Williow Tree Cafe...Das is Good!

With October already here, the weather starting to cool off, and on this particular day, the rain is swaggering in.  Dark beer and a humble dish of meat and potatoes is just what I need.  So I look to the beer and potato aficionado's of Europe and find a stool at the bar at Hollerbach's Willow Tree Cafe; das boot bitte!  The bartender, a strapping twenty something German, asks "Vat are you drinking today?"  With over 50 German beers to choose from I realize that my impending brew existed in the clutching hands of the daunt erudite.  The Spaten Optimator, dark, complex, and oddly enough a taste similar to Worcestershire. Strange? Agreed.Tasty?Absolutely! This elixir was drawn into such a prodigious trough it stayed with me, loyal and true through the duration of my meal.

First up, the Aufschnitt Teller, a predisposed allotment of cold cuts, cheese, accoutrement's (mustard, pickles, salad), and paté.  All served alongside French baguette and German brown bread.  If I had to complain, and it is hard to do with that beer staring at you, the baguette was store bought, par baked, but never re baked.  Sorry but no anemic, medium rare, flavorless excuse for a French baguette, is going to keep me from this fine spread of beef and pork parts.  From what I could gather, none of the sausages are made in house aside from the leberkäse, but they do have a dedicated shop in Wisconsin that does all the dirty work (in my opinion, the fun stuff) and ships exclusively to them.  That said, it is time to get a few links on a plate.

From left to right: knockwurst, weisswurst, and nürnberger.  This plate comes with three sides, and the traditional sides were a must.  Clockwise starting at 9:  spätzle in rahum sauce, sauerkraut, and German potato salad.  The sausages, juicy and flavorful with subtle spices.  The spätzle, cooked perfectly and that gravy! Some one has a bottle of maggi back there.  Sauerkraut, acidic, taste of caraway, and rich, just how a good kraut should be.  Potato salad...spot on!

Next up, "Der Wanderer," two thick slices of pan fried leberrkäse (German bologna) and topped with my favorite condiment...fried eggs.  Joining my new found breakfast plate are two potato pancakes.  Crispy, creamy, and full of potato-onion flavor.  Sour cream and apple sauce are your options for your cakes and apple sauce was just the knife needed to cut through the richness of my plate.  One composed bite later and everything in the world made sense.  The Germans have it figured out.

With 49 more beers to try and a currywurst calling my name, I will be back.  Oktoberfest is just two weeks away, and I can already here the live music, sounds of glasses, and thick German accents.  See you there.

Cheers!