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We’re constantly astounded at the ease and expertise with which German hoteliers handle Alpine hospitality
although it may have something to do with the sheer amount of time they’ve been practicing
From listening bars to neighbourhood restaurants
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We\u2019re constantly astounded at the ease and expertise with which German hoteliers handle Alpine hospitality
although it may have something to do with the sheer amount of time they\u2019ve been practicing
the Black Forest is a magical land full of cultural traditions
Here’s our guide to some of the most beautiful spots in the area
or stay in the town center and enjoy the curative waters of the thermal baths
including a 5-mile (8-kilometer) trail around the lake that leads up the Hochfirst Mountain
Surrounded by tall pine forests on the low
Titisee Lake is a place of otherworldly natural beauty
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Black Forest High Road Architectural Landmark
Sahara Prince / Shutterstock Black Forest Tours Tours One of Germany’s most famously beautiful driving routes begins in Baden-Baden and carves its way through the scenic countryside of the Black Forest
Far from just connecting you to many of the region’s most scenic spots
traversing the Schwarzwaldhochstraße is an experience in and of itself
Be sure to plan plenty of stops so you can properly appreciate the surrounding natural beauty
and don’t forget to keep those eyes on the road
the Triberg Falls look beautiful surrounded by snow
a famous ramble along the banks of the Neckar where Heidelberg’s philosophers and professors came to contemplate their high-minded ideas
© travelpeter/Shutterstock This idyllic mountain resort is made up of nine separate villages, and the recent addition of high-end hotels and bed and breakfasts serving incredible cuisine have put Baiersbronn on the map. The area boasts an incredible 12 Michelin stars in total
including two restaurants with three stars
So there’s no shortage of choice if you want to indulge in fine dining
When you aren’t gorging on excellent cuisine or enjoying long walks through the conifer-strewn forests
take a trip to the ski slopes or visit the area’s golf courses
And don’t miss the nearby 12th-century monastery – the Allerheiligen ruins – hidden in a quiet
© LaMiaFotografia/Shutterstock Not quite as well known as Baden-Baden, Bad Wildabad is another popular spa town and a cheaper option for a home-base in the north of the forest
A tunnel cleverly diverts through traffic so that the area feels as isolated from the world as possible
Bad Wildbad has beautiful views of endless pine trees and the gorge of the Enz river
This town is also filled with thermal baths
which naturally hover around 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius)
and be sure to visit the idyllic Wildsee – a small lake outside of the town center
mmuenzl / Shutterstock Allerheiligen Tours The walking trails leading to All Saints Waterfalls were first created back in the 1840s
The water spills dramatically for around 83m and
a set of seven basins have formed naturally in the rocks
creating an aesthetically pleasing set of steps for the water to trickle (or torrent) along
The short but immersive trail also leads to the striking ruins of an old Gothic abbey
making this off-the-beaten-path stop even more worthwhile
© Sergiy Bykhunenko/Shutterstock Calw sits in the north of the Black Forest with a reputation as being one of the forest’s prettiest towns. Nobel Prize-winning novelist Hermann Hesse (1877-1962)
who wrote Siddhartha among many other books
The town features a museum and a statue dedicated the famous author
The picturesque market square is a great place to start your tour of the city
Surrounded by 18th-century half-timbered houses
Calw’s square is the picture of a quintessential Black Forest town
The city owes its current growth to tourism – many new bistros
shops and ice cream parlors have recently opened to cater to visitors
© Thomas Klee/Shutterstock Take the scenic drive along the Schwarzwaldhochstrasse from Baden-Baden to see the central Black Forest region’s quaint towns
Kinzig and Gutach Valley are heavily forested areas where many traditional Black Forest customs originated
visitors will feel the magical and mysterious nature of the Black Forest come to life
make a stop in the brewery town of Alpirsbach
and visit Schiltach to see classic examples of timber houses that burst with color and character
photos2webgallery / Unsplash Just south of Freiburg is Schauinsland
one of the tallest and most beautiful mountains in the Black Forest
Today it’s a popular ski spot – hikers and mountain bikers flock here
too – but it was once a rich seam for silver mining
Take the cable car up to the top of the mountain (there is a road
but that’s less romantic) to enjoy some utterly spellbinding views
On a clear day you’ll not only see the Black Forest
but you can also catch a glimpse at the Rhine Valley
Voges Mountains and sometimes even the Swiss Alps
is most beautiful in the peak of snowy season
All recommendations have been independently sourced by Culture Trip
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“I want to try an experiment on you,” said herb hunter Christine Bissell, as she bent down along the trail and plucked a green stem. Those eight words weren’t what I was hoping to hear when I signed up for this Kräuterwanderung, or herb hike, through the hills of Germany’s Black Forest
had described an herb she culled for our upcoming picnic as “only slightly poisonous.”
Berlin has none—but what it does have is a bunch of locavore restaurants that are inspired by this town
it would be enough to convince me to stick my fork into this village
But then there are the local artisanal schnapps distillers
the bounty of the Black Forest—incorporating wild herbs and plants into their various products just as the chefs infuse them into their award-winning menus
tucked away in a forest that was once seen as so impenetrable and inhospitable that only the strong and brave planted roots
had become a paradigm of new German cuisine
But I also wanted to find out what was in the proverbial water here
Bissell pulled a canteen from her backpack and handed it to me
fearing the worst: that the Teutonic gods would be evoked right here and now and subject me to a spell
or that I’d encounter a beast straight out of Grimms’ tales
“A fellow forager told me this was really good,” she continued
and then took a sip: It tasted like apple juice
slightly earthy taste and a hint of honey coming in at the end
“I mixed organic apple juice with meadowsweet that I found right here.”
