld Rogue, then from the Auld Rogue to the Corso Kino.  A lot of people came to see the matinee of Bohemian Rhapsody, but it wasn’t a sold out crowd.  We didn’t have to reserve our tickets, after all.

It’s not the most user friendly cinema.  To get to the two theaters, one must climb down a couple of flights of stairs.  The bathrooms are small, cramped, and not sparkling clean. The concession stand shares its space with the box office, so the line has a tendency to be a little obnoxious.

But the popcorn smelled wonderful and there was beer to drink.  We even noticed that if you weren’t sitting in the front row, you could put your stuff on a little ledge anchored to the seats in front of you.  We chose to sit on the front row on the left side.  It probably wasn’t the best choice to sit there, since people had to pass us to go to the bathroom or get snacks.  Still, at least I wasn’t sitting behind someone tall, like I usually do when I go to the movies.  I also enjoyed the jazz they were playing before the show started.

I took this photo from my seat before the show started.  

 

Our view before the movie began.  The seats reclined a bit and were quite comfortable.

As for Bohemian Rhapsody, I thought it was an excellent and entertaining movie.  It will be one I add to our personal library.  The story is very poignant; the soundtrack rocks; and there are a lot of great lines in the script.  In short, I laughed; I cried; it became a part of me…  A friend told me that I would probably cry watching it.  I didn’t cry, but I will confess that I came a bit close toward the end.  Tears don’t come as easily for me these days.  I think it’s because I’m getting old.

Here’s a picture of our dog, Zane, before he got his morning walk.  As you can see, the tumor removal he had during his dental the other day hasn’t slowed him down a bit.  He’s obviously the king of our household.

 

I enjoyed our visit to the Corso Kino, and if we ever have the chance to go again, I will gladly go… as long as they’re showing something I want to see.  This is yet another nice way to spend a Sunday in Stuttgart.

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No parking equals no wine museum…

Bill and I had big plans today.  We hoped to check out the wine museum in Stuttgart.  It’s located about an hour from our house in Unterjettingen, not too far from Esslingen.

Unfortunately, when we got to the cute little town where the museum is, there was absolutely no parking to be found.  We drove around for awhile, but it was to no avail.  No one was budging.  Bill had to pee and I was rapidly losing patience with trying to find a place to park our Mini, so we decided to head to Panzer so I could pick up some mascara and other stuff.

When we were done with Panzer, we went to the Auld Rogue.  We had gotten out of the habit of visiting the American community’s favorite Irish restaurant, probably because we try to find stuff to do rather than visiting AAFES.  But we have a cruise coming up and I needed a few odds and ends.

The Auld Rogue was pretty dead when we got there at about 1:30pm, although there was one guy at the bar holding court.  He was talking to a waitress I had not seen before.  I heard her say she’s from Manchester, England.  Of course, Nick the head guy was also there.

We started with a round of Guinness…

I had fish and chips and Bill had the chicken Caesar wrap, which looked pretty good.  I was surprised by the mushy peas.  I don’t remember those being offered last time I had fish and chips at The Auld Rogue.  The chips were good… kind of greasy, yet crispy.  I like ’em that way sometimes.

We were on our second round when a bunch of people showed up.  Bill was enjoying the beer of the week, which was a local brew from Kraftbierwerkstatt called Awesome Amber.  It was very peachy and quite tasty, even if it came in a small glass.

 

The group that came in was eyeing our table and I heard one woman say, “Those people are leaving.” I’ll admit, the spiteful side of me was very tempted to order whisky just to be bitchy.  I’m pretty sure she at least got the stinkeye, because sometimes I really am bitchy… especially when someone’s lurking at my table in a restaurant where there are plenty of other tables to be had.  No one’s name was on the one we were occupying, nor do I like to be rushed.  Bill was really enjoying watching my facial expressions.  After fifteen years, he’s pretty good at translating them.

I was ready to go, though.  The music that was playing today was getting on my nerves…  reminded me of a bunch of different U2 knockoffs.  I kept Shazaming them to see what the bands were and they were all different, yet sounded the same– kinda like U2 post Y2K.  Also, I was getting tired of unintentionally eavesdropping on the guy who was at the bar, chatting up the bartender and letting everyone else in on his conversation about co-ops in Virginia.  Just by sitting there in the dining room, I learned that he and his wife couldn’t eat all the fruits and vegetables they were given thanks to the co-op.  I also learned that they’re selling their house and his wife is back in the States trying to expedite the process.  And no, we weren’t talking to the guy or in any way involved in his conversation… he just had a voice that carried and didn’t seem to notice or care that he was addressing all of us.

On the way out of the bar, we ran into one of Bill’s former co-workers who is about to depart Germany and move to his wife’s native country, Canada, after they spend a month touring around the UK and seeing friends and family.  They always have their sweet dog with them wherever they go.  He will also be joining them on the Queen Mary II as they cross the Atlantic on a cruise.  I will miss seeing them and their dog, who is super chill and very well-behaved.  I wish ours were that good in public.  The Queen Mary II is the only cruise ship that I know of that has a capacity for dogs.

