Rustic Comfort Food, German Style

I always had an image of what Germany would be like, and, more importantly, what German people would look like. Images of rosy-cheeked, robust women named Helga typically came to mind, but when I arrived in Regensburg I was surprised to see many thin, statuesque women and athletic, chiseled men. Certainly not disappointing, but nothing like I'd imagined.

But in Kallmunz, a municipality of Regensburg, I found my Helga. I don't know what her real name is, but she was stocky, a bit mean and kept a very tidy kitchen at the the tiny but infamous Zum Burftenbinder restaurant. She plays many roles here: cook, hostess, waitress, busperson. And she does it all with a "don't f*ck with me" attitude.

The speciality at her little place is the bauchstecherla, a pasta-type concoction made from potatoes. The menu is simple: there are five types of bauchstecherla (with bacon, with onion, with sausage, etc.) and the basic sausage and kraut dish, plus beer and sodas. That's all they do here, and people from all over come to this place for their special dish.

Helga (I'll just refer to her as such since I do not know her real name) took our order in her curt but somehow endearing fashion and immediately got to work. We could hear the sizzle of the bacon grease and smell the sweet scent of caramelizing onions as Helga worked diligently in the kitchen.

The dish, which I ordered with bacon and onions, was absolutely perfect. Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, the bauchstecherla was somewhat like a gnocchi but a bit more dense. The crispy/chewy flecks of onion went beautifully with the soft bacon (more like Canadian bacon than the U.S. variety). That Helga can cook!

The restaurant itself is small, probably seating at most 20 people. It's clearly a local favorite, as I saw several patrons who were obviously regulars. A newspaper, a dark beer and a plate of bauchstecherla seemed all that anyone there needed. And of course a bit of sass from Helga.