Speckmann's German Restaurant
Bob R. Kenyon
> In San Jose there is Teske's on N. 1st Street (or is this von Germania or
> Hochburg?). Since giving up meat and fats I don't seem to frequent German
> restaurants.
Teske's Germania is on North 1st, and on the very same block on N. 2nd is
Hochburg von Germania. Teske's is basic, and Hochburg is a little fancier.
--
Bob R. Kenyon, Beautiful Downtown San Jose, CA
Dylan Yolles
: I remember going to a German restaurant called Speckmann's many years ago.
: It is located in SF at the corner of Church Street and twenty-something
: Street. I'm thinking of going there again to see whether it is the same,
: better or worse. Has anybody gone there recently? This is the only
: German restaurant that I know of. Are there others I should try?
Suppenkuche on Hayes St. in SF. The food is better than any I had in
Germany, and the atmosphere cooler also. Attracts a reasonably hip
20-something crowd; airy, wooden interior, quite comforting on a cool
evening.
Dylan
gom...@sirius.com
> >I remember going to a German restaurant called Speckmann's many years ago.
> >It is located in SF at the corner of Church Street and twenty-something
> >Street. I'm thinking of going there again to see whether it is the same,
> >better or worse. Has anybody gone there recently? This is the only
> >German restaurant that I know of. Are there others I should try?
There's a place on Hayes, in the city, called Suppenkuche, or something
like that,
that's supposed to be great.
(also with a large selection of German biers on tap).
Somewhere in Hayes Valley - Hayes and Octavia? Hayes and Laguna?
Zalman Stern
wrote:
> I remember going to a German restaurant called Speckmann's many years ago.
> It is located in SF at the corner of Church Street and twenty-something
> Street. I'm thinking of going there again to see whether it is the same,
> better or worse. Has anybody gone there recently? This is the only
> German restaurant that I know of. Are there others I should try?
Speckmann's is at 1550 Church which is around 27th or 28th if I recall.
Easy walking distance from where I live, but I've never gone there. I
guess I thought it was more of a bar than a restaurant.
I'll strongly second Dylan's post. If you're looking for German food in
San Francisco, start at Suppenkuche. The restaurant is at Hayes and
Laguna. The soups are fantastic, in fact, you can make a meal of soup,
bread, and beer. But I never stop there :-) They serve a number of German
standards such as wienerschnitzel, sausages, sauerbratten, potato
pancakes, etc. as well as lighter fish and chicken dishes which one might
not quickly associate with German cuisine. The salads are also quite good.
In fact everything I've had there has been very fresh and carefully
prepared.
Zalman Stern, Caveman Programmer, Macromedia Video Products, (415) 378 4539
3 Waters Dr. #100, San Mateo CA, 94403, zal...@macromedia.com
"Its not an 'attitude,' it's a fact!" -- Calvin (Bill Watterson)
Hamilton
I remember going to a German restaurant called Speckmann's many years ago.
It is located in SF at the corner of Church Street and twenty-something
Street. I'm thinking of going there again to see whether it is the same,
better or worse. Has anybody gone there recently? This is the only
German restaurant that I know of. Are there others I should try?
Karen
David Schwoegler
Bavarian Corner Restaurant
745 Buena Vista Avenue
Alameda, CA 94501
€ Fine German food. Steve Weber meats; reasonable prices; nice ambience;
bakery on premise; excellent beer selections; large private room; dinner
includes soup, salad, house-made bread, entree, traditional vegetables
and dessert. Just a block off Webster Street. Ample, roomy, well-lit
parking acorss the street in the Liquor Barn lot. 510-769-9154
The German Cook
610 - O'Farrell Street
San Francisco, CA
415-776-9022 (R)(SF) Bargain! $ German food. Lunch W,Th, F
Dinner nightly
€ Tiny and plain w/fabulous, substantial food.
€ Stuffed cabbage w/potatoes and vegetables $5.95
€ Sauerbraten w/latkes and cabbage or Brussel sprouts $7.95
€ Bratwurst w/boiled potatoes $5.95
€ Dollar soup
€ Two daily specials
€ SF CHRON. 1/30/92 "Menu Bargains"
€ Another's Comment: "Good restaurant. It has all the ambience of a
greasy spoon, but the food is a excellent, and plentiful and reasonably
priced as advertised. Appreciate the recommendation."
The German Restaurant & Cafe
500 Bollinger Canyon Way
(up the hill on Bollinger)
San Ramon, CA 94583
735-7000 (R)(EB) German food
Breakfast/lunch/dinner. Cards
Closed Mondays
Earlybird/early dinner specials: Include choice of beef, porkloin, filet
and chicken entree, soup or salad, and dessert $10.95. MTW 'till 7; F/S
'till 6:30.
€ Imported German Draft Beer
€ Accordion "entertainment"
€ Roast goose dinners
Mark Seiden
>Here are my notes on three, including two in the East Bay:
>Bavarian Corner Restaurant
>Alameda, CA 94501
...
>The German Cook
>San Francisco, CA
...
>The German Restaurant & Cafe
>San Ramon, CA 94583
any of these dishes have lard in their food? i'm looking for
schwein haxe without any lard...
(sorry couldn't resist).
Sushi Fan
Street, I believe. The food tasted like my grandmother used to make.
Nancy
------------------------
Nancy Tucker
Woman with a serious old-house jones.
michael j dix,91UI,435-6906
We went twice recently, once in November and once in December.
I always eat the same thing: Wienerschnitzel with fried potatoes with
Gulaschsuppe to start. The Wienerschnitzel is just like my grandmother
used to make in her prime, and is the best schnitzel I've had in the
Bay area (counting the SJ duo, never been to this Suppenkuche) Among
other things, both top and bottom are perfectly browned, and butter
is used for at least part of the cooking fat (judging by the taste
of the breading). The gulaschsuppe is worthwhile in itself.