We stopped and chatted with them for a few minutes and wished them a good cruise… as we are about to go on a cruise ourselves.  I don’t know that we’ll ever cruise with our dogs, but I’m glad the option exists.  I hope they enjoy themselves.  I have always wanted to do a transatlantic cruise, but it looks like it costs between $800 and $1000 per dog.  That’s a lot of bread before you’ve even paid your fare (s)!

We will get to the wine museum someday.  Maybe we’ll go later in the day or try on a weekday.  It was not happening when we were there this afternoon, though.  What a bummer.

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Under new ownership… an old neighborhood favorite goes bust…

For the past couple of years, Bill and I have taken advantage of having a good Greek restaurant within walking distance of our house.  Taverne Bei Dimi was a great standby when we weren’t in the mood to cook.  Granted, we hadn’t visited in the past few months, although we did try recently, only to find the place closed.  We thought maybe Dimi had gone to Greece for Christmas or something.

Last night, we decided we’d try to go to Dimi’s for dinner.  We made the familiar short walk from our house.  As we approached, I noticed that the vibe of the place seemed off.  I could see there were lights on in what looked like a downstairs dining room.  Dimi never had those lights on.  The small parking lot was full of cars.  I could see a few people in the back area of the dining room, where Dimi had video gambling.  That part of the restaurant allowed smoking and Dimi usually had it closed off from the rest.

I noticed the front door wasn’t open the way it usually was and I could see a strange looking bald man in the kitchen.  Then, when we opened the door to the dining room, we were almost bowled over by heavy cigarette smoke, a TV, and bright lights.  I looked around and saw that there were different tables, a drink fridge, and all of Dimi’s art was gone.  I did notice that Dimi’s signs were still up.

The proprietor welcomed us to sit down, although he said there was no food available.  The proprietor was polite, but had the air of a eastern European Mafioso or something.  It was creepy.  They were only serving drinks.  I’m not sure, but it sounded like they were working on hiring someone to cook.  I won’t be back, though.  That place was just full of acrid smoke and appeared to be taken over by a bunch of compulsive, chain smoking gamblers.  I remembered they used to annoy Dimi, because they didn’t want to GTFO in a timely manner.

I don’t know what happened.  My guess is that Dimi wasn’t getting enough business in his location.  I also think it’s possible that he might have had some health problems.  I do remember many times seeing him looking flushed and diaphoretic as he cooked and served his customers.  Ah well.  After a week of exhausting political dramas, I was looking forward to ouzo.  Guess we’ll have to go somewhere else.

Bill and I ended up going to Tommi’s Bistro last night.  It had been awhile since our last visit there, too.  Unlike Dimi, it looked like Tommi might be thriving.  He changed his plates and it looked like maybe he had someone else cooking.  Most of the tables were reserved last night, too.  We ended up sitting at a very large table and were later joined by several Germans.  I was glad to see business booming for the best steak house in the area.

Bill is ready for beef.

I had a two hundred gram entrecote with wild potatoes and dip.  I don’t really like sour cream, but I have to admit the dip on those potatoes is awesome.  It’s got a little garlic in it.

Bill had a two hundred gram rump steak with pommes.

I noticed Tommi has personalized some of his tableware, too.  

 

Tommi’s Bistro is right next to a music club.  I love visiting Tommi’s when the club is rehearsing, like last night.

I snapped a photo as we were walking out.

 

It’s too bad Dimi’s appears to have gone the way of Burger Chef.  I hope he’s alright, but I take heart in knowing that sometimes these unexpected closures turn out okay.  Case in point.  When we lived here last time, the restaurant we now all know and love as The Auld Rogue was a Greek restaurant called Taverna Faros.  I had my very first dorade there.  Bill and I went several times when we were stuck living in the Vaihinger Hof for six weeks as we waited for our housing to be ready.

Sometime after we moved into our house, Taverna Faros went under.  One day, we decided we wanted to eat at Taverna Faros and discovered it had become City Club.  We were very sad about that, especially since City Club looked rather sleazy.

Now, of course, City Club is no longer and we have the wonderful Auld Rogue to go to for good food, fine whisky, Irish suds, sports, and live music!  Although I doubt my neighborhood haunt will turn into anything as awesome as The Auld Rogue, hope springs eternal.  And, if we don’t end up being thrown out of Europe due to our new president’s antics, maybe someday we’ll get to enjoy it.

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Whisky/Whiskey: our first tasting at The Auld Rogue!

Several weeks ago, Bill and I went on an AAFES run and decided to stop at The Auld Rogue, a popular Irish pub in Vaihingen.  After we’d had our lunches, the ever present Nick, who is always running things whenever we stop by, asked us if we’d be interested in attending the next whiskey tasting.  Although Bill and I very much enjoy whisky (and whiskey) and are keen to taste as many as we can, we had never been to a tasting at The Auld Rogue.  Bill had been wanting to go to a beer or whiskey tasting at the much beloved Irish pub for as long as we’ve been back in the Stuttgart area.

