If you're running a bar restaurant and want to broaden the menu, then you should consider adding some German food to your offerings. It's delicious and also goes great with beer, which will help you sell more brew. Customers might order a cola or iced tea with a grilled cheese or club sandwich, but when they are ordering a classic German dish, they might feel it's natural to have it with a fine German beer.

Here are some food ideas and some things you should stock the kitchen with.

Good German Bread (Kaiser Rolls, Pumpernickel)

There are three types of German breads you should have on hand: Kaiser rolls, katenbrot, and pumpernickel.

Kaiser rolls are perfect for making hearty beef sandwiches. There's even a famous sandwich from upstate NY called a "beef on weck" that you might want to mimic. It's made with a salted Kaiser roll, beef, horseradish sauce, and beef juice.

Katenbrot is a type of rye bread. It's great for serving with hearty German cheeses such as Limburger. In Germany, a popular way of serving Limburger is to serve it in a sandwich made with butter slices of katenbrot, onions, and tomatoes.                       

Pumpernickel is a dark bread that you should get to serve with smoked fish, or you can also pair it with slices of Limburger or even some Swiss cheeses.

Click for more info on where you can get various breads, or talk to bread suppliers in your area. 

Condiments (Fermented Sauerkraut, Stone-Ground Mustard)

You also need to have the right condiments to serve with the food. You want real sauerkraut, not the stuff that is cooked and canned. You should get authentic, German-style sauerkraut. This is made by shredding cabbage and soaking it in salt-water brine. The cabbage turns into sauerkraut via a process of fermentation similar to that of kosher pickles or kimchi. The real sauerkraut has a much more vibrant flavor and more of a crunch than the canned stuff you might find on a ballpark hot dog.

Mustard is super popular in German cuisine, so you definitely need to have it on hand. Besides your regular yellow and Dijon mustard, you should get a German stone-ground mustard. These mustards are more hearty and have a more textured mouthfeel.

German Beer (Wheat Beer and Bock)

If you don't normally have German beer on tap, then you should make sure you have some bottles, if not a keg. You should have two varieties. The first is a wheat beer. These are light beers that are popular in the summer and are also nice for people who prefer a lighter beer. Bock is a much darker beer. It's got a very heavy body with a slightly sweet and sour flavor.

 

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