Having neither turned into an amphibian nor started to hallucinate
I began following Bissell’s lead and sampling herbs with abandon
About 30 minutes after our apple juice break
and Bissell began laying out our lunch: baguette slices and a jar of sauce made up of yarrow
and bedstraw—herbs she had picked the day before and whipped into a variant of pesto
The herbs themselves conspired to produce a biting
but the olive oil and cashews offset it with a nutty and subtly tangy flavor stratum
Our hike concluded at an 11th-century monastery where we wandered through a re-creation of the herb garden that medieval monks had once cultivated
drawing sustenance from the Black Forest was nothing new
thanks to the density of trees that made it appear to be one foreboding wall of blackness
It scared the Roman legions enough that they avoided it altogether
the forest itself was hardly populated with humans until the 11th century
the logging industry had deforested the dense growth of spruce
The timber industry moved on to other areas of Central Europe
the Black Forest was replanted with spruce trees
and the area’s economy shifted to the tourism industry—particularly health and medical tourism
thanks to the wealth of hot underground springs
and the soil’s natural proclivity for growing herbs
And that’s where the story of Baiersbronn’s Michelin stars really begins
The Traube Tonbach hotel had opened in 1789
housing and feeding temporary workers for the logging industry
but by the 20th century it had shifted to serving tourists and become the only big resort hotel in Baiersbronn
the Traube Tonbach added a gourmet restaurant
and soon after hired the man who is probably the most influential chef in Germany today: Harald Wohlfahrt
Wohlfahrt’s 35-seat restaurant has held three Michelin stars for 25 years
And of the nine other three-star Michelin restaurants in Germany
four of them are run by chefs who were trained by Wohlfahrt in Baiersbronn
In the cozy dining room of Schwarzwaldstube
wood-beamed ceiling competing for attention with the view of rolling
And then tender saddle of local deer lightly seasoned with ginger and curry in cardamom jus
When I looked up from my plate at one point
his full shock of dark hair contrasting with his crisp chef’s whites
I asked him when he began using local ingredients
and he stared back at me as if I had queried him about the source of his frozen vegetables
“We’ve been using local ingredients since we first opened,” he told me
“everything from the venison on your plate to in-season berries and herbs.” He paused and then added
“I come from the northern part of the Black Forest
And yet the facade of his establishment still has FRENCH RESTAURANT scrawled across it
It serves as a reminder that elevated German cuisine has come a long way
most high-end restaurants in Germany were French
In Beyond Bratwurst: A History of Food in Germany
German food writer Ursula Heinzelmann says chefs were reluctant to focus on German cuisine because of post-World War II guilt
When German chefs in the 1980s began using local ingredients and looking to their mothers’ recipes for inspiration
Heinzelmann writes that they were accused of “excessive nationalism” and “culinary fascism.” I could start to see the Black Forest for the proverbial trees now
Even as he ran an acclaimed “French” restaurant
Wohlfahrt was quietly teaching future culinary stars the ways of his Black Forest upbringing
But it takes more than one chef to start a food revolution
the Traube Tonbach ruled the little resort town
When Bareiss built a swimming pool, a pool materialized the next season at Traube Tonbach. If one added suites or a spa, the other added them, too. And in 1982, four years after Schwarzwaldstube earned its first Michelin star and two years after it earned its second, the Bareiss opened its eponymous restaurant. Bareiss earned its first star in 1984
the year chef Claus-Peter Lumpp arrived at Bareiss
the hotels are the Yankees and the Red Sox of the Black Forest
Wohlfahrt and Lumpp blazed a trail for other chefs to follow. Jörg Sackmann, the chef at Schlossberg restaurant
has earned two Michelin stars for menus that are even more locally focused
traipses around the forest for about two hours each day
Nearly every plate that comes out has something that chef Nico foraged that day
from the wild chamomile encrusted on the lamb to the yarrow sprinkled atop the tender roasted Mangalica pork to the thyme-infused honey drizzled over a tomato foam
Sackmann and his son came out to say hello toward the end of my meal
Chef Sackmann told me he thinks the mystery of Baiersbronn’s culinary supremacy lies in the environment
“It’s all about the air and soil here,” he said
If we taste an herb we really like that isn’t from here
we’ll replant it here.” He said he loved Peruvian water pepper so much
more peppery flavor than the original I had tried,” he said
the people of Baiersbronn had to make do with what they had
Which is why there’s an economy of artisanal food makers using the natural ingredients of the forest.” He looked at his father
In the following days I met a goat-cheese maker named Michael Peterle who took me into his backyard
to show me where his product comes from: goats eating grass and wild marjoram
“Everything you see here goes into my cheese,” he said
I saw a meadow and a herd of goats quietly grazing its greenery
“The flowery herb-filled grass that the goats eat here gives their milk a very distinctive flavor,” he explained
Peterle sliced off a piece of four-day-aged cheese
with a subtle spiciness from the herbs eventually poking through
when I strode past his Schwarzwaldbrennerei (Black Forest Distillery)
He was outside sampling his wares with a group of tourists who were taking advantage of his “schnapps spring,” a horizontal carved-out log that held several bottles bobbing around in water
You plop a couple of euros in the mailbox-looking container next to the log and enjoy self-service schnapps until you can barely walk home
Kalmbach took me to see his fermenter and let me sample various flavors—anise
all of which he gets just up the hill in the forest—until I could barely walk home myself
I also met fourth-generation butcher Joachim Koch. At Metzgerei Koch
he makes dozens of different types of sausages
But I had come for the famed Black Forest ham
packaged sliced ham one finds hanging on the racks in U.S
It was like many of my random meetings in Baiersbronn: a simple query—in this case
how do you make your ham?—and a second later
Koch took me through the process of how he smokes it
taste bud-quivering product that melts on the tongue
A subtle smokiness emerged at the back of my palate as I sampled some of the thinly sliced ham
Then Koch left the room and re-entered with a bundle of pine needles in his hand
“I smoke the ham with pine needles and season it with juniper I fetch from the Black Forest.”