The Auld Rogue always inspires good memories.  The last time we lived here, The Auld Rogue was first a Greek restaurant and then a dance club (which we didn’t try).  When it was still Taverna Faros back in 2007, I ate my very first dorade at the place that is now called The Auld Rogue.  It’s kind of a special venue for Bill and me for that reason, although I also love The Auld Rogue for its good food, excellent music, and friendly service in English.  Even though we knew yesterday would involve a lot of drinking potent spirits that might bring on temporary amnesia, we figured we could make even more good memories.

So Bill told Nick we’d be happy to attend his tasting, a special one that pitted Irish whiskeys against Scottish whiskys.  The official title of yesterday’s tasting was Uisce or Uisge– Battle of the Giants!  It promised a selection of interesting spirits from Ireland and Scotland to taste.  The price was 55 euros a person– 110 in total for us– and included food.  Bill paid Nick; he gave us our tickets; and we waited for the big day to arrive.

Meanwhile, our beagle Zane had some urgent veterinary issues.  Friday morning, he had a little minor surgery to flush out one of his ears and remove a cyst that kept troubling him (and me).  I was worried that maybe we wouldn’t make it to the tasting because I wasn’t sure what kind of shape Zane would be in on Saturday.  I see now on The Auld Rogue’s Facebook page that, had we needed to cancel, we could have transferred our tasting tickets to a future tasting.  That’s good to know, although I didn’t know that before Zane went under the knife.  He’s doing fine, though and was no worse for wear when we got home last night.

Nick advised us to arrive at the restaurant by 1:30pm to ensure that we’d get a table.  Since we knew there would be lots of booze at the tasting, Bill and I opted to take the train from Herrenberg to Vaihingen.  Fortunately, we had decent weather yesterday for the walk to the restaurant.

Once we got to the Auld Rogue, we took a table at the back of the room.  If we do another tasting (and we probably will), we’ll try to get a table closer to the bar.  That makes it much easier to get to the bathroom!  I must have let out a frustrated sigh after a noticed the tight obstacle course to get to the toilet.

Then Bill took a look at me and noticed I was also getting a little hangry.  He said, “You’re hungry, aren’t you?”  He can always tell!  I nodded and asked him if there was going to be food; I remembered that the initial announcement said there would be, but didn’t remember what it included.  The other guys sitting with us also wanted to know.  The information about snacks was not in the handout Nick gave us when we first arrived, so people were a little confused.

I noticed other people ordering lunches.  They didn’t know that there would be pub food offered at the tasting.  One guy had ordered food before the tasting started and ended up sitting alone after the first round.  The couple who had been sharing the table with him left early.  He was totally inundated with snacks he couldn’t eat!  Although I was tempted to get a sandwich, we just ordered some Guinness as we waited for the tasting to start.  Unless you have a huge appetite, I would recommend the same.

Yesterday’s tasting was very well attended and we were packed in.  Bill and I shared our table with four young men working in Stuttgart temporarily.  They turned out to be great company, even if they did make me feel old!

Here’s a first shot of the first whiskey samples we tried.  This was the Hyde No. 2, 10 year old Caribbean Dark Rum Irish Single Malt.  I was in the back of the room and it was a bit too crowded to easily come closer for inspection.  I opted to make use of the zoom lens on my digital camera instead.

Nick passed out the samples and asked us not to start drinking yet.  He told us to hang on to the glasses and rinse them with the water he’d placed on our tables for diluting the spirits.  Also, he explained that if he had to wash the glasses in the dishwasher, they’d come back to us hot and that would evaporate the alcohol.  We certainly didn’t want that!  Nick then showed us three different ways to get the most out of the tasting.  One method involved using your hands, which I opted not to do.

Next, Nick explained the basics of whiskey/whisky, which starts out as beer before it turns into liquor.  He told us that “whisky” is the Scottish spelling, while “whiskey” is how the Irish spell it.  Then he went into rather lengthy, yet entertaining speech about the differences between the way Irish whiskeys are made as opposed to Scotch whiskys.  Irish whiskeys tend to be smoother because they are triple distilled in copper pots.  Scotch whiskys, by comparison, are usually a bit less refined because they are double distilled in wood, stainless steel, or copper pots.  Bill and I learned a lot about the process of making whisky/whiskey last spring, when we went on a whisky themed cruise in Scotland and visited quite a few distilleries.  I thought Nick’s explanation was especially useful for those who haven’t visited half a dozen distilleries within a week of travel!

It wasn’t quite full at this point.  By 2:00pm, we were cozy!

The list of boozes…  The last one had to be replaced with a different whisky because the supplier sent the wrong one.  The replacement whisky was supposedly similar– it was simply aged in both oloroso sherry casks and Pedro Ximenez casks instead of just Pedro Ximenez casks. 

Full house!

