In Munich, Germany in 1810, Crown Prince Ludwig got married to a nearby princess (as they are wont to do.) The celebration was so fun it continues to this day, but in its original location it starts in September because by October the weather is cold. Better to consume lots of beer in the warmer temps. Oktoberfest, as it is known, has spread to other parts of the globe, and Americans have certainly embraced the idea. Here in New Orleans, there are at least four or five ways to drink beer and eat schnitzel right now. As someone with German genes coursing through my body, I am compelled to participate in this cultural phenomenon, by at least having some German food.
My mom, who donated these genes, made a pretty good but simple sauerkraut, and I have always loved the dish. The sauerkraut I had recently wasn’t nearly as good as hers, but, there were other things on the table that captured my attention. I didn’t go to any cliche event. I went to the best German food around here, at Brats Ya’ll, a charming little biergarten next door to Pizza Delicious, which is why the outdoor air smells like pizza. Not a bad smell but hard to get into the German spirit when it smells like Italy.
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I was in the German spirit anyway because it’s October, and everyone is German then, right? Since I really am, it behooves me to eat some of the food I love. Inside, I was trying to decide between a goulash and a brat platter when I noticed two things that changed everything. I saw Berlin Currywurst and the roasted pork shank.
Fifteen years ago ML and I were standing in the snow waiting to get into Neuschwanstein Castle when some Japanese kids in front of us in line were very excited about something they were eating. She thought it smelled bad but I asked about it and they explained that it was a Berlin street food, really the Berlin street food, called Currywurst. It’s a hot dog with curried ketchup. I have only seen this turn up in L.A. and London. I was thrilled to see it here, but it is easily explained because the owner of Brats hails from Berlin. I was excited to have this dish again, simple though it is. And the pork shank is roasted and scored, so the edges become like cracklins, so I’m in.
I was embarrassed at the amount of food that came to the table. I also ordered German potato salad. The Currywurst weiner was invisible under a deluge of the sauce, which was a disappointment but it was offset by a nice surprise. They are cutting potatoes in house for the fries! They were golden brown and the normal size of perfect potato sticks, dusted with curry powder. To me there is enough curry in the sauce, but I was impressed by this. extra step. I shouldn't have been. The owner, as I said, is from Berlin. They don't take convenient shortcuts as we do here.
And the wiener was a sausage, and a good one. I loved this and the memory it conjured up. I smiled the whole time I ate it.
The pork shank is a show stopper. I think I sold a few to the people who passed and stopped in their tracks. I didn’t need to say anything. It was a powerful visual.
It was offered with either mashed potatoes or potato dumpling. I chose the latter, though there isn’t much difference between the
two. A potato dumpling is mashed potato with the addition of flour and egg, then it is rolled into a ball that for all the world resembles a ball of mashed potatoes. This was covered with a pasty brown gravy. German food is not for the faint of heart.
Also on this plate was sauerkraut, but the strands were thinner than what I am used to. This had some pork in it too, little boys of it. And it was sweeter than I am used to. Also part of this combo were two little ramekins of caraway slaw, a vinegar-based and cold salad. I liked this too, but it certainly wasn’t brilliant. Decent German food.
The big wonk of pork (to use Tom’s description of osso bucco or anything with a bone out the top) was crispy on the edges, forming true cracklins. They do not deep fry it as I thought, but coat it in oil before turning the oven up to crisp it. The skin is scored so the cracklins are easily peeled off. They are very hard, but very good. To be truthful, this was tricky to eat because the outer shell was so hard. I brought most of it home because it will make a good Cuban sandwich.
The German potato salad was comprised of large and irregular chunks of potato with bits of bacon and a little seasoning. This was not heavy on the mustard flavor. In fact. I couldn’t really pick up on any mustard flavor. I liked this quite well, though it is certainly a homely dish. It was offered cold as well, but that wouldn’t be right. We eat cold potato salad here. They do it warm.
This little biergarten is a find. It is captivating outside with plenty of seating on picnic tables with umbrellas for shade. The food is hardly exotic.
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It is meat and potatoes, befitting the cuisine of Central Europe. That’s not a good or bad thing. But it’s October, and we can at least celebrate the big event.
