Hot Dish Review

This restaurant is an old standby in Helen. I’ve eaten there dozens of times….with my Mom, with friends, take-out. Only today did I realize it is not Old Bavarian Inn, but rather Old Bavaria Inn. Robert, the latest owner, has maintained the highest standards of food quality. I think it’s the best German restaurant in Helen proper!

ST and I drove up to my parents’ place in Helen last weekend to continue his birthday celebration. We dined at Old Bavaria Inn Saturday night on authentic German fare. It had been a while since I had ribchen (smoked pork chops) und sauerkraut. I always loved it when my Mom made it when I was a kid.

I’ve often ordered the spaetzle with cream sauce and ham with a bratwurst for lunch. On this visit I couldn’t pass up this super fatty spaetzle appetizer. Rich, rich, rich.

Old Bavaria Inn offers all of your German favorites from Weiner schnitzel to sauerbraten. I opted for the schlachtplatte (meat plate)…..a selection of bratwurst, knockwurst, and ribchen served with red cabbage, sauerkraut and potato salad. ST ordered the rinder rouladen, thin beef filets rolled and stuffed with pickled veggies and served with red cabbage and spaetzle. Both entrees should come with a side of Gas X too!

The least authentic thing they serve is the potato salad. Not the traditional German style that is served warm, their version is decidedly American made with red skin-on potatoes and served chilled.

We washed it down with lots of beer….Warsteiner, Erdinger, Paulaner, anything that ended in -er.

Robert brought out a complimentary slice of apple strudel for ST’s birthday. They were out of the amazing hazelnut torte that me and my Mom always order….it is not to be missed!

We were stuffed! It was nice to be in Helen again.

Once again, the signs for hot boiled peanuts on the way to Helen proved to be too tempting to pass by. ST and I stopped at my favorite stand on the way Saturday.

Dale has lots of signs. Coming from both directions, headed to or from GA400, it is hard to miss his hot boiled peanut stand. With two pots bubbling away, one regular, one cajun, we pulled over for a snack.

ST wanted the cajun. Good idea. Dale scoops them up in a giant styrofoam cup and provides a paper sack for the shells. Inside the sack are a couple of tiny Bible