Going to Germany tomorrow - any restaurant recommendations welcome

[sleepydvdr]

My job is requiring me to go to a conference in Germany. I leave tomorrow and won't come back until Thursday. I will be in Heidenheim and I won't have a car, so I need restaurants close by. I looked up restaurants and the only one that is fully vegetarian is called Iden. I will definitely try to go there. If anyone knows of anything vegan to eat there, I would appreciate some advice. I am bringing six Clif/Luna bars, but that won't last the whole trip, obviously. If I have to, I may eat bread that contains dairy, but I'll try my best not to. Is there a word for "vegan" in German and would they know what I'm talking about? Heck, most people in the US don't know what vegan means, so I'm not getting my hopes up on that one.

It sucks getting out of my comfort zone. In SC/NC, I know exactly where to find vegan food. In Germany, I probably won't know half the words (I took German about 20+ years ago, so it's not fresh on my mind). I'll have to depend on the hospitality of the locals. Hopefully, they will be nice and helpful. I have downloaded some German tutorials for my Kindle, so I'll brush up on the flight.

I know Heidenheim is not a big city, but if anyone knows where I can find something to eat, I would appreciate the advice.

 

[ledboots]

Google translate says "vegan" is the word in German, too.

 

[Mischief]

Google translate says "vegan" is the word in German, too.

Yes, German adopts all kinds of English words

 

[sleepydvdr]

I'm back from Germany now. It was a very interesting trip. I didn't find much to eat. I mostly survived on energy bars that I brought and local pretzels and bread. I did eat a couple things that weren't vegan, but I didn't eat any meat. I starved a good bit, but it didn't kill me.

I wanted to do a little tourism on Monday, but got suckered into meetings at the office that weren't intended for me, but I didn't know that at the time. So, my view of the trip was pretty much just from a business perspective.

Overall, I can say I am glad to have seen another country, but I didn't see enough to have gained much knowledge. I do know that it is hard to be veg in Germany. I also seem to think the people there are more trusting (and probably more honest, too)*. They also seem to be a lot more "green" (energy efficient) than the US. The US loves to say they are green, but these people really live the lifestyle. We (Americans) love to say we are green, but we really aren't.

* I want to say that I was shocked that the hotel only asked for my name/info to stay there without checking my ID and running my credit card. I couldn't believe it; that would not happen in America. The hotel restaurant also put a meal on my room's account with just my room number and no proof of who I am. It's a sad realization (in my little world) that a basic thing like trust is so shocking. America isn't as great as everyone pretends it is.

 

[Second Summer]

Glad to hear you survived Too bad about the food. As always, I'm sure it would have been easier if you had access to a kitchen, or if it had been a bigger city.

Did you struggle with the language, or did everyone speak English?

 

[sleepydvdr]

Glad to hear you survived Too bad about the food. As always, I'm sure it would have been easier if you had access to a kitchen, or if it had been a bigger city.

Did you struggle with the language, or did everyone speak English?

A kitchen may not have helped. I did not see a grocery store anywhere. On a side note, I do want to say that the breads that I ate were fantastic. I didn't find any crappy mass produced breads like we have in the states. All breads I ran across were equal to the best bakery breads I have had in the states.

Most people spoke English and were very helpful, for which I appreciated. But I did have to break out some high school German from 20 years ago for some who didn't speak English. One greeting that someone said caught my attention: "Gruss Gott", which means God is great. I wish I had been sharper and said it back, but it took a moment to process and I immediately responded with "hi". Even though I knew this phrase, it seemed strange to actually hear a greeting that is religious based from a stranger. In this world of political correctness where everyone is afraid to say anything that could upset anyone these days, I kind of liked it.

 

[Envy]

One greeting that someone said caught my attention: "Gruss Gott", which means God is great.

Where did you hear that translation?

 

[sleepydvdr]

Where did you hear that translation?

I learned that from my high school German class. Because you asked about it, I looked it up on Wikipedia and see that there may be many interpretations. I don't want to make a big thing of my comment. I may have been wrong in my memory of what it means. Like I said, my German classes were 20 years ago. I apologize.

 

[Second Summer]

Even though I knew this phrase, it seemed strange to actually hear a greeting that is religious based from a stranger. In this world of political correctness where everyone is afraid to say anything that could upset anyone these days, I kind of liked it.

Agreed! And I say that as a godless heathen.

I may have been wrong in my memory of what it means. Like I said, my German classes were 20 years ago. I apologize.

Hehe, don't worry about it

 

[Second Summer]

Google translate says "vegan" is the word in German, too.

I wonder if that is accurate though. Well, it may be correct for food, but to describe someone who is vegan, I would have thought it would be "Veganer".

 

[shyvas]

I wonder if that is accurate though. Well, it may be correct for food, but to describe someone who is vegan, I would have thought it would be "Veganer".

According to SpeakSheets, here are the following translations :

Ich bin vegan - German
Je suis végétalien - French. Even though most people don't know what it means.

http://www.speaksheets.com/translation/how-to-say-i-am-vegan-in-german-ich-bin-vegan/

 

[Second Summer]

OK, I think both are used! However, according to Google Search:

• "ich bin veganer" : 93,100 results
• "ich bin vegan": 46,600 results

Edit: Also: "ich bin veganerin": 40,100 results. ("veganerin" is the female version I believe.)

 

[Mischief]

Gruess Gott means "God greets [you]". It's a regional, rather informal, greeting (it wouldn't be used in a formal setting), and people don't really think about the religious connotations, just like Americans don't think about it when they say "Bless you" in response to a sneeze. I have a fondness for it because I grew up with it.

"Ich bin vegan" ("I am vegan") uses vegan as an adjective, whereas "Veganer" and "Veganerin" are nouns, describing an individual who is vegan ("I am a vegan").

 

[Andy_T]

Updating this old thread so that someone who is in the future looking for vegan food in Germany maybe finds this.

On principle, Germany is not a particularly difficult place to be vegan. Especially in major cities, there are many restaurants now that offer vegan options. If you happen to be in a small town in the countryside in sausage territory (like Heidenheim, unfortunately), then going to an Italian restaurant and asking for Spaghetti with Tomato sauce or going to a Chinese restaurants are good options. Or asking for a salad in a German restaurant (only vegetables! No meat! No eggs! No cheese! Hold the dressing, only oil and vinegar!)

What you generally will not get, unless you are in a 5-star hotel in a major city (and even then most often not), is a vegan breakfast in your hotel restaurant. The solution to this is to go to a "Reformhaus" (health food shop), these are specialized shops that normally have soymilk and a lot of vegan sandwich spreads, and often vegan sausages and vegan cheese. I never leave without stocking up on these items before going on a business trip in Germany. Soymilk you can actually get in most supermarkets, and of course also fresh produce, peanut butter or similar.

Other than that, simply search on www.happycow.net, as you would do it in most other countries you go to.
I personally find that the happycow app is very helpful on my mobile phone.