After the first tasting of whisky, Nick paused and we were given our first round of snacks.  I was actually very pleased with what they offered us.  This is great bar food, especially if you’re feeling hangry!

Onion rings, chicken wings, cheese sticks, carrot sticks, and celery sticks, served with an interesting dip that tasted kind of like chili without the beans.  I was less hangry after we shared this with our young companions.

 

After we tasted the first scotch whisky, a lovely fourteen year old Balvenie Scottish single malt aged in a Caribbean cask, we took a vote to see which one was more popular.  On the first round, I was partial to the Scottish offering, though Bill preferred the Irish whiskey.

More food was brought out…  We had to explain to our young friends what was being served.  Basically, it was a round of tiny “gemischte” hamburger patties (pork and beef) and pieces of Fleischkaese (pork meatloaf) with tortilla chips, hummus, and a spicy red chili sauce. 

The next two selections were the eleven year old Teeling White Burgundy Single Cask from Ireland and a twelve year old Glenmorangie Nectar D’Or Sauternes Cask from Scotland.  That time, I preferred the Irish offering.  I would have liked to have purchased a bottle to bring home with us, but Nick said he didn’t have many to sell.  It was also priced at 86 euros, which was the most expensive bottle we tried.  I’ll check MasterofMalt.com to see if they have it in stock (ETA: They don’t. 🙁 ).

We lost one of the guys sitting at our table because he needed to get to the movies.  He missed the last two selections, the Connemara (sherry) Distillers Edition of an Irish Single Malt versus the BenRaich (Sherry) Scottish Single Malt.  Again, the last Scottish whisky we tried was a substitute for what had been planned.  Although I enjoyed it very much, Nick was a bit put out that he’d gotten the wrong whisky and said he was going to kick his supplier’s ass!

The final round of food.  A nice bowl of chips.  I wish we’d had plates or ramekins so I could have used the ketchup!

 

This video was taken toward the end of the tasting.  Nick tells a good story.

 

The tasting was finally over after almost four hours.  Bill purchased a bottle of the Connemara whiskey, which gave me a thrill since prior to yesterday, all I knew about Connemara was that it’s the source of some wonderful ponies.  Now I know there’s also fine whiskey made there.  Maybe we’ll visit when we go to Ireland in a couple of weeks!

Anyway, now that we’ve done our first Auld Rogue tasting, I will offer a few tips to those who want to try one in the future.

1.  Get there early to score a seat.  

 

2.  Dress in layers.  I wore a sweater and was a bit too warm because the place filled up with people.  I might have preferred something lighter or maybe even a t-shirt!

 

3.  Consider your seating location’s proximity to the restroom.

 

4.  Plan on spending several hours.  We noticed a number of people hadn’t expected the event would last as long as it did.  They ended up leaving early.  

 

5.  Because of the amount of alcohol you’ll be tasting, consider how you will be getting to and leaving the event.  We took the train, just to be on the safe side.

 

6.  Note ahead of time whether or not there will be food offered (and I’m sure most of these events include food).  If there will be food, you might not want to order food before the event starts.  Portions at The Auld Rogue can be very large and filling!  You might even want to show up hungry for the snacks.

 

7.  This may not be the best time to bring anyone with you who might be offended by off color language.  Nick dropped the f bomb a few times.  I was, of course, delighted by that, but other people might not be.  But then again, it IS an Irish pub.  Use your best judgment!

 

8.  If you need to cancel your reservation, let Nick know.  It’s possible to transfer the ticket to a future tasting.

We really enjoyed our first tasting at The Auld Rogue.  I’m pretty sure we’ll do it again.  The next one is a beer tasting that, I believe, is already sold out.  As it will occur on November 12th, we wouldn’t be able to attend anyway.  We will be in Ireland celebrating our 14th wedding anniversary!  Stay tuned for posts about that trip!

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On not finding what we need at AAFES…

In a couple of weeks, Bill and I will be traveling to Scotland and taking a cruise on Hebridean Princess.  We have cruised on this ship before, back in November 2012.  We were celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary.  It was actually a rather bittersweet journey because one of our dogs got very sick while we were gone.  Despite MacGregor’s sickness, we had a wonderful time in Scotland and especially on Hebridean Princess.  Scotland felt very comfortable to me, probably because a number of my ancestors were Scots and my earliest memories are of living in England.

Anyway, when we took that first cruise, Bill brought his dress blues and wore them for the galas on the ship.  These are special meals where haggis is served.  The men wear tuxedoes and the women wear cocktail dresses.  Bill made many people, including the ship’s officers, stop dead in the their tracks when he showed up wearing his uniform.  The Brits love it when people dress smartly for a special occasion.  It was one of a few times when it seemed like Bill was so much prettier than me.  Lots of people congratulated him for looking so sharp.

I hope we can get a nicer shot on this upcoming trip…  Yes, we were a little hammered.  We needed some Scotch courage to try the haggis.

