Sausages with sauerkraut. Dumplings as big as snowballs. Schnitzels the size of boots. Pretzels bigger than your head. And foaming tankards of Bier – glorious Bier!
German food brings a blizzard of clichés. Some are warranted, some not. Yes, this country does still have a taste for piggy parts, potatoes and liter mugs of foaming beer. But the food scene has exploded all over the country in recent years. Menus are getting lighter, brighter and more creative. Tastes are changing.
While those good old-fashioned beer hall classics never go out of fashion, you’re now just as likely to find street food riffing creatively on world flavors and chefs shooting for Michelin stars with ingenious takes on vegetarian and vegan ingredients that sing of the seasons. And long before local sourcing became a buzzword, the Germans had embraced the joys of regional organic produce. Pretty much every town has a Bauernmarkt (farmers market) and Biomarkt (organic supermarket), where you can pick up picnic fixings, from local fruit and veg to cheese, wurst, fish and home-grown wine.
Loosen a belt notch and read on for our favorite things to eat and drink in Germany.
Curried sausage? You bet. You’ll find this smoky, mildly spicy street snack all over Germany, but it was born in Berlin in 1949 when a bored Imbiss (fast-food kiosk) owner called Herta Heuwer decided to go wild and add tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and a dash of curry powder to her bratwurst. And hey presto, the Currywurst was born. Sliced into bite-sized pieces, swimming in sauce and dusted with curry powder, this is now a cult snack, served mit or ohne (with or without) its crunchy casing, often with a side of mayo-doused Pommes (fries).
Where to try it: Join the snaking queue for a classic Currywurst at curb-side Curry 36 on Mehringdamm, which has been frying ‘em up since 1981 and also knocks out veggie and organic versions. Or swing over to Konnopke's Imbiss, in the same spot below the elevated U-Bahn tracks since 1930. Here the "secret" sauce comes in four heats – from mild to wild.
No dish better sums up the seafaring spirit of Germany’s maritime north than Labskaus, minced corned beef, mashed potato and beets, served with a fried egg and gherkins and sometimes with a herring casually plonked on the side. Bright red because of the beets, this is the dish that sailors once rustled up on their fishing vessels when they spent long weeks and months at sea. Its spiritual home is Hamburg, but you’ll also find it in other northern towns and cities like Bremen and Lübeck.
Once considered the humble food of the poor, Labskaus has been poshed up lately and now even appears on swanky restaurant menus. If you believe the locals, it is brilliant hangover food – plenty of
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Whether it is the outstanding Renaissance monuments or authentic, regional cuisine, Italy’s appeal has long been far-reaching. As a country, it has never had to ‘hard sell’ itself to tourists, with the country being a perennial favourite destination for travellers. As well as having more UNESCO World Heritage sites than any other country (59 in total), its rich culture, architecture, art and beloved gastronomy is a source of inspiration for tourists across the world.
Renowned for its rich history and stunning architecture, Florence is a must-visit destination for art enthusiasts and history buffs alike. From Michelangelo’s David and the Duomo, one of the largest churches in the world with its famous Brunelleschi-designed dome, to fashion museums from Gucci and Ferragamo and fabulous Tuscan food (including gelato), Florence offers endless opportunities for exploration and discovery.
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Lübeck – Queen of the Hanseatic League – has a fading charm and vulnerability absent from the likes of Berlin, Munich and Hamburg … and most of Germany. I loved my trip there, wandering the cobbled streets, climbing every brick gothic church tower – generally alone! Thomas Mann wrote the unbearably sad novel Buddenbrooks there, then fled to the US from nazism in 1939. The Tin Drum author Günter Grass lived and worked in Lübeck in later life. Visit their former houses, now museums, the Grass-Haus and the Buddenbrook Haus. A singular German city, full of history and significance.Martin Charlesworth
With four official languages yet a distinct sense of national identity, Switzerland is a mix of cultures and at the same time innately Swiss – and that goes for its cuisine, too.
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