Food Worth Gossiping About at Gerüchteküche

Food Worth Gossiping About at Gerüchteküche

I was surprised to find out that Gerüchteküche roughly translates to "gossip factory" in English. One might expect a swanky, ultra-modern restaurant with overpriced cocktails and artistic, meager portions. But that's not so at this warm, open-kitchen Mediterranean restaurant in Stuttgart-West. 

When you walk into Gerüchteküche you notice two things: First, the seating area is tiny and backs up right next to the kitchen as if you've gone to a friend's for dinner, and second, the chef is there to greet you at the door. The atmosphere is very welcoming as she shakes your hand and shows you to your table. From there, the wait staff take over.

Afternoon Wine Tasting at Mövenpick Weinkeller

Afternoon Wine Tasting at Mövenpick Weinkeller

Working in a restaurant taught me the basics about wine, but living in a wine region along the East Coast taught me to appreciate wine.  Now that we're in Europe, I like to continue my wine education by seeking out wine from the different regions we visit or by going to local festivals and sampling what's on offer. When I'm at home, Mövenpick Weinkeller has become a reliable stand-by. 

Two of our dear friends introduced us to Mövenpick Weinkeller several months ago when they invited us along to one of Mövenpick's tastings. Every couple of months the store owners set out a couple dozen bottles of wine for customers to try, usually based around a theme (German whites, Bordeaux, Champagne, etc.). You used to have to pay 20€ for a tasting glass, but these days the tasting is free. You simply walk in, get a glass and a booklet showcasing the wines, and move from one label to the next as you sample. Any wine that you don't like, you can dump your tasting into the refuse bucket. There's a water cooler in the corner to rinse out your glass and cups to fill with water to cleanse your palate. They also have several crusty loaves of bread from the Markthalle downtown for you to nibble on. 

Recap: Prague in the Springtime

Recap: Prague in the Springtime

Since our trip to Prague was what inspired my blog, I think it's only fair that I start my recaps from here. 

We traveled to Prague by train/bus this past April, which took a good six hours from home. I always prefer traveling by train whenever possible, as I find the ability to move around and see the countryside from the window much preferable to planes. Minus travel time, we had a full three days to roam around the city. Here are the highlights. 

Traditional Japanese at Kicho

Traditional Japanese at Kicho

Tonight we celebrated Matt's birthday at Kicho, a traditional Japanese restaurant just off of Olgastraße in the central district (Mitte). We discovered the restaurant about a year ago in search of good sushi, and were pleased to find a menu full of other traditional Japanese dishes. Tonight was our third visit, but our first one since our trip to Japan back in January. We both had a fantastic meal, and agree that it was our best one at Kicho yet. In fact, we agree that Kicho is probably the best Japanese food that we've had outside of Japan. 

Here's what we ate: 

Lunch at Lilavadee (Thai it!)

Lunch at Lilavadee (Thai it!)

Today I got the rare opportunity to eat lunch out with two of my best friends at a local Thai restaurant. I've tried a few Thai places in Stuttgart (and they are somewhat few in number in the heart of Baden-Württemberg), but Lilavadee in the suburb of Degerloch is my favorite. I've been there for both lunch and dinner, but their lunch menu is particularly nice as it offers a set meal of soup and an entrée at a relatively low price. 

German Fast Food: The Döner Kebab

German Fast Food: The Döner Kebab

One of the first things we discovered when we moved here is that fast food doesn't exist in the same way it does in the States. Rather than getting fast food from a pizza place or a Chinese place, most strictly "take out" places here have everything all-in-one. You'll find burgers next to tacos next to Indian food, all on the same menu, and sadly, none of it's very good from our experience so far. There is one fast food, however, that I've come to love: döner. 

The döner kebab consists of meat carved from a giant spit of various kinds of pressed meat, usually lamb and beef. The meat is shaved off and added to a pita with various toppings. I've heard various stories about the döner being Turkish and about it being created by a German Turk, thus making it part of German cuisine. Either way, it's good, and I've seen döner shops in several countries around Europe. 

Finding Places to Eat

Finding Places to Eat

I was picking up a birthday card in my local gift shop the other day when I spotted this among their shelves...

It's a guide to restaurants in the Stuttgart area (pub. 2014), and has lots of "best" lists, including the best maultaschen, best Asian cuisine, best vegetarian, best coffee, and more. I've scanned through the lists, and a lot are places that we've already been (hurray for us!), but there are many more for us to try. The guide is in German, of course, and while my German isn't advanced enough for me to read fluently, my food vocabulary is pretty good, and so I can get the gist of most of the restaurant descriptions with just a few quick consultations with my English-German dictionary. 

Getting Started

Getting Started

I decided to start a blog three days ago after a four-hour food tour of Prague. A little tipsy on Czech culinary history and wine, I was awed by the experience I'd just had. I wondered if I could quit my day job and give food tours myself in our current home in Stuttgart, Germany. My lack of German language proficiency and native cultural knowledge quickly squashed that idea. But still, I thought, I tend to eat a lot of good food, and my husband and I make a real effort to find great food whenever we travel. A blog is a happy solution (especially since I won't be quitting my job any time soon)...