 

As it happens when guys get older and retire from the Army, Bill has gained a little weight.  Although I have been nagging him for weeks about trying on the uniform, he finally did it today.  And he found out that his uniform no longer fits him properly.  It’s enough that he needed to invest in a new shirt and jacket.  We went to Panzer today to shop for uniform essentials so he’ll be all spiffy on our cruise.  He lucked into the last jacket in his new size and found a shirt with no problem.  Sadly, clothing sales was missing the piping that he needed for the jacket sleeves and no one there could help him.  He’ll either have to get the piping off of his older jacket or go on a crash diet for the next two weeks.  Maybe he’ll find someone who can help him before we take off in a couple of weeks.

While he was buying the jacket and shirt, I took note of some “fresh fruit” being offered for sale…

I think it might be time for banana bread…  Also, at least one of those apples has seen better days.

 

We stopped by the PX for a potty break and to pick up some feminine hygiene essentials, then we went to the Auld Rogue for a late lunch/early dinner.  Bill tried the chili, which was pretty good but not very spicy.

I might be persuaded to order this sometime, though my chili is much better.  I’m not a big fan of lots of heat, but this was pretty bland for chili.  I liked the cheese.

 

This was pretty good, as usual.  I couldn’t finish it all, though.

 

After we ate and had a few rounds of Guinness, we went to Patch to pick up a couple of things from the Shoppette.  I took the opportunity to use the bathroom because I knew that if I didn’t, I’d really regret it on the way home.  Folks, I’m here to tell you that despite AAFES’ promises of a clean restroom that is inspected every hour, the potty in the Shoppette was even grosser than usual today.  It looked like someone’s abnormally large turd was stuck in the commode.  And there was also no toilet paper.  It’s a good thing I had some Kleenex with me.

Clean restroom promise… HA!

I have ranted about the nasty bathrooms before, but I just figured today’s experiences represented an unusually high level of suckitude.  It truly makes me sad.  I’ve seen some really gross toilets in my day, but they were in developing countries.  I think we should be able to do better in a place like Germany, where there is plenty of running water, people get paid regularly, and detergent is affordable.

Oh well…  Somehow, we’ll get Bill in his uniform so he can be stunning to our friends the Brits.  I’ll try to keep up with his natural beauty.

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Our first trip to Daily Burger…

About a month ago, Bill and I heard about how good the burgers are at Daily Burger, a small restaurant near the Schwaben Galerie in Vaihingen.  Since we definitely like our burgers, we decided we needed to try it.  Today was the big day.

Outside of the restaurant.  I often get a kick out of trying German versions of “American” food.

The weather was pretty miserable today.  It was cold and rainy.  Daily Burger opens at 3:00pm on Sundays.  I figured it wouldn’t be that busy because it was the middle of the day.  I was mistaken.  The dining room at Daily Burger is very small and no frills and every seat inside was taken.  They have a tent heated by propane heaters and the gentleman ahead of us requested to sit out there with his daughter.  Bill and I decided to join them, since there was nowhere else to sit.  But first, we had to make an order.

Daily Burger has a small menu.  You can get a beef burger, a chicken burger, or a veggie burger.  They also offer chicken wings.  You have a choice of three buns: sesame, hell, or koerner.  Bill tried the koerner bun, while I had the sesame bun.  There are several available free toppings which include tomatoes, raw onions,  roasted onions or pickles.  You can also pay extra for an egg, cheese, bacon, rucola, an extra patty, or jalapeno peppers.  Mustard, ketchup, and mayonnaise are free, while barbecue sauce is extra.

Bill and I both got combos, which include pommes and a drink.  I had a Coke and Bill had a Mezzo Mix; they came in small bottles  The lady who helped us spoke perfect English and was efficient as she took our orders.  She handed us a beeper and we went outside to wait.

On a nicer day, it wouldn’t have been bad at all to sit in the tent.  The heater was somewhat effective in warming the space.  I could still see my breath, though, and my hands were freezing during the short wait for our order to be prepared.

Obligatory shot of Bill.

Nice tables outside.  I sat right under the heater.  Bill insisted.  On a nice day, this might even be preferable to the indoor seating, since it’s very no frills.  Today, it was very bitter cold.

My cheeseburger.  It had mustard, ketchup, pickles, and lettuce.  The patty was very thin and tasted like it might be beef and pork mixed.  It was piping hot when I got it and the bun tasted very fresh, like it had been made on the premises.  I really liked the bun.  The fries were also delicious, but there were a whole lot of them.  Bill and I each only managed half.  Next time, we’ll order one combo and a burger and share the fries.  I don’t mind having extras, though… they were really good.

Bill’s sandwich.  He had barbecue sauce, pickles, cheese, and lettuce.  His sandwich seemed bigger than mine.  Both had a lot of condiments on them, to the point at which they were pretty messy.  I could have used another napkin.

Total damage for this lunch was about eighteen euros.  We both liked the food well enough, though it was definitely not Five Guys.  Next time, I may try the chicken or the wings.  I think I might like that better than the burgers.