Pine needles, it turns out, season more than just ham. On my final night in Baiersbronn, I stopped into the hotel and restaurant Rosengarten
Owner Friedrich Klumpp is more than just the chef of the restaurant; he was one of the first locals to organize a Kräuterwanderung
I had a bowl of pine needle ice cream in front of me when Klumpp took a seat at my table
He had learned that I was interested in herbs
the first question people would ask is ‘What is this?’ followed by a second question
‘Can I eat this?’ So I decided to create a menu totally infused with herbs I gather.”
“You’re literally eating the Black Forest.”
Klumpp didn’t have to tell me that he sourced the pine needles from the forest just outside his restaurant
no one here uttered phrases like “snout to tail” “farm to table” and “local ingredients,” common dining parlance arising in the last decade
“This is the way we have always eaten here,” said chef Klumpp
“We got derailed in the post-World War II period
but we eventually picked up where we left off.”
Klumpp touched on something I’d been pondering—that the last few years we’ve been intentionally regressing as we’ve been technologically advancing
As the Internet has become an increasingly pervasive
imperative force in our lives and our faces are perpetually stuck to our smartphone screens
it’s not a coincidence that things like knitting
and subconsciously we’re grasping for a simpler
a romanticized self-sustainable past in our locavore craze
people have been living this way all along
“The people of the Black Forest have always known the edible bounty in these hills,” Klumpp said
“The rest of the world just hadn’t caught up yet.”
>>Next: Why Is It So Hard to Find Nordic Cuisine in Oslo?
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2017Photo: Courtesy of Tom BursonSave this storySaveSave this storySaveA few hundred years ago
witches procured deadly apples from the thorny trees across the dark forest
and vibrant herbs along the forest floor turned princes into frogs
Roman soldiers called it Silva Negra because of its wall of darkness
This same darkness inspired Grimm folklore and childhood fairy tales of foreboding
bright red rosehip dangles from mountainside shrubs
Exotic—and toxic—mushrooms test hikers' palates
Wild cherries form the base of the region’s infamous chocolate-cherry gateau
Distillers at the Schwarzwaldbrennerei (Black Forest Distillers) transform poisonous fruits like rotting cherries and Williams pear into herbaceous
And a group of chefs have created a culinary mecca
with more three-star Michelin restaurants than Chicago
hidden in the middle of Germany’s Black Forest
Baiersbronn, a town of 16,000 in Germany’s Black Forest, mere miles from France and in the almost unpronounceable state of Baden-Württemberg, isn’t rife with romanticism like Regensburg or Rothenburg or Fairytale Franconia
no beaches; just low-lying mountains in a sea of thicket so dense that it’s pitch-black even at noon
Its darkness spooked Teutonic soldiers and inspired Kinderfresser (child-eaters) like that in Hansel and Gretel
but now the red-roofed houses that overlook a vast valley of colorful
autumnal timberland and pastures of lounging livestock is an epicenter of haute cuisine
The village boasts a collective eight Michelin stars (one two-star and two three-star restaurants) and is perhaps the world’s most unexpected restaurant capital
thanks in large part to chef Harald Wohlfahrt
Wohlfahrt has defended Schwarzwaldstube’s three Michelin stars for roughly 25 years
Arguably the most influential chef in Germany today
his tutorship is responsible for the chefs at four of Germany’s nine three-star restaurants
along with innumerable others who together have earned over 60 Michelin stars altogether
Its façade reads “French Restaurant,” but it should probably update to the Grimm moniker “Das Waldhaus” (The House in the Forest)
timber-laden lodge exhibits an Old European elegance with a sort of hunting cabin charm
The wild hare with Brussel sprout leaves and a sauce rouennaise with cranberries reads almost like a French ode to the Schwarzwald’s wildlife
and the sour cherry sorbet plus a Kirschwasser soaked bonbon with chocolate crumble plays off the region’s famous gateau (Black Forest Chocolate Cake) in the booziest way imaginable
Photo: Courtesy of Tom BursonJust a few miles away, hidden amongst towers of pines, Chef Peter-Claus Lumpp of Bareiss
Baiersbronn’s second three-star restaurant and gourmet restaurant of the luxury Hotel Bareiss
prepares autumnal comforts for an intimate room of eight tables
The entire experience exudes Gemütlichkeit
Lumpp uses the fruits of the forest—foraged vegetables
and herbs—and the restaurant’s own farm (Bareiss breeds cows
and fish) to concoct dishes like Breton-style turbot with freshly plucked topinambur
and caramelized hazelnuts or black-feathered chicken with butternut squash and sprigs of verbena
The entire setting is an olfactory amuse-bouche, with scents of rose and pine—the forest—waltzing with the dishes. And it’s this aroma of the Black Forest that has livened the German senses for centuries.
Text description provided by the architects. In the beginning of 2013 the conversion of the tourist information center by PARTNERUNDPARTNER architekten in Baiersbronn (Black Forest) was completed
The first phase was the whole redesign and enlargement of the public customer area and back office of the information center
This was followed by the renewal of the public toilets on the ground floor
© Ulrike KlumppThe tourist information was expanded spatially. At daytime the lobby of the neighboring convention hall “Rosensaal” can be used as a reading lounge and provides additional space to the information center. During events it serves as a reception foyer or temporary exhibition space.
