I have just returned from my honeymoon, the first leg of which included a stay in Munich. Ahhh....Munich in the spring! We visited a castle in the Alps; caught the Dutch Masters at the Alte Pinekothek Museum; and, of course, dined in many fine biergartens. Well, it was a bit cold, so we were technically dining in the restaurants and not the actual beirgartens, but I digress.
When one thinks of Bavarian fare, the image will probably include many types of German sausage. The kraut-sausage combo was the main reason my husband Chris wanted to visit Munich. Becoming more and more vegetarian, I was truly worried about how much I'd enjoy eating during this leg of the trip. I shouldn't have been so narrow-minded! I was guilty of condensing an entire culture into the singular category of sausage fanatic (when that's really just the German to whom I'm married). I knew I wouldn't starve, but I was happily surprised at the true Bavarian flavors I could enjoy sans meat.
Our first stop was - inevitably- the legendary Hofbrauhaus. The appetizer was easy: a beer and pretzel. Any of-age traveler (which I most certainly am) should indulge in these specialties while in Munich as an homage to the region. While I had no idea what I was ordering from the vegetarian section (we didn't know they had English menus available at first), I ended up falling head-over-heels for some divine noodle dumplings in an outrageous mushroom gravy. The food, drink and oompah band combined as the perfect antidote to my jet lag.
Later we branched out to explore less-touristed biergartens like Chris' favorite Augustiner Keller. My extensive travel website research had produced nothing but great reviews for this place. Located in the financial district, Augustiner Keller offered a decidedly more subdued crowd of business people and locals. While Chris raved about the suckling pig (gross), I had a fantastic potato and broccoli au gratin with a tomato sauce. The combination was different, but quite comforting.
Our last stop was the Lowenbrau Park-Cafe, unassumingly tucked into the city's Old Horticultural Garden. The quaint Bavarian building belied a truly urbane and chic interior. We entered into a warehouse-like space containing a hip lounge/restaurant with chandeliers and ambient lighting. See the golden couches which greeted us at the door. The crowd appeared to be stylish young professionals. We were kiddie-corner from the Munich Conde Nast offices, so I shouldn't have been surprised. The menu was a mix of traditional and international bistro. I decided to follow suit with a dill cream cucumber salad (just like my mom would make in the summer), and a spinach, onion and goat cheese flat bread. Both were delicious; Chris even finished off my flat bread.
While I tried my best to stick to my veggie guns during this trip, a local sharing our table one evening let me know that there are a lot of meat-free Munichers, but they always cheat just a bit. I must admit, I may have transgressed with of a bite of wurst or two from Chris' plate. I guess that means I am a true Bavarian vegetarian.
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