Confession of a Toastmaster. Vladimir Shatakishvili

delicacies in it, but those, who like to eat well, will not be disappointed. The portion sizes here are big. As for the dishes, then the Germans have borrowed a lot from the Italians. Bavaria is not far away from Italy.

      Hungry guests in Munich will be offered deep-fried bacon chops, roast pork knuckle, and potato salad with «klopse» meatballs.

      Certainly, there are sausages of many varieties, including grilled sausages in spicy curry sauce. Roast pork with the garnish of sauerkraut, sausages, and pretzels are rightly considered traditional food.

      Fans of raw food will be able to appreciate «hakepeter», which is a raw minced meat with salt, pepper and spices, flavoured with egg.

      The Bavarians do not forget about the vegetables that are usually boiled and consumed as a garnish. Here one can find different varieties of cabbage, green beans, carrots, and beets.

      Sandwiches are also popular in Germany. And they contain not only butter, cheese, and sausage, but also a variety of products – special sandwich masses, fish, and other things.

      As a snack people here choose the unchanged sausage, vegetable and meat salads, and fish. The ordinary fish snacks include sprats, sardines, herring in various sauces, and fish salads.

      The first dishes include broths and soups. For example, a thick soup with boiled peas, a noodle soup, and broths with egg, rice or dumplings. Chicken or game is often the basis of the soup.

      Talking about Germany, it is impossible not to mention the local beer, especially in Bavaria. The most popular are the bright varieties of this beverage such as Augustiner-Bräu, Löwenbräu, Paulaner and Spaten, Hacker-Pschorr and Hofbrau.

      Well, the drinking of beer is rarely complete without rosy Nuremberg sausages and roast pork, served with potato dumplings.

Restaurants

      To dine in the restaurant of Munich will be cheaper than in other German lands. And it would be strange if such food lovers, as the Bavarians, would not have their unique places, which were the objects of pride.

      Aloia Dallmayr (Dienerstrasse 14)

      The eponymous restaurant is located on the second floor of this world famous and extremely expensive shop of delicatessen. Visitors will be offered a lot of the most exotic dishes from different corners of the Earth. This restaurant, located in the heart of Munich, is famous for its seafood cuisine, particularly dishes from the caviar.

      Andecher am Dom (Wienstrasse 7a)

      This establishment, located in the old town, offers beautiful views of the cathedral.

      During the contemplation of scenic views, one can enjoy a variety of meat dishes.

      Frauenteestube (Dreimuhlenstrasse 1)

      The tea house with this name is located in the southern district of Munich at the intersection with Isarstrasse. Men, who decide to drink some coffee here, will be somewhat puzzled at the entrance sign: «Women Only!». For the rest of mankind, the café is open five days a week, except Wednesday and Saturday.

      Pubs

      Those, who would like to drink beer in Munich, will have a wide choice of pubs. From small and cozy taverns – «kneipe», to entire complexes in the open air – beer gardens «biergarten».

      Bavarian brewers often have their own brand places with an amazing variety of beers. The Germans themselves prefer not to stay in one place, and after a glass of beer they go to the another one.

      Augustiner Bierhalle (Neuhauser Strasse 27)

      Pub for those, who like to drink under the old German ambiance.

      Mathaser Bierstasdt (Zweigstrasse 5)

      The place is open by Lowenbrau brewery. It is the traditional gathering place of the governing office personnel.

      Biergarten

      Among the beer gardens of Munich, one should visit Chinesischer Turm, Hirschau and Biergarten, located on the territory of the English Garden. The garden itself is on the bank of lake Kleinhesseloher See.

      In mid-November 2006, we went to Munich via Thessaloniki. I have already mentioned that Aleksandr Petrovich Sakhtaridi is directly related to the charter flight Mineralnye Vody – Thessaloniki – Mineralnye Vody. When we needed to visit the capital of Bavaria, we decided to fly via Greece, where we were joined by his nephew Manolis and another solid businessman, who did not know Russian, but spoke native Greek and English. I think that it is not necessary to describe my first impressions from visiting the ancient country – Greece. The reception was stunning. So, I will try to devote to this beautiful, wonderful corner of our planet a separate story, especially for I have never visited any other foreign city 8 times…

      Munich greeted us with a beautiful autumn weather, It was Sunny and warm. In Thessaloniki, however, people were still swimming in the sea. At the airport, we were joined by Aleksandr Ivanovich Frizin, a former civil aviation pilot, who was now living in Germany. Thanks to his knowledge of German, we picked up a car with the navigator at the airport (rental service there is at the highest level), and our trip was quite comfortable. Aleksandr, though he had been living long enough in Germany, visited Munich for the first time, having arrived there by plane. In short, the entire burden of carrying out the cultural program and negotiations with bankers, scheduled for the next day, fell on me, because it was already my third visit to Munich. Having settled in a great Kempinski Hotel, we went to the famous beer hall Hofbräuhaus. It was a day when we could not find a spare seat, only with the help of the head waiter, after some time, we were seated in a room, unfamiliar to me yet. When a handsome young waiter began to take our order, he heard the Greek language, as Manolis and the businessman were speaking their native language. It turned out that the waiter was also of Greek origin and was living in Germany for a long time. «The language barrier» was overcome easily. We made all the orders in Greek, having studied the menu in Russian first. We were not thinking about money much as everyone wanted, besides great beer, to try various German goodies. We ordered three portions of every dish to allow everybody try something interesting. The Germans have very large portions. If each of you orders baked knuckle, then you will not be able to eat anything else. I have learned it well during the previous visits. The waiter tried very hard to please his countrymen, brought more and more new portions of previously unknown dishes. Next to our table, there were two Italians, who were also making big orders and even were nagging at something. The poor guy tried very hard to please everyone, because his income depended on his skills and abilities. Each of us, except the driver, drank two-liter mugs of HB Original. Lunch was a success, however, with a little bitterness. The thing was that the Italians, sitting at the next table, nagging and looking solid, left without paying 150 euros to our waiter. The guy almost cried, as they drove him all day with their nagging and then quietly disappeared. I was proud of my friend, who, leaving the cozy, comfortable in every sense, place, felt sorry for the frustrated waiter and asked to include the sum, stolen by unscrupulous visitors, to our bill. Bravo, Alexander Petrovich!!!

      Then there were the tour around the city and even an unplanned meeting with the receiving party. By evening, we got hungry and, on the advice of some locals, went to the nearby restaurant called Augustiner-Keller. It is a large old building, with hunting trophies in the halls as exhibits and the national Bavarian orchestra. This time, we «wised up» and decided not to order three or five portions, as we wanted to try everything. We ordered one or two portions, but there were so many dishes… Beer in this restaurant was also excellent. We did not refuse from a suckling-pig, roasted to special Bavarian recipes in the oven, chickens, fried according to some rules, and several varieties of fish. Honestly, who could refuse from trying those dishes?

      In early May of 2007, I was once again in Munich. The route was the same: Mineralnye Vody – Thessaloniki – Munich – Thessaloniki – Mineralnye Vody. The fact was that it was much easier to get a Schengen visa from the Greeks than from the picky Germans. This time, we were flying together. My traveling companion and old friend – Said Magomedovich Saidov – a respected in Dagestan person, the Minister of Transport of the Republic. He also had a business project to attract foreign investments into the economy of the region. My friend really wanted to see