© Ulrike KlumppOn the one hand the wood pile creates the boundary between public and private space. On the other hand it serves as a background for the whole tourist information center. With its backlighting the wooden wall shines out onto the market place of Baiersbronn.
Floor PlanIn cooperation with a local glass factory two glass lamps were designed
Above main reception desk and in the reading lounge several illuminated 1.5 cm thick glass discs are hanging from the ceiling and perform an additional welcoming gesture
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RosarAdvertisementA blaze tore through a Black Forest restaurant early on Sunday
wiping out one of Germany's foremost culinary institutions.
The fire rapidly destroyed the three-Michelin-star Schwarzwaldstube (Black Forest parlor)
Read more: A record 28 French restaurants get Michelin three-star ratings
Fire officials said nobody was badly hurt in the blaze
which had still not been fully extinguished by midday on Sunday.
one hotel guest was understood to have required medical attention for smoke inhalation
The cause of the blaze remained unclear on Sunday
The restaurant has held on to its three-star reputation with Michelin since 1993
longer than any other restaurant in Germany.
Michelin describes the restaurant as a "real institution" that remains true to the classic French tradition of cooking while offering "its own modern twist to every dish."
Proprietors and staff said they would look to the future
whose family owns the restaurant and adjacent Hotel Traube Tonbach
Finkbeiner said he was relieved that no one had been hurt
Read more: Michelin lets French chef Sebastien Bras give up 3 stars
Head chef Torsten Michel said the losses were "tragic" but struck a similar note
who worked for the hotel's owners for decades
"It feels as though my living room has burned down," Wohlfahrt told the German daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung
Only 10 restaurants in Germany are able to boast three Michelin stars
including another one in Baiersbronn – the Restaurant Bareiss
Torsten Michel and his gourmet paradise.To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
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portraying the forest as dark and foreboding
A typical road winding through the Black Forest
Baiersbronn is famous for having the highest concentration of Michelin stars in the world
Chef Harald Wohlfahrt is the longest serving three-star chef outside of France
Wohlfahrt’s Schwarzwaldstube is one of the most coveted reservations in the country
A traditional flammkuchen—a flatbread covered in crème fraîche
It was the Romans who first named southwest Germany’s Black Forest—they called it Silva Negra—a place where the trees grew so densely no light could penetrate through
portraying the forest as dark and foreboding—the quintessential spooky woods—a hideout for witches and wolves
Yet while the name stuck throughout the ages
and kirsch is one of Europe’s oldest tourism destinations
drew up hiking maps for the northern edge of the Black Forest; the world’s first trail maps
Bussemer had opened a tourist information centre
as German as schwarzwderkirschtorte (that’s Black Forest cake)
And cake—as well as cheese and sausage—factors into any Black Forest hike
The idea of coming across a little house in the woods has a fairy tale appeal—and on a recent trip
I was not immune to the charm of following a trailhead sign reading Blockhütte to a sweet café with a terrace overlooking the idyllic Tonbach Valley
and while I could have used a snack myself
I would sit down to a meal I’d anticipated for six long months
Wohlfahrt is the longest serving three-star chef outside of France
having held his rank for the past 26 years
is one of the most coveted reservations in the country
The Black Forest certainly exudes a fairy tale charm—one travellers will hope never ends
at least 80 got their start cooking for Wohlfahrt
making Traube Tonbach a de facto culinary institute
One chef who trained under Wohlfahrt is Patrick Schreib
who now works to promote the entire Baiersbronn region
Schreib joined me for dinner—a seven-course meal that includes marinated wild salmon with smoked paprika
an essence of venison with mushroom ravioli
and a basilic-yogurt granite with mascarpone and lavender-honey sauce
sustainability is in the culture of the people
it’s not just a fad around here,” says Schrieb
In a replica of the monks’ original healing garden
Bissell introduced me to some potent herbs
explaining their uses in medicinal salves and teas
through meadows and up into the hills to find ordinary plants with extraordinary healing properties—and a lot of flavour
was called soldiers’ herb because of tannins and salicylic acid that make it anti-bacterial
But yarrow also went into a small feast Bissell had prepared using plants foraged in the Black Forest
We washed it all down with fresh spring water and unfiltered apple juice flavoured with meadowsweet
The historically remote region’s culinary tradition of living off the land has been central to its success
Leaving Baiersbronn wasn’t easy, but soon I was having the time of my life, wheeling around hairpin turns and looping around ski resorts on the road to Oberkirch. With roads like these (and Mercedes Benz and Porsche based in nearby Stuttgart)
it’s no wonder that there is an annual Baiersbronn classic car rally each September
Though I was driving a rather ordinary Opel
I still felt like a hero after that epic mountain journey
is perhaps Germany’s best spot for a beverage
and I soon found my way to Brennerei Grüner Baum
a family distillery that’s operated continuously since 1645
After working abroad as a chef for 30 years
Johannes Müller returned home to take over the still from his father
becoming the 10th generation distiller in the family
Though he makes traditional kirsch and fruit-based schnapps
Müller was most proud of his whiskey (made from an ancient grain called emmer)
and his line of three-flavour schnapps (think elderberry-chocolate-chili
and a pear-quince-cinnamon that can only be described as “Christmas-in-a-bottle”)
The next morning I departed for Durbach, home to some of Germany’s best vineyards. More people in the state of Baden-Württemberg drink wine than beer
and you can’t come here without trying the riesling
Schloss Staufenberg is a glorious example of a hilltop castle
Daniel Hormann markets the Staufenberg wines worldwide
and greets me with a glass of sparkling riesling on the castle’s rooftop patio
and part of the reason that the Black Forest is in vogue these days
“It used to be Germans who would go to France to eat and drink,” says Hormann
The French cross over at the weekend to eat and drink
then load up their cars with wine and go home.” As we enjoyed a traditional flammkuchen—a flatbread covered in crème fraîche
we could see the spires of Strasbourg just a 40-minute drive away
With only a day left to explore, I headed south to the Hochschwarzwald region where the highest peak, the Feldberg, towers over a picturesque lake district. A gondola takes skiers and hikers to the Feldberg’s broad summit, where from an observation tower one can see Mont Blanc in France, and Jungfrau in Switzerland
The same tower houses the Black Forest Ham Museum (yes
actually) where one can learn about the process of making the genuine article
Real Black Forest ham is nothing like what passes for it in North America
but smoked and cured with typical Schwartzwald seasonings like pine
authentic Black Forest ham is not just a cold cut
but lends itself to all manners of preparation
including ham-flavoured ice cream with figs
From wild herbs to schnapps, castles to culinary hikes, the Black Forest certainly exudes a fairy tale charm—one travellers will hope never ends.