I was so chilled after eating outside that I decided we needed to visit The Auld Rogue for a pint and maybe a little nip of scotch.  After dropping off our leftover fries, we walked over there and came in just in time for some live music.  A group was playing Irish music.  The first thing I did when I got there, though, was to hit the ladies room because I didn’t see one at Daily Burger.  To be fair, I didn’t look for one in the crowded restaurant.  It was too awkward.

A young girl standing in the hallway was playing with a tablet and said something to me.  At first I didn’t hear her.  She repeated herself in German.  I didn’t understand and said so.  She asked me if I’d been crying!  No… I was just looking a little like a drowned rat with too much eyeliner and a strong urge to pee.

The view from our table.  Bill ordered us a round of Guinness…

Another obligatory shot of Bill right before he ordered me a large Ardbeg to help ward off the chill.

I had to have a shot of the Irish True flag.

 

The band was decent, though I think they could have used another singer.  One lady sang and wasn’t bad, but they seemed more into playing than singing.  I heard a few harmonies and one guy was a decent singer, but I couldn’t hear him as well over the jamming.  Never mind, though… it was entertaining.  I especially liked it when they sang “Always Look On The Bright Side of Life”.  I noticed a couple of Christy Moore songs, too.  Later, after the broke up, it became clear that they were Germans doing a pretty good job of playing Irish music.

We talked to the proprietor, Nick, about a trip to Ireland The Auld Rogue is planning for Memorial Day weekend.  That may be a trip I’ll have to do…  Nick said it would include some stops at distilleries and a craft beer festival…  A boozer like me is all over that.  We asked him to send us the info and we’ll see if we can make it happen.

I was surprisingly warm on the walk back to the car.  I suppose a couple of large drams of scotch will do that to a person.  We stopped at the commissary for a few necessary items, since Bill has to go away again soon.

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Hebridean Island Cruises

Mom’s visit part one…

My mom has spent the last couple of weeks aboard the Royal Crown, a river boat leased by Hebridean Island Cruises during the summer.  She decided to take that all inclusive luxury cruise last year after asking me for advice on cruising.  Originally, she had considered a Viking cruise, but she reconsidered when I told her about the amazing time Bill and I had when we were on Hebridean Princess in November 2012.  It’s a very luxurious, civilized, British experience.  Once you pay your fare, you don’t have to worry about anything else.  There’s no tipping and the bar is open.  It’s one cruise that is truly all inclusive.  I also knew my mom loves Britain, so I recommended Royal Crown.  Originally, I wanted to join her, but we had a few too many major expenses this year (including the dental work I still need).  Hebridean cruises are wonderful, but they are very expensive.

Mom’s trip included two back to back cruises on Royal Crown, as well as a few days in England, where she met up with my dad’s former secretary from Mildenhall Air Force Base.  Then she flew with all the rest of the folks on the first cruise to Basel, Switzerland.  The focus was on wine.  They boarded the boat and traveled to Strasbourg, France, Cologne, Germany, Bamberg, Wurzburg, Koblenz, and Nuremberg.  In Nuremberg, a new cruise started with a music focus.  They went to Regensberg, Passau, Linz, Salzburg, Vienna, Bratislava, and Budapest.  Mom didn’t take any photos and says a lot of it is still a blur.  But she had a great time and made some new British friends.  She was the only American on the boat.  I expected that, since when Bill and I were on Princess, we were the only Americans on our first cruise and one of two American couples on the second.  Also, Hebridean tends to cater to older folks and single travelers.  On our first cruise, I was the youngest passenger at age 40!  Mom fit right in.

We picked up my mother on Saturday after she flew to Stuttgart from Budapest.  It was her first time in Budapest and she stayed at the Corinthia Hotel, which is where Bill and I stayed in September 2009.  We knew it’s a wonderful place to stay and mom concurred.  If you like five star luxury, you can’t go wrong at the Corinthia.

I hadn’t seen my mom since Thanksgiving 2014, when Bill and I went to Virginia to celebrate the holiday and say goodbye to my dad, who died in July 2014.  We had a memorial service for him at Thanksgiving so more family could attend.  Last August, right after my dad died, my mom discovered that she had breast cancer.  She had a breast removed, but then seemed to bounce back effortlessly.

We took her by the Auld Rogue in Vaihingen on the way home because I was really getting hangry.  She enjoyed their pulled pork sandwich special, but had to take most of it with her.  This is sort of her first time in Germany.  Though my dad was in the Air Force, they were never stationed here, nor did they ever visit here on one of their many trips.  She had wanted to visit me the last time we lived here, but my dad became very ill with dementia and she spent the next few years taking care of him.  I think this last year has been liberating for her, even if she misses him sometimes.

She met my dogs, Zane and Arran, for the first time on Saturday…

Zane took to her right away…

My mom is a big dog lover, but hasn’t had one since 2001, when our dog Ginger died.  I used to be able to share the dogs with her when we lived in Virginia, but the past few years have been pretty hectic move wise.