My grandmother's credentials include growing up 70 miles south of Vienna,
in the Burgenland, and over 50 years of competitive cooking with other
Austrian expatriates.
Speckmann's is essentially a bar/dining area (the Bierstube.) At peak
eating times they open up another dining room (the Weinstube) There is
also a deli on the corner, in between the two dining rooms. The bar is
typically filled with expatriates speaking German. There are some nice
photos on the walls taken by the proprietor.
Across the street is Lehr's, which carries a large stock of German
food treats, candies, herb teas, newspapers, magazines, soaps, etc.etc.
Before Christmas, I bought some real (tin) tinsel for the tree there.
Avoid the torten for dessert, most seem to have been sitting in
the refrigerator for quite a while. But this is my only complaint,
and after a liter of beer (or a quarter liter of weisswein), I really
have no room for dessert.
Guten appetit!
Mike Dix
Operator
>In article <4dcdge$d...@jeeves.usfca.edu>, hami...@ac.usfca.edu (Hamilton)
>wrote:
>> I remember going to a German restaurant called Speckmann's many years ago.
[snip]
>> Are there others I should try?
>>
>
>'Hans Speckmann u. Soehne' is still there on Church between 27th and
>'Suppenkueche' (Soup Kitchen) on Hayes, two blocks off of Gough, is fun,
>serves good food, and really feels like being in Germany. Hip, cool
>'Schroeder's' on Front Street has been in SF for over 100 years,
>'Heart of Europe' on Sutter Street near Taylor (?) is another option for
[actually hungarian accorting to their press]
>Again, I think 'Suppenkueche' is a best bet!!
I hate to put a 'mee tooo' on this one, but as a german expatriate of
20 years in SF, both my brothers, my friends, and I agree that
no german restaurant in the Bay Area can hold a candle up to Suppenkueche.
I've eaten at Speckmans about half a dozen times and been disappointed
every time. The veggies are canned, and the sauces so-so. Suppenkueche
cooks not only the finest soups, but a Wienerschnitzl that is a real
Schnitzl [pork shoulder thinly sliced] with egg-white/bread-crumb
batter and just a touch of lemon.
Other specials I've had there, besides the regular Jaegerschnitzl, Halbes
Haendle in Rotweinsosse, Rehsteak (Venison), have been real Rouladen
and Forelle Muellerin. Their beer selection is out of this world also,
Leffe Blonde on draft, Schneider in bottles, Kroenitzer Schwartzbier,
Spaten, Aktien,Schloesser Altbier and an ever changing variety of specialties.
For appetizers Maultaschen and Gravelachs are great, my only complaint
so far has been the lack of a real Strudel. But everything they do
serve is house made and fresh. And the atmosphere is definately a
lot hipper than the average SF eatery. Saturday and Sunday 10-3 they
serve a brunch that includes the famous Bavarian Breakfeast:
Weisswurst and Weissbier with Pretzels mmmmm Bretz'n Weissbier Wurst mmm
And their attitude does not seem to be dependent on the ethnicity
of your friends, or the color of your shirt......
BTW, another forgotten place is The German Cook on O'Farrell near Leavenworth.
It's smaller than the others mentioned, but decent in food and beers.
I'd rate it below Speckman's on size of menu, but about even in quality.
I ate at Scroeder's last about 3 years ago, and it seemed more like
your basic businessman's roast beef lunch and martini hofbrau. Not bad,
just nothing near as spectacular a german menu execution as Suppenkueche.
Another side-note, there used to be a german bakery on Mission near
the Embarcadero, that made great applestrudel -- also Schroeder's?
Bernie Adalem (bad...@tetherless.com)
[I'm only on the root account 'cause I'm supposta be checkin the backup]
[PS, I can't spell, I capitalize Nouns, and leave propper adjectives lc'd]
[so sue me]
Eric D. Gordy
Scharf) wrote:
> Operator (ro...@tetherless.net) wrote:
> : I hate to put a 'mee tooo' on this one, but as a german expatriate of
> : 20 years in SF, both my brothers, my friends, and I agree that
> : no german restaurant in the Bay Area can hold a candle up to Suppenkueche.
> : I've eaten at Speckmans about half a dozen times and been disappointed
> : every time. The veggies are canned, and the sauces so-so. Suppenkueche
> : cooks not only the finest soups, but a Wienerschnitzl that is a real
> : Schnitzl [pork shoulder thinly sliced] with egg-white/bread-crumb
> : batter and just a touch of lemon.
>
> We've been to Speckmann's twice, and I have to agree with you. If that
> is genuine German food, I'll pass. Terrible Wienerschnitzl, and poor
> vegetables are too much to bear. I'm looking forward to trying Suppenkueche.
>
> Speckmann's is to German food, what Joe's of Westlake is to Italian food.
Suppenkuche has some mighty good food, no doubt, and their selection of good
beer is to be admired. The only point I'd hold against them (a consequence of
their well-deserved popularity) is that the place is often so noisy that it's
hard to keep a conversation going. This could have something to do with their
very stylish, spare wood design.
But I've got to say: if it's wienerschnitzel you're looking for, the best
I've had in San Francisco is at the Hyde Street Bistro. It's not a "German"
restaurant, but the Viennese chef doesn't hide the influence of his old home.
And really, it's as perfect a schnitzel as you could hope for. They aren't
bad on the fish and salad front either. Just don't go on a weekend, or you'll
wait hours for a table.
Evelyn Ubhoff
Great analogy Steven, I'm going to remember this one!
Evelyn
cappl...@gmail.com
Herr Brundage, formerly from Wackernheim, West Germany