rent a car (a German performance car is worth the splurge to get the authentic Autobahn experience) and take the A5 toward Basel/Darmstadt
take the Gaggenau exit to B462 and follow directions to Baiersbronn
Since you’re going at least in part for the food
don’t risk being turned away at the door because you don’t have a reservation
Don’t let the slightly kitschy alpine décor fool you: The menu is eclectic and modern
and pear (billed as “essence of deer”) and goose liver cannelloni with pineapple
the hotel’s rustic mountain cabin restaurant—a great spot for freshly baked pretzels
If visiting a storybook castle is also on your list
keep driving east for another 30 miles to the implausibly photogenic hilltop castle of Hohenzollern
Take one of the guided tours (they get crowded) or explore on your own
There’s a pretty beer garden inside the castle that’s perfect for a German-style rest
Finish the day back at the hotel’s three-Michelin-star restaurant, Schwarzwaldstube
which ignited Baiersbronn’s culinary revolution in 1977 when it picked up its first star
the protégé of legendary chef Harald Wohlfahrt (who’s responsible for the third star)
intensely flavored dishes with influences from far beyond France and Germany—from coriander marinated tuna with shiitakes and ginger in a light wasabi foam to Brittany lobster escabeche
You can order à la carte or pick one of the tasting menus (including a vegetarian one)
dinner at Schwarzwaldstube is an epic affair of memorable course after memorable course
take the cake: Instead of one or two petit fours after dessert
the server wheels in an entire cart of them
Don’t be tempted to wave him away on account of being too full
or you’ll miss gems like ultra-tender Black Forest cherry macarons
and gold-covered chocolate truffles with passion fruit flavor
A (short) detour to Lossburg is worth it for a visit to Monkey 47
Surrounded by conifer-shrouded hills that seem to contain all the shades of green
the hotel is an excellent starting point for a morning in the great outdoors
You can take one of a dozen or more hikes practically from your doorstep
The 60-mile Murgleiter trail connecting Baiersbronn to Gernsbach—one of the most beautiful hiking trails in Germany
according to the German Hiking Institute—is a bit of a commitment (although you don’t have to go the whole way)
But even if you just walk along one of the small paths outside the hotel
it doesn’t take long before the thick fir trees start filtering out the sunlight and you’re suddenly skipping across creeks in the middle of the woods—it feels remote
but you’re actually not that far from civilization
you can always opt for some poolside relaxation
although you may need that exercise to build an appetite for lunch
chef Claus-Peter Lumpp crafts artful plates using vegetables
like fried milk-fed veal with grilled asparagus
and lovage (a very haute riff on Wiener Schnitzel) or pinot-noir-and-juniper-marinated leg of roe deer with apple and celery salad
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Claus-Peter Lumpp is a prominent figure in the world of gastronomy
renowned for transforming the Bareiss restaurant into a temple of high-quality cuisine
where he honed his skills working with some of the biggest names in the global food scene
such as Eckart Witzigmann and Alain Ducasse
After a formative journey that took him across Europe
where he now leads the Bareiss restaurant and a team of just ten people
Lumpp's approach to cooking is to create dishes that reflect a constant attention to the quality and naturalness of the ingredients
working closely with key figures like pastry chef Stefan Leitner
Lumpp's dishes are extremely sophisticated
but the tasting menus reflect his philosophy of purity and authenticity of products
offering high-level international cuisine that celebrates the local excellence of the Black Forest
His mastery is confirmed by numerous awards
including the three Michelin stars held since 2007
and many other prestigious accolades that testify to his significant impact on the global culinary landscape
Claus-Peter Lumpp is a true master of cuisine
whose dedication and talent continue to make Bareiss a prominent destination in Germany and beyond
His commitment to superior hospitality and a high-quality menu make every visit to Bareiss a memorable and fascinating experience
Do you want to discover the latest news and recipes of the most renowned chefs and restaurants in the world
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True confession: I haven't always associated Germany with great cuisine
But in fact, the Black Forest National Park region in southwest Germany is home to a whopping 11 Michelin stars and 11 Bib Gourmand awards
For the record, the national park, the first in Baden-Wurttemberg
was founded in 2014 -- and as its name implies -- lies smack in the middle of the Black Forest
It comprises about 25,000 acres and encompasses 27 towns in three districts
The idea behind creating the park was to showcase the above-average number of noteworthy restaurants in a setting that also promotes some of the destination's most appealing natural beauty
Travelers eager to sample the best of the park's culinary highlights can zero in on the town of Baiersbronn and its environs
Baiersbronn's reputation was solidified by the 2022 Michelin Guide
with chef Claus-Peter Lumpp -- cemented their rarified status by retaining three Michelin stars this year
only nine restaurants in all of Germany boast three Michelin stars
But the foodies among us know that any Michelin star is an accomplishment
other restaurants in Baiersbronn have their own accolades to brag about
Bib Gourmands -- a Michelin designation for restaurants that offer good food that is more accessible to everyday folks -- were awarded to 11 eateries in the Black Forest National Park region
Let's say you've managed to eat your way through the park
the good news is that there are plenty of ways to shake off that fine dining coma
Park rangers are on hand to lead guided hikes through densely forested areas that alternate with wine-growing regions
Or accompany chefs or experienced nature guides trained in herbs and wild plants
you can also explore the park on your own after a visit to an interactive permanent exhibition
which introduces visitors to the lay of the land and its variety of species and habitats
The exhibition touches on the mysterious notion that trees
