Cologne is full of excellent beer halls, and naturally, visiting one of them was at the top of our tick list - beleive it or not, even higher than climbing 900 odd steps to the top of the Dom. These places all serve the local brew, Kolsch. A very refreshing libation, served only in 200ml skinny glasses and washed down with various hearty Rhenish dishes.
Our hall of choice was Schreckenskammer. This choice was based on the facts that it was the nearest to our hostel (in case of emergencies), was off the tourist highway and frequented mostly by locals, and therefore served the best fodder.
We chose two wurst based dishes - well, you have to don't you? One served straight up with mash and saurkraut (not pretty back in the hotel room - someone open a window, please!), and the other in a 'gypsy' sauce. No, I don't think there were actually any gypsies in it, but still, worth every penny.
The beer etiquette in these places is very simple and user friendly, and with true German efficiency, doesn't require you to either get up to go to the bar or call over the waiter. The man comes around with a holder full of ready poured Kolsch glasses, and if yours is empty, he swaps it for a fresh one and chalks up another mark on your beer mat. If and when you don't want any more, you simply put your beer mat on top of the glass. When you want to go, they just tally up the marks on your beer mat and away you go.
After our fill, we walked (not staggered as you may imagine) home feeling refreshed and satiated yet neither hammered nor bloated, and drifted off to sleep feeling proud that we'd experienced the beer hall with and in the style of locals, and left the tourists down in Altstadt (Old Town)to over-indulge British style and do wee-wees in the street.
Our hall of choice was Schreckenskammer. This choice was based on the facts that it was the nearest to our hostel (in case of emergencies), was off the tourist highway and frequented mostly by locals, and therefore served the best fodder.
We chose two wurst based dishes - well, you have to don't you? One served straight up with mash and saurkraut (not pretty back in the hotel room - someone open a window, please!), and the other in a 'gypsy' sauce. No, I don't think there were actually any gypsies in it, but still, worth every penny.
The beer etiquette in these places is very simple and user friendly, and with true German efficiency, doesn't require you to either get up to go to the bar or call over the waiter. The man comes around with a holder full of ready poured Kolsch glasses, and if yours is empty, he swaps it for a fresh one and chalks up another mark on your beer mat. If and when you don't want any more, you simply put your beer mat on top of the glass. When you want to go, they just tally up the marks on your beer mat and away you go.
After our fill, we walked (not staggered as you may imagine) home feeling refreshed and satiated yet neither hammered nor bloated, and drifted off to sleep feeling proud that we'd experienced the beer hall with and in the style of locals, and left the tourists down in Altstadt (Old Town)to over-indulge British style and do wee-wees in the street.
Barclay
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