PACE 8B
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 2012
Exploring
Fredericksburg,
Texas
GERMAN BAKERIES IN DOWNTOWN
Old German Bakery and Restaurant and Fredericksburg Bakery in the downtown area both offer
wonderful pastries. A traditional German kolache and pastry from Old German Bakery and German
pretzels from Fredericksburg Bakery are shown. Photos by Angela Gary
German culture with a Southern twist found in Texas Hill Country
BY ANGELA GARY
A charming Southern town filled with German culture with a Texas
twist makes a great vacation destination for North Georgians look
ing for a fun get-away. Located a one-hour drive from San Antonio,
Fredericksburg, is in the heart of Texas Hill Country with its scenic beauty
and rolling countryside.
EARLY GERMAN TOWN HOME
The architecture in the downtown area is wonderful, with many “Sunday houses.”
These were the small homes the early German settlers owned in town and where
they came on weekends after working on countryside farms during the week.
Fredericksburg is rich with
the culture of the Germans who
settled in the area and formed
the town 160 years ago. The
food, crafts, architecture, music
and history of Germany is found
throughout the town and is one of
the reasons visitors keep return
ing to explore the area.
Begin your trip with a stop at
the Fredericksburg Visitors Cen
ter, which offers lots of brochures
on area attractions, dining and
lodging, as well as friendly staff
to answer your questions and
make suggestions on how to best
explore the area.
Plan to spend some time ex
ploring the downtown area where
you will find more than 150 spe
cialty shops and boutiques. Art
work, fashion, jewelry, antiques,
home decor and more are to be
found. The unique and individual
shops are not the same kind of
shops you find in malls across the
country. Instead,
you will find one-
of-a-kind treasures.
There are also 14
art galleries in the
downtown historic
district.
For food lovers,
Fischer & Wieser,
ChocolatandOpa's
Smoked Meats, are
great places to visit
and find special
treats to take home
to remember your
trip and share with
your friends. They
also all offer sam
ples, so it’s a fun
way to try different
things and decide
what you want to
buy.
Fischer & Wi
eser started out as
a fruit market and
now offers a vari
ety of jams, jellies,
sauces and other
specialty items, in
cluding the Origi
nal Roasted Raspberry Chipolte
Sauce, the number one specialty
condiment sold in Texas. It is
great spread on cream cheese and
served with crackers.
At Chocolat, creator of the Eu-
ropean-style liquid center choco
lates, there are so many decadent
choices it will be a challenge to
decide which ones to try. Visitors
can also see the chocolate-mak
ers at work, as well as watching a
short video on the business.
Opa’s Smoked Meats, which
has been in operation since 1947.
offers traditional German style
smoked meats, bacon and sau
sage. Lots of great choices are to
be found, including turkey jerky.
The architecture in the down
town area is wonderful with
many of the “Sunday houses” to
be found. These were the small
homes the early German settlers
owned in town where they came
on weekends after being outside
of town in the countryside work
ing their farms during the week.
Some of these homes are open
for tours, providing a glimpse at
life of the Germans in the early
days of the town.
Another great way to get a feel
for early German life in Fred
ericksburg is through a visit to
the Pioneer Museum Complex,
where a log cabin, school house
and Sunday house original to the
site are among the buildings open
for tours. A stop in the Vereins
Kirche Museum in downtown
provides some history, photos
and mementoes from the early
days of the town.
For those who love history,
be sure to visit the ‘Texas White
House,” the home of Lyndon B.
Johnson, the 36th president of
the United States, as well as the
Lyndon B. Johnson State Park
and National Historic Park. The
park features the Sauer-Beck-
mann Living History Farmstead,
a working farm that recreates
Texas pioneer life in the 1800s,
as well as nature trails and recre
ation areas.
Live entertainment in the Fred
ericksburg area includes theater
and live music venues, including
The Rockbox Theater and Fred
ericksburg Theater Company.
Check the schedules for what is
coming up.
Another fun spot for enter
tainment is located only a short
20-minute drive from Fredericks
burg, where you will find Luck-
enbach, Texas, made famous in
the Willie Nelson and Waylon
Jennings song from the 1970s.
The dance hall is a laidback area
with a large dance floor in the
front with benches and tables in
the back. The 10-acre site also in
cludes a general store.
Other stops to make while in
Fredericksburg include the amaz
ing National Museum of the
Pacific War, outdoor adventure
at Enchanted Rock and several
wineries located throughout the
hill country. Festivals are also
held year-round with something
going on most every weekend.
Some 260 special events are held
each year in Fredericksburg and
Gillespie County.