plants and other creatures in the national park communicate in ways ecologists are just beginning to understand
this tiny German town doesn’t even appear on road signs until you are a couple of miles from it
but it’s home to two restaurants that have earned a three-star rating from Michelin
With just 15,000 inhabitants (I’ve seen bigger crowds at Crystal Palace)
this equates to a Michelin three-star for every 7,500 people
With Baiersbronn also harbouring a Michelin two-Michelin-starred restaurant (pah)
it’s little wonder it has become known as Sternedorf
or star village."},"children":[]}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"So what is it about this otherwise unremarkable spot between Stuttgart and Strasbourg — all timber yards and rumbling forestry lorries — that has turned it"},"children":[]},{"name":"paywall","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":" into such a culinary hotspot
“Definitely not,” laughs Marietheres Huonker
whose restaurant is one of the two boasting the top accolade
People often come to do a tour of all three top restaurants.”"},"children":[]}]}]},{"name":"paywall","children":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Now there’s an idea
Call it the Baiersbronn hat-trick: three restaurants (and eight Michelin stars) in a weekend
Better get started."}}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"c9ad54d5-828c-4f89-f516-93e17fbfbe72","display":"secondary","caption":"Pumpkin amuse bouche with apple-blossom garnish at Schwarzwaldstube","title":"Baiersbronn
A pumpkin appetizer with an apple blossom garnish from three-star chef Harald Wohlfahrt in the kitchen of the restaurant Traube-Tonbach during CookTank in Baiersbronn
CookTank consider","credits":"Alamy","url":"https://www.thetimes.com/imageserver/image/%2Fmethode%2Fsundaytimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2Fd7f68270-39fe-11e6-9b2f-94f8ea8bb6c5.jpg?crop=1500%2C1000%2C0%2C0","ratio":"1500:1000","relativeHorizontalOffset":null,"relativeVerticalOffset":null,"relativeWidth":null,"relativeHeight":null},"children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"First up is lunch in Claus-Peter Lumpp’s Restaurant Bareiss
and the service is the culinary equivalent of the German football team in a penalty shootout: the courses come at you with relentless efficiency."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"And they hit the spot every time
After a fusillade of amuse-bouches (curried cauliflower; beef ravioli in tandoori yoghurt)
At which point the waiter announces that we’re about to start on the menu
What?"}}]},{"name":"ad","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"I dig in and make it through the five courses
delicate flavours mingling in unusual combinations
The fried breast and leg of a Miéral black-feather chicken with chanterelles and young leek is particularly good
but none the wiser on that central question: why Baiersbronn?"}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"The answer becomes clearer at lunch the next day as I meet Harald Wohlfahrt
He recently turned 60 and has spent 40 of those years at Schwarzwaldstube
his three-Michelin-starred restaurant in the Traube Tonbach hotel
He is a modest man — unlike his British equivalents
he just uses two words — ‘Concentrate now’ — and everyone focuses,” explains his colleague David Breuer."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Wohlfahrt’s drive and expertise have left a huge legacy
If you count the stars accumulated by those who have trained in his kitchen
so to speak."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"I steel myself for another gastronomic onslaught
Three amuse-bouches later (crustacean with mango and pineapple chutney; tartare of beef with pesto and cucumber; gamba on a sliver of crabcake)
my bouche is becoming less and less amused
The “small degustation menu” that follows is five courses
built around a main of crispy roast lamb saddle with glazed garden cucumber and lamb jus with mustard seed and dill."}}]},{"name":"inlineAd1","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Heaving myself up from the lunch table
may be a step down in stars (two rather than three)
has a surprise in store for me: he has prepared a special 11-course tasting menu
I have done it: I have completed the Baiersbronn hat-trick."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"In the past 36 hours
and spent somewhere in the region of €600 on three meals
partly the great produce — this is hunting country
and many of the ingredients were running around outside shortly before gracing the plate — and partly the wealth of the locals
that when the Germans decide to be good at something
they’re simply unbeatable."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"And was it worth it
But you’re going to need to be a pretty determined foodie (and rich) to do all three
give yourself a week to do it."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"If it all becomes a bit much
And you only have to eat one course."}}]},{"name":"inlineAd2","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"italic","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"James Gillespie was a guest of Hotel Bareiss ("}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"bareiss.com"}}],"attributes":{"href":"https://www.bareiss.com/en/hotel.html"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":")
including afternoon tea and a midnight snack; Hotel Traube Tonbach ("}},{"name":"link","children":[],"attributes":{"href":"http://www.traube-tonbach.de/en/home"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"doubles from £190
including breakfast and snacks; "}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"traube-tonbach
de"}}],"attributes":{"href":"http://www.traube-tonbach.de/en/home"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"); and Hotel Sackmann "}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"("}}],"attributes":{"href":"http://www.hotel-sackmann.de/"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"doubles from £117
B&B; "}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"hotel-sackmann.de"}}],"attributes":{"href":"http://www.hotel-sackmann.de/"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":")
Eurowings has return flights from Heathrow to Stuttgart from £54"}}]}]}]}]},"summary({\"maxCharCount\":200})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"Baiersbronn has a secret
