So, it's been a little over a month since I first started my adventure here in Germany. Time is certainly flying. And you know what else is? My food budget.
When you first immerse yourself in a new culture, it is without question that you must experience the culinary differences that it has to offer. Germany is no exception. Just navigating the grocery store was difficult to adjust to, because of the different ingredients and their prevalences in German cuisine.
But now that I've really settled in — and blown quite a bit more money on my culinary "cultural immersion" than I'd like to admit — it's time to give my verdict.
Currywurst. It’s the obvious answer, but I need to make it very clear anyway: currywurst here in Germany is unmatched. I’ve had it several different ways since I first landed here, but the one that really stood out to me the most was actually where I least expected it – on a little corner just outside of the Mönckebergstraße train station in Hamburg.
The experience of it effected me more than anything. It’s well past lunch, you’re headed out to do some shopping at Europa Passage or something nearby, and it’s just cold enough to be a little uncomfortable. The station smells like, well, trains. And then, as you’re taking your first few steps up the stairs, it hits you.
Currywurst.
The smell itself was incredible. So much better than the train smell. My first thought was that whoever decided to put a currywurst shop right outside of a train station was a commercial mastermind. The second was that I needed to get out my wallet.
It was so simple; just a currywurst with some brötchen on the side, which I ate standing up braced against the wind with a pigeon two inches away from my face. But it was decadent. I knew as soon as I took my first bite that it had secured its spot as my number one currywurst of all time. At least for now.
Flammkuchen. Perhaps also a victory of circumstance, but there is really nothing quite like a flammkuchen at the exact moment you really need something warm and energizing. And boy, did I need it.
I had my first at a tiny store just off of the trails of a Schwarzwald (Black Forest) near Bonn, about a kilometer or so into a hike that was characterized by an oppressive sense of gloom from the heavy rain clouds sitting overhead and a humidity level that honestly put my home state of Florida to shame. It wasn’t even raining, and I was already feeling drenched.
Kind of like a flatbread pizza but without the disappointing sogginess, I found that flammkuchen (the classic kind, with bacon and onions) was a shining light at the end of a very dark, very long, and very wet and cold tunnel. Or maybe not the end… I did end up continuing the hike for a good bit after that before the heavens unleashed in earnest, but it was the energy from that flammkuchen that gave me the strength to get up again and keep moving. The sensation of finding a little bar/restaurant on a hiking trail was surreal enough, but that flammkuchen was life-changing in its simpleness.
Another well-placed commercial decision as well, I might add. Never underestimate the German entrepreneur.
Döner durum. I know, it’s not technically German in origin, but given that “döner” is one of the first words Duolingo teaches you in its German course, an exception must be made. If you ask a German what they want for dinner tonight, there is a 50% chance that the answer is a döner. And it’s for a good reason.
Technically, I did not eat the classic version of döner. I ate a döner durum, because the chaos of an open döner intimidates me beyond belief. I struggle with tacos, so this isn’t surprising, nor is it exclusive to döner. Maybe that changed the experience, but I still quite vividly enjoyed it.
Once you finish your first döner, be prepared to have your favorite döner place on speed-dial. It will unleash a craving in you that you didn’t realize you had. And believe me, it will come back.
Bee Sting cake (Bienenstich). Coming in fourth is not technically so much a meal as it is dessert, but it made an impression, so in the list it goes.
This pastry features soft dough with a creme filling, topped with crunchy honey-kissed almonds that really make this the ideal feature of “kaffee und kuchen” time with friends and family. It’s light, not too heavy or sweet, but just enough to really beat that sugar craving.
Also, this is a cake that must be enjoyed with a cafe drink. You cannot eat it alone. It just isn’t the same.
Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut und Kartoffelpüree. While perhaps not a “rock your world” kind of meal, this was prepared for me by my German partner and it really had that essence of home and comfort that really helped beat some of the lingering homesickness I’d been feeling that week away instantly. This dish includes Sauerkraut (real, German sauerkraut, which I’m going to assume you’ll be trying on principle in Germany), mashed potatoes (Kartoffeln Puree) and pan-seared bratwurst.
Is it one-of-a-kind, you cannot miss this, overwhelmingly delicious? Maybe not. But it is really good. It’s salty and sour and butter-sweet and savory on all sides of the plate, and it’s quite simple to prepare, too. This is a meal you can make pretty easily wherever you end up staying, while still experiencing the authenticity of German cuisine.
After a month here in Germany, I fear I’ve only just experienced the very tip of a ginormous iceberg, but that’s really the appeal of an experience like this – it leaves you wanting to dive deeper. A week from now, maybe I’ll have found a different currywurst that steals the place of the first one. Maybe I’ll discover a whole new meal that knocks it right of the charts.
Either way – I can’t wait.
