Many regret not having to travel to Munich or Stuttgart for the Christmas marts and a taste where the traditions of the season originated.However there is a town stateside that can give you a taste of Deutchland, complete with lederhosen and comfort food.
The town is Frankenmuth in Michigan's Lower Peninsula (think the thumb part of the mitten shaped peninsula) is the town where the buildings are built in the Bavarian style and German food abounds. Sara Bonisteel, a regular contributor to the New York Times Food section wrote this interesting article about two restaurants in this charming town.They are the Bavarian Inn and Zehnder's of Frankenmuth which literally face each other on the same street. Nearly thirty thousand visitors are expected this weekend. However they also see the Glockenspeil Tower and the post office has larger than life Hummel cut outs gracing its' front. Yet the restaurants are really the stars. There are some differences. Zehnder's looks like Mount Vernon while The Bavarian Inn has a Sound Of Music Vibe. Zehnder's carries the Mt. Vernon feel even further by having servers dress as Colonial servants, with women in mob caps and aprons and men in knickers and banded collar shirts. The Bavarian Inn has what else, waters and waitresses in leiderhosen and dirndls.
What about the food. Both have an all you can eat menu.They also have chicken noodle soup and end with stollen slices the size of sliced bread ones. Soft serve iced cream end your meal with Zehnder's topping theirs with a translucent plastic animals. The restaurants also share such German classics as weiner schnitzel and sides of red cabbage. It's really no surprise that the menus are relatively similar.Two branches of the family own the eateries. The Zehnder's bought the former Fischer's Hotel in 1959 and built an addition with an architect who only agreed to the project if he could restyle the building in the German style. Tiny Zehnder , persuaded the town to remodel the entire town as a Bavarian village.The 1980's saw the family split. Dorothy Zehnder's family now runs the Baviarian Inn and a shopping center while Al Zehnder ,and his sisters Martha and Susan run Zehnder's and also a golf course. Both places have adjoining hotels and waterparks. They descend from Johann Stephan Zahnder who more or less shared the land with the Saginaw Chippewa tribe in 1819.
If you're in the area visit both Zehnder's and The Bavarian Inn. enjoy an old fashioned family style meal finished with soft serve ice cream and a treat. It's a fun vacation,f ull of German food and merriment
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