but it’s home to two restaurants that have earned a"},"children":[]}]}]},"dropcapsDisabled":false,"expirableFlags":[],"keywords":{"type":"json","json":["the","world’s","foodiest","town"]},"leadAsset":{"type":"id","generated":false,"id":"Image:efed5ec9-a807-47ff-ba91-c45b04c6b0b4","typename":"Image"},"relatedArticleSlice":null,"sharingEnabled":true,"savingEnabled":true,"standfirst":"Tiny Baiersbronn is stuffed with Michelin-starred restaurants
in the Black Forest","credits":"Alamy","title":"Oberdorf with church
We sample them allJames GillespieSunday June 26 2016
The Sunday TimesPretty enough to eat: Baiersbronn
in the Black ForestALAMYJames GillespieSunday June 26 2016
So what is it about this otherwise unremarkable spot between Stuttgart and Strasbourg — all timber yards and rumbling forestry lorries — that has turned it into such a culinary hotspot
People often come to do a tour of all three top restaurants.”
Pumpkin amuse bouche with apple-blossom garnish at SchwarzwaldstubeALAMYFirst up is lunch in Claus-Peter Lumpp’s Restaurant Bareiss
and the service is the culinary equivalent of the German football team in a penalty shootout: the courses come at you with relentless efficiency
I dig in and make it through the five courses
but none the wiser on that central question: why Baiersbronn
The answer becomes clearer at lunch the next day as I meet Harald Wohlfahrt
he just uses two words — ‘Concentrate now’ — and everyone focuses,” explains his colleague David Breuer
Wohlfahrt’s drive and expertise have left a huge legacy
he can lay claim to an astonishing 75 — with some of these protégés still active in the town
James tucks in“I wanted to introduce French style to German cooking
I steel myself for another gastronomic onslaught
built around a main of crispy roast lamb saddle with glazed garden cucumber and lamb jus with mustard seed and dill
I have done it: I have completed the Baiersbronn hat-trick
Claus-Peter Lumpp in the kitchen at BareissSo
Eurowings has return flights from Heathrow to Stuttgart from £54
InspirationMore from InspirationThis is the easiest way to see the islands of the southern HebridesMay 04 2025
The ins and outs of the most outstanding hotels in the country
When creating the rooms, warm colors and high-quality materials (including tasteful fabrics and stylish furniture) were given just as much importance as the luxuries expected at a hotel of this quality.Book Hotel Bareiss with The MICHELIN Guide →
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Rooms are built for the contemporary traveler
with state-of-the-art technology and chic interior details to go with tasteful warm colors
beautiful parquet floors and floor-to-ceiling windows.
The luxurious look continues through all areas of the hotel
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you'll have no doubt which country you're in when staying at these Michelin-Key hotels
Sustainability is more than a buzzword—it’s a core value embraced by some of North America’s most design-forward hotels
explore some of its best MICHELIN Guide dining spots and uncover its hidden gems
From exquisite cuisine to artisan treasures
get to know the Tuscan city like a local with our handy guide for a curated taste of Florence’s finest
Marseille is a crossroads of culture and cuisine
shaped by 2,600 years of migration and maritime trade
From its Greek founders to waves of immigrants from Italy
each community has left an indelible mark on the city’s dynamic food culture
Southern England's Dartmoor National Park boasts a unique granite landscape which takes in rocky outcrops
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warm colors and high-quality materials (including tasteful fabrics and stylish furniture) were given just as much importance as the luxuries expected at a hotel of this quality
Book Hotel Bareiss with The MICHELIN Guide \u2192
there\u2019s a clear combination of both styles
with certain spaces exuding the charm of the Black Forest and in others the chic modernity of crisp lines and pops of color
For the best view of the stunning landscape
Book Hotel Traube Tonbach with The MICHELIN Guide \u2192
rooms and suites are furnished with a keen sense of aesthetics and pure luxury
you\u2019re faced with that magnificent mountain backdrop
Book Schloss Elmau with The MICHELIN Guide\u2192
The look is classic and true to the character of this 1897 building
but full too of subtle modern amenities to compliment it
The rooms and suites leave nothing to be desired
Not to be forgotten are the magnificent views of the Inner Alster
Book Fairmont Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten with The MICHELIN Guide \u2192
Buchen The Fontenay with The MICHELIN Guide\u2192
A particular highlight: the three massive Tegernsee Suites
It goes without saying that the superlative spa matches the design and class of the rooms
Book Althoff Seehotel \u00dcberfahrt with The MICHELIN Guide\u2192
Landa names first Nanography customer in Europe
As colordruck Baiersbronn’s keystone digital print platform
the Landa S10 press will be central to the company’s new purpose-built
highly-automated 3,000 square meter digital packaging facility
It will fulfil a variety of customer packaging requirements
to mock-ups and test market campaigns for the office supply
confectionery and non-food packaging markets
“We chose the Landa press because we believe that Landa Nanography will be the future of print and the future growth driver for colordruck Baiersbronn,” says Frank Buesching
our average run lengths have decreased substantially
As economic pressures make themselves felt
brands of all sizes are actively looking to reduce costs
They also want the production flexibility to better react to market trends with packaging that reflects not only planned and seasonal campaigns
“We are extremely excited to have colordruck Baiersbronn as our first European installation for the Landa S10 press
Frank and his team are great visionaries in packaging print and converting and have built an impressive facility
employing the industry’s most cutting-edge automation
They have a profound understanding of what it will take to stay competitive—and how to lead in their markets
We look forward to partnering with colordruck Baiersbronn and to being a key part of their new digital journey.”
