Local Specialties at the 'Straussenwirtschaften' and other Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany Local Custom Tips

Straussenwirtschaften/ Straussen are small seasonal restaurants located in agricultural areas in the outskirts of the city. They serve local specialties and are seasonal in the sense that they are only opened during specific times of the year, usually in the early spring/late summer and in the beginning of fall. Therefore, it's very important to check the opening hours! Every year a small brochure comes out; (available at most petrol stations and at the main tourist office) listing the Straussen in the region, which specialties they serve, and their opening hours. Eating at Straussen is very popular among the locals and these places are commonly quite small with only a few seats, thus it can be hard getting a table. Show up early or try to make reservations!

In the brochure there's a map with all the Straussen marked out, but it is not very detailed, and even if you have another map, it can still be tricky to find the way to the Strausse you have picked out, so be sure to give yourself plenty of time to find it. The Straussen can look a little bit different, but at least the ones I've been to were cozy basement Straussen with robust farmer's furniture, located in small picturesque villages. As I mentioned earlier, these restaurants are small, narrow and crowded, thus it gets warm and loud, but that's all part of the charm!

The food is very simple (usually only products from the farm are used) and there are not many dishes to choose from, but most of them taste very good, and they are cheap too! My favorites are the 'Bibelskäse', a kind of fresh soft cheese served on dark bread, and the 'Flammenkuchen' (served on a wooden platter), which is similar to pizza, but the topping consist only of bacon, onion and sour cream.

Last but not least: DON'T try to order a beer; in a genuine Strausse only wine (the house wine) is served! You might want to try the 'Traubensaft' (grape juice) though, it's delicious. Also the 'Apfelsaft' (apple juice) is really good.

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Website: http://www.frohe-einkehr.de/Straussen-Wirtschaften/str_gebiete/str_gebiete.html