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Restaurants in the Black Forest range from award-winning dining rooms to simple country inns. Old Kachelöfen (tile stoves) are still in use in many area restaurants; try to sit near one if it's cold outside.
Chef Florian Stolte creates beautiful dishes using international ingredients with an Asian twist in this one-Michelin star restaurant in the Traube Tonbach hotel. You won’t often find creative options such as Faroe salmon with miso and myoga (Japanese ginger) and lobster with cauliflower and ponzu in these parts of Germany (vegetarian options are also available), all served up in an informal atmosphere and paired with inspired wines or non-alcoholic choices.
Inside the Schwarzwälder Hof, you can watch the young, enthusiastic staff through a large window into the kitchen as they prepare regularly changing seven- to nine-course menus using regional ingredients such as salmon, trout, and venison; the chefs also take turns serving the dishes. If you prefer to order á la carte, come for Wednesday or Thursday dinner or Saturday lunch—and bring your kids any time, as they’ll happily prepare a reduced set of dishes suited to younger tastes when advised in advance.
This inviting, albeit spectacularly expensive French restaurant, whose owners are from Alsace, emphasizes elegant, imaginative dining in a modern setting with floor-to-ceiling windows and an expansive courtyard, perfect for alfresco dining in summer. Dishes combine luxurious ingredients such as scallops, lobster, pigeon, and truffles with richly flavored sauces featuring red wine, bone marrow, orange, or juniper.
Celebrated Michelin-starred chef Martin Fauster, formerly of Munich’s Restaurant Königshof, shows off his prowess with modern German cuisine at this charming restaurant in Freiburg’s Altstadt. Choose from a five- or six-course tasting menu or order á la carte, with such dishes as yellowtail with mussels, corn, and curry or pigeon with mole and pumpkin.
Fresh fish and wild game are the specialties at this elegant yet homey restaurant around 2 km (1½ miles) south of the Old Town in Günterstal. Interesting dishes include rabbit in hazelnut sauce with baby vegetables, as well as salmon in saffron foam with a Riesling risotto.
This trendy lounge with an eclectic menu focusing on seafood—with a few Asian touches, such as Thai curry soup, as well as German and more international dishes—has become a beloved institution thanks to its oversized patio. Although the food is noteworthy, this is really a place to see and be seen.
About a five-minute drive from the Franz Keller winery (and owned by the same family) this charming Michelin-starred restaurant and hotel serves up a mix of luxe international ingredients (such as Canadian lobster) and more local fish, meat, and veggie choices. Try the five-course set menus with wine pairings or the signature truffled chicken for two to four people—just come with a healthy appetite as the portions are substantial.
The name refers to a highly sophisticated brewing term describing the means by which the brewmaster samples the fermenting product. That's a good description of the atmosphere here, too: a brewery with service that takes its time to prepare burgers, steaks, and other heavy dishes that wash down well with beer.