Engineered for the packaging and converting industries
the Landa S10 Nanographic Printing Press enables mainstream packaging productivity with plate-free
The Landa S10 press prints up to 13,000 B1 (41 inches) sheets per hour on off-the-shelf cartonboard ranging in thicknesses from 2.4 to 32 mil (60-800 μm)
All Landa Nanographic Printing Presses use water-based Landa NanoInk colorants that are engineered to meet a variety of European and other international standards relating to indirect food contact
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Classic car rallies aren't always about winning – skill, patience, preparation and fun are what matters
Join the conversation You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account
Taking part in a classic car rally may well be a sport more for the well-heeled than the masses: First
Then there’s the entry fee and you also need to get your car to where the rally is
watching the Baiersbronn Classic car rally in the Black Forest in Germany get underway on a long weekend in late September
and a handful of American classics were registered and driven by teams of couples
some from as far away as Norway and the Middle East
isn’t so much about the winning as it is about camaraderie
friends made along the way and the stupendous meals rustled up by Baiersbronn’s Michelin star chefs
But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of preparation and hard work that goes into the three-day
First-time participants start off by sitting through an instruction course on the rules
and how to react to them — on paper at least
They learn that there are 17 timed stages to check through
three of which they had no advance warning of; that they must rely only on mechanical stop watches (it’s prudent to have at least two)
navigator and most of all their driving skills
knowing the signals and starting off each stage at precisely the right time
They also learn that the car that accumulates the least amount of points at the end is crowned the winner
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From the constant banter and laughter between them
I was having less fun bouncing around on the back seat of an old VW and was happy to go back to the sidelines to watch
The 2014 rally was won by a seasoned rally team driving a 1960 Triumph TR3
That gets them all maps and instruction materials
as well as lunch and dinner events for the driver and navigator
late September might be a good time to visit Baiersbronn
just to see all the beautiful classic cars about town
Better book now if you want to be there for the 2015 rally
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I'm not sure whether this is an epicure's paradise or aversion therapy for gluttons
Three Michelin-starred restaurants – seven stars altogether – in two days
That's about 343 courses in a 30-hour period
Baiersbronn in the Black Forest is a gorgeous contradiction – cold enough to sting your eyes
By night it mutates into something darker – mysterious at best
We stay at the five-star hotel Bareiss
with its own three-star Michelin restaurant
Such luxury is so far out of our price range
(And luxury it is – from the bathrobes and the numerous swimming pools to the trays of petits fours that are magically replaced every time we leave the room.)
Baiersbronn is a freak of a food haven – few places in the world can boast two three-star restaurants in a five-mile radius
London has two.) All the hoteliers talk about local produce
There is a sense of solidarity – they know they have to work together to maintain standards and keep the region special
The hotel Bareiss restaurant looks rather formal
as do the boys in bow ties drinking in the corner – they could have walked straight out of 1920s Vienna
"Six or eight courses?" the maître d' asks
and we're still on the pre-starter starters
or amuse-bouches as those who know call them
These tiny tasters are served on bent silver spoons
and most seem to be variants of goose liver
Another thing about Diane – she's vegetarian
She passes me her spoons when the maître d' is not looking
The chef, Claus-Peter Lumpp
He congratulates me on my appetite and looks daggers at Diane
Run, swim, press-ups, crunches. Not eaten for the best part of 24 hours and now ready to tackle three-star Michelin number two. Harald Wohlfahrt at Restaurant Schwarzwaldstube looks like Mr Bean and has held three stars continuously for 15 years
madame." News travels fast in Baiersbronn
I've worked out the essence of nouvelle cuisine – anything common is a no-no (strictly no chicken)
rare or cruelly fed is a yes-yes (bring on the foie gras)
My favourite is a sweetbread ravioli in a gossamer pastry topped with truffle
Diane says she can't come to tonight's Michelin fiesta
"You don't need to eat anything," I say
I set off to the Schlossberg
run by Herr Sackmann and a mere one-starrer
So a single anchovy assumes whale-like proportions next to lilliputian veg
One of many desserts is a huge chunk of Black Forest gateau in miniature – the cake equivalent of a Dinky car
A creme-egg-yolk-truffle concoction should be revolting
a severe-looking woman in large specs and a frumpy dress arrives
smiles ecstatically and whispers to her man
I tell her how much I enjoyed watching her eat
I'm already becoming nostalgic for my Michelin meals
Would I come here for a week's holiday and eat in these places every night? Of course not. Would I save up for an age, come for three days and pig out in one for the treat of a lifetime? You bet. And the rest of the time? I'd stay at sensibly priced Hotel Tanne and stuff myself with slap-up non-Michelin meals (trout so fresh it's almost breathing
eat sausage and maultaschen (ravioli) for a tenner at the hiking tents
and smell the truffle wafting through the air
Get there German Wings flies London Stansted to Stuttgart
€106 per room per night; four-course meal from €27
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