Yesterday, we had a nice peaceful morning and afternoon.  Mom sat out on the patio with a book and enjoyed the typically quiet German Sunday.  Then, we went to Tuebingen, where mom got to see one of our favorite medieval German college towns.  She experienced her first biergarten.

Mom tries a radler.  She is not a beer fan, but she seemed to enjoy this… And she tried my hefeweizen and said it tasted better than most beers do.  I think her problem is that my dad drank a lot of cheap mass produced Anheuser-Busch beers that tasted like crap.

While we were at the Neckarmuller, we watched people punting, swimming, and even sailing.  One group of Germans was especially entertaining…

I love a good musical interlude.  We also passed a group playing strings near the cathedral and a trio of women who were singing together as they walked.  Made me very proud to be here with my very musical mom.

 

After some beer and people watching, we walked through the park on the other side of the Neckarmuller.  One group of folks was barbecuing on their boat while in the river.  I love hanging out in Tuebingen, because there is never a shortage of people to watch.  And on the river, they usually put on a good show.  Especially if there’s a good hen party.

Another group got caught in some low hanging branches.

The tunnel on the way back to the car.

We passed this “cloud” on the way…

There is a sister exhibit in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Cool!  Even if it did remind me a little of a loogy.

Swimmers…  might have to join them someday.

This may have been the first sailboat I’ve ever seen in Tuebingen.

A party boat…

I think we’re going to go to Nagold today, though I’m also hoping to visit a place or two I haven’t yet blogged about.  I definitely want to try a different restaurant.  Bill has taken off until Wednesday to help me entertain my mom until she flies back to the States.

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Uncategorized

New improved fish n’ chips at The Auld Rogue…

Bill and I visited The Auld Rogue for the first time in ages this afternoon.  In fact, today we also went to the PX and Patch commissary for the first time in ages.  I like The Auld Rogue because I like Irish pubs, but I wasn’t in the mood for a sandwich today.  So I ordered the fish n’ chips.

Last time I had fish n’ chips at The Auld Rogue, they were okay, but the breading seemed like it was made of crumbs rather than batter.

Old style fish n’ chips from a few months ago…

 

I like my fish n’ chips made with batter, so I didn’t order them again at The Auld Rogue– until today.  I got a bee in my bonnet and decided I just didn’t want a cheeseburger because even though The Auld Rogue has okay cheeseburgers, they aren’t cooked the way I really like them.  Bill was okay with a cheeseburger, so that’s what he had, along with a Guinness.

Sláinte!

Superior fish n’ chips, the way my ancestors would have made ’em…

As you can see, the fish and chips looks different now…  It seems to have been made with a batter instead of crumbs.  It was much to my liking!  I am proud to say I ate the whole thing, except for the salad.  I’m not one for being healthy.

Bill digs in…

He’s not watching the game… 

After we had lunch, I decided I wanted some whisky.  I ordered a large dram of ten year old Arran scotch.  I let Bill try it.

Down the hatch!

And this was his reaction, though I thought it was so funny I had to ask for a caption…

I really like the way fish n’ chips are being done at The Auld Rogue now.  I’m probably late to the party, though, because I think the last time we visited was a few months ago.  We got out of the habit of going shopping on Sundays sometime during the spring.

We just missed the concert that was going to start at 2:00.  I would have liked to have stuck around for awhile, but we needed to get some food and get home to Zane and Arran, our two troublemakers.  I bought them new toys today.  One was a Kong puzzle that has to be tipped over to dispense food.  Zane got the concept right away, but Arran didn’t.  He was still trying to chew on it a little while ago.  I may try feeding Zane with it when he’s being picky about food.  You wouldn’t think a beagle would be choosy about dinner, but Zane is.

We had beautiful weather today.  I was finally able to put the top down on the Mini and annoy people with my music.

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Baden-Württemberg

We tried to break the pattern…

by going to Taverna Olympos yesterday, but sadly the doors were shut tight at the time we wanted to visit.  It turns out Taverna Olympos is only open for dinner on weekends.  So Bill and I went to The Auld Rogue again for beer and lunch.  The place was busy yesterday, but I was glad to see the same friendly waitress who helped us the first time we visited a couple of months ago.  We sat at the bar and ordered our first round and some food.  I ordered spare ribs and Bill ordered the beef and Guinness stew, which was specially offered yesterday.  At first, the waitress said they were out of the stew, but then apparently they had some.  I was glad I didn’t order it because it had mushrooms in it… and, as you know, I think mushrooms are of the devil.

As we were waiting for our food, I couldn’t help but notice the creepy ghost thing on the ceiling.  I wasn’t sure if it was a leftover Halloween decoration or something significant to Ireland.  But then we spotted a fake bat over the bar and figured they must not have taken down all their spooky decorations after Halloween.

Bill’s stew.  He said it was the best he’d ever tasted.  

My ribs.  I took half of this home.