WHERE TO DINE
Lots of wonderful dining is to
be found in Fredericksburg with
chefs using local products in their
cuisine. A few restaurants that are
must-stops include:
•Fredericksburg Brewing
Company in downtown, which
has a wonderful Bratwurst sand
wich, made with Bratwurst and
sauerkraut on a toasted hoagie
smothered in Swiss cheese. The
cheddar ale soup is a wonder
ful start to your meal. It's a fun
place to stop while shopping and
checking out downtown.
•Auslander Restaurant and
Biergarten has some wonderful
German cuisine. The Texaschnit-
zel is a great choice. It's a local
twist on an old world favorite—
schnitzel covered with ranchero
sauce, Monterey cheese, sour
cream and guacamole. The pota
to pancake and sauerkraut make
great side dishes. For dessert, the
buttermilk pie is a simply amaz
ing sweet treat.
•Farm Haus Bistro at the Fred
ericksburg Herb Farm offers fine
dining in an elegant setting. A
great choice is the shrimp risotto
made with fresh herbs, white
wine, onion and parmesan cheese
and served with fresh vegetables.
For a starter, try the French onion
soup or snails in smoked tomato
butter. A nice way to finish the
meal is with a peppermint brown
ie or chocolate mousse. The
grounds include
Sunday home-style
cottages for over
night guests, a spa
and a gift shop.
•Airport Diner
at the Hanger Ho
tel is a fun spot for
a quick meal. The
warhawk burger
withonionrings and
Mexican vanilla ice
cream for dessert
made a great lunch
after a morning of
exploring Freder
icksburg. The hotel
is designed as an
exterior of a World
War II hangar from
the 1940s. An up
stairs deck faces a
small airport and
guests can watch
the planes as they
land and depart.
•August E’s at
203 East San An
tonio Street offers
nouveau Texas cui
sine. The lobster
bisque and ahi tuna made for a
delightful dinner. A full sushi bar
with fresh Hawaiian fish is also
offered. Be sure to check out the
wonderful artwork in the dining
area.
•Navajo Grill, where the chef
describes the menu as ‘Texas
food with a Mexico influence
paired with game,” The grilled
hill country quail and lamb with a
south cherry sauce are both won
derful options, with steaks also
offered. Great starters to your
meal are the herb roasted beet
salad and gulf crab cake. For des
sert, the chocolate chipotle is a
fight, tasty way to end the meal.
•Old German Bakery and
Restaurant, where owner Lutz
Henschel, who moved to Fred
ericksburg from Berlin 15 years
ago, uses old German recipes.
The German pancake is great
with apple sauce. The glass case
filled with pastries is wonderful
and you can't make a bad choice.
I tried several options and found
them all to be outstanding. The
traditional German kolaches
(sausage rolls) are really good.
The crumb cake with Bavarian
cream is also a great choice. The
business is open for breakfast and
lunch.
•Fredericksburg Bakery is
known for its sweet German
pretzels and they are a wonder
ful snack, as is the cream cheese
Danish. Open since 1917, it is the
oldest running business on main
street. The business, located in an
1889 general store building, also
includes a gift shop with lots of
fun and unique items offered. A
bed and breakfast is located up
stairs and outdoor garden dining
is offered in the back of the build
ing.
•Fredericksburg Pie Company
is a must-stop for pie lovers who
will find the most amazing array
of options with mile-high fight
Italian meringue topping. Co
conut cream, chocolate cream,
chocolate pecan, pumpkin pie,
buttermilk pie, bourbon orange
pecan.. .the fist goes on and on
and they are all a delight. The
pies have no preservatives or ad
ditives. Dining at the pie shop is
like sitting at your grandmother’s
table.
•Java Ranch Espresso Bar and
Cafe is a great choice for a quick
breakfast with the breakfast bur-
rito and coffee being a filling and
tasty way to start the day.
•Clear River has homemade
ice cream, coffee and a bakery,
as well as a gift shop with unique
and fun items offered.
WHERE TO STAY
With more than 375 bed and
breakfast establishments and
guest houses and hotels, visitors
to Fredericksburg have lots of op
tions as far as accommodations
go. The variety makes the town
a great destination for family re
unions, romantic trips and girl
friend get-aways.
The Fredericksburg Inn &
Suites is located only a short walk
from the downtown area and is
a convenient and comfortable
place to make your headquarters
while visiting. The hotel also of
fers some history as it is fronted
by the Mueller-Petmecky House,
a Texas historic landmark. A free
breakfast and beverages are of
fered daily in the house, which
was built in the mid-1800s by
Willis Wallace, who was granted
the land by the German Immigra
tion Company.
For more information on plan
ning your trip, go to www.Visit-
FredericksburgTX.com or call
1-888-997-3600.
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LOTS OF SHOPPING
The downtown Fredericksburg area has more than
150 specialty shops and boutiques. Artwork, fashion,
jewelry, antiques, home decor and more are found.
