4. Day 3 - Around Frankfurt: Food
(Apology, or to use the probably out-of-date vernacular, my bad. I had meant to post this on Friday. Somehow Friday and Saturday both got away from me -- retirement is not easy <g>.)
Now, before going onto the hodgepodge of new architecture in Frankfurt, as befitting a commercial and financial center, let’s take a break (figuratively) for lunch (which we did literally). As I’ve noted, there are several restaurants in the town square. And this being Germany, pork and sauerkraut were definitely on the menu.
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| Pork and Sauerkraut |
But note the glass in the upper right corner. It’s not beer, nor is it really wine. Want a closer look?
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| Apfelwein |
It’s Apfelwein and is a form of apple cider made in the German state of Hesse, where it is the state beverage. (Frankfurt is the capital of Hesse.) As the name suggests, it is made from fermented apples, but then bags of astringent berries called service tree berries are added to make the drink more like a wine than a traditional cider. The glass shown in the photo is the traditional glass for Applewein, the cuts in the glass refracting light into the Applewein and, in older times when cutlery was rarely used at meals, improving the grip of the glass.
Before we went to the restaurant where we did eat, we checked out what appears to be a city run cafeteria also on the town square. The cafeteria is inside a magnificent (probably reconstructed) building that is part of the various city structures.
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| City Cafeteria Inside |
The steam tables with the food are out of the picture, up the stairs in the rear and to your right. And I couldn’t resist a photo of a man who must have been paid by the tourist office to eat his lunch here.
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| Man in Cafeteria |
Was the apfelwein the best you've had?
ReplyDeleteThe apfelwein was the best I have ever had and most likely the best I will ever have, principally because it is the only apfelwein I have ever had or likely will ever have. In addition, 2014 is considered the prime vintage for apfelwein -- the best in over a century. (This statement is, I hope you recognize, complete fabrication.) Actually I don't think there is a vintage to this. I prefer wine or cider.
ReplyDeleteaha. i didn't realize that the service tree berries would make it so much different than cider.
ReplyDeleteby the way, given the size of that slab o' pork on top of the sauerkraut, i bet that meal would be borderline illegal here in Berkeley. Does sauerkraut count as a vegetable?
Sauerkraut is definitely a veggie. Much more so than ketchup. Having seen the pork, and eaten most of it, I didn't think then or now that it is that big. Now, in a vegan restaurant ....
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