 

As we enjoyed lunch, we chatted with the waitress.  We were both sure she was from the Republic of Ireland, but she told us she’d grown up locally.  Bill figured she was the daughter of Irish expats, but that turned out to be untrue too.  This lady speaks English with a very convincing Irish accent, but is in fact, all German.  We were shocked, but maybe we shouldn’t have been.  After all, I know some Germans who sound totally American when they speak.  I asked her if she was a singer and she said she was.  I asked that because I am also a singer and when you are musical, a lot of times you have a knack for mimicry, languages, and accents.

It was really cool to chat with her, especially since she told us some entertaining stories about working abroad in Iceland.  Sometimes it pays to get to know your wait staff and bartenders, if only because they are often very interesting people.  She was also very witty, which is another reason why I thought perhaps she was Irish.  It’s not that Germans aren’t witty; I just find that they are often more serious than their Celtic friends.

We talked to the waitress about how The Auld Rogue used to be a Greek restaurant.  She said, “That must have been ages ago!  Because it was the CIA Bar before it was the Irish pub.”  Bill and I remember when the Greek restaurant became the CIA Bar.  It was a very sorrowful day for us, because I had dorade for the first time in that Greek restaurant.  They had really good food and the owner was excited because the dorade was the most expensive item on the menu.  He had the chef bring it out for me and everything.

I think the CIA Bar turned out to be rather “dodgy”, as the Brits would put it.  In fact, the waitress said it seemed to be mostly very young people coming in and “getting pissed”.  She said she expected the people to be wearing suits and carrying briefcases.  To me, that sounds more like the IRS stereotype than the CIA.

We also ran into a couple who run the Stuttgart Beer Club Facebook page.  They were there for lunch, too!  I suspect that if we go to The Auld Rogue enough times on Sunday, we will end up meeting a lot of local expat types.  I was also happy to identify a couple of the songs playing over the sound system on Shazam, though I overheard the bartender say that one of the songs I liked was “horrible music”.  I suspect it wasn’t rebellious enough for his taste.

Bill decided to have a second beer yesterday, so I had a scotch so he could catch up.  They happened to have some leftover Arran whisky from a recent tasting.  This particular whisky was aged in Amarone barrels.  It was very good.

 

If you like scotch and want to try something different, I recommend having a look at the bar and seeing if there’s anything up there that looks interesting and isn’t on the menu.  Bill and I like Arran whiskys, but they aren’t on the menu.  The Auld Rogue happened to have them available because of a tasting.  Incidentally, our cool waitress tried to get us to sign up for one of the upcoming beer or whisky tastings.  We do want to attend one, but want to make sure we make proper arrangements for our dogs.  I suspect we won’t be in the condition to drive back to Jettingen after one of those events.

All in all, we had a nice time at The Auld Rogue.  I suppose next Sunday, we’ll have to find something else to do since the pub will be closed next weekend.  I like that people who work at German restaurants can get days off at Christmas, too.

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Uncategorized

Today has been better…

One thing that was a plus is that the washer didn’t take on more water when we flushed the commode last night.  It seems to fill up only when someone showers.  While that’s inconvenient, it’s less inconvenient than not being able to use the bathroom without bailing out the washing machine.  I suppose we could just disconnect the washer and put a bucket under the standpipe, too.

Bill made us a nice breakfast.  Then we did our usual shopping.  We picked up some Christmas stuff at Panzer.  I even drove today, which I almost never do.  Just preparing for tomorrow, when I have to take Arran to the vet for a dental cleaning.  Afterwards, we had lunch at The Auld Rogue.  I had a chicken burger and Bill had fish and chips.  One day, we will go somewhere else for lunch on Sunday so I can write another review.

I went with a Murphy’s Irish Stout…


and a chicken burger…  I wasn’t too keen on this dish.  The chicken was a little dry, though the chips were excellent, as usual.  Next time, I’ll try something else.

Then we went to the commissary, which was kind of packed.  The self service registers were cash only, so the line to check out was backed up quite a bit.

We stopped by the Class VI for tequila, wine, and liquid de-icer for the cars.  I went in the bathroom and was astonished by the sign on the door…

Notice the promise of a clean restroom…  It supposedly gets inspected every hour.

Someone must have been very messy in the 60 minutes before I stopped in for a quick tinkle.

Yuck.

 

It’s alright, though, because I have never seen this particular restroom clean.  Not when we lived here last time and not in recent months.  It’s a unisex bathroom, too.  Maybe that has something to do with it.  In any case, that sign on the door is somewhat false advertising, though I have seen nastier bathrooms.  In fact, I have even seen them on military installations.

I would have used the commissary bathroom, but it was being cleaned and I didn’t want to interfere with the process.  I think of all the places to pee on American installations, the commissary is my favorite.  It’s usually pretty clean in there.

It wouldn’t be an issue if I didn’t have such a long drive home, but it’s a real drag to need a WC when you’re headed down A81.  We’re back now and preparing for yet another week in magical Deutschland.

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