Witzenhausen: Organic restaurants, cafes and beergardens
What about a stroll to the banks of the Werra river, a chat with a glass in your hand, a coffee break with gorgeous cake, ice-cream or a savoury snack? Chez Nadine is a relaxed camp consisting of two wooden site waggons serving as kitchen and coffee/bar and two large awnings providing shadow and rain protection for beer benches and tables. A popular and relaxed meeting spot where it's easy to mix with locals while having organic food and drinks – try the local organic beer with a perfectly thin Flammkuchen (the Alsatian alternative to pizza) available both, as vegetarian, vegan and omnivore versions.
However, the beautiful open-air cafe is in danger: The federal state of Hesse has been planning a new massive concrete bridge for goods trailers here, and although this bridge will destroy the waterside lawn and increase noise and exhaust pollution for the citizens living in this touristic town local authorities do not object as alternative, sustainable traffic solutions would have to be paid for by the municipality itself. Local climate and environmental organisations are lobbying for the re-activation of a former train line for the goods transport. Let's hope for the best.
Not only on bad weather days or during the cold season there's a welcoming alternative, the art cafe Bistro Ringelnatz in the inner city, which also sports outdoor seating in a garden in the backyard. All food and drinks are organic, often with biodynamic ingredients grown in the vicinity. During the semester break in summer opening hours are quite restricted, but my guess is that the place is going to open on evenings when the students of the Department of Ecological Agricultural Sciences are back in town, together with concerts readings and exhibitions. The department is the reason for a high density of organic farms and market gardens in the region which provide produce for the Ringelnatz kitchen. This is also the reason why the changing hearty vegetable soups come at an unbeatable low price: Already the small serving is sufficient provided you do not come very hungry.
The cafe's name is taken after German painter-author Joachim Ringelnatz famous for his intelligent satirical nonsense poetry, and it is said that the patron is occationally reciting poems for his guests. If he isn't you may get a poem from the poetry generator in the corner (provided you have a 50 cents coin at hand).
For an organic soft or coffee drink you may also visit Haases Garten-Café, a beautiful garden cafe in the backyard of the Haase household equipment and cocooning shop. The cafe is open when you find a stand-up display on the walkway in front. To enter the cafe you have to pass through the shop. Unfortunately the home-made cake isn't necessarily made from organic ingredients.
If you are lucky enough to arrive during the opening hours of the Röstwerk coffee roasters' use the chance to have a freshly roasted organic coffee. As I had no such luck I wasn't able to ask about the non-certified coffee and the milk.
With its strong focus on regional and organic produce Schinkels Brauhaus, the beergarden of the local organically certified brewery, is the perfect place for beer, meat and burger lovers with a conscience. Organic poultry from Frischgeflügel Roth, beef from the Gut Fahrenbach's cattle fed on Schinkels' draff, cheese, milk (used in the ice-cream of the Griesel dairy farm), and nonetheless the beer made with local organic barley are all produced within a 50 kilometres radius. Unfortunately the vegetarian dishes (with a notable exception of the asparges from the Klenke farm in Bad Sooden-Allendorf during the season) do not have organic main components. As most breweries nowadays they also make lemonades dubbed "WIZ" which are organically certified. There's indoor seating, too, important during the cold season.
More to try
At a significant distance from the town the village of Berlepsch-Ellerode also belongs to Witzenhausen. Here you'll find the Cafe Hofgarten Gut Hübenthal, an organic farm cafe and probably also shop as the farm is the homebase of the organic delivery service Grüner Bote.
2024-10-02 16:00:00 [Witzenhausen, Werratalradweg, organic, coffee, lunch, cafe, restaurants, beergarden, burgers] [direct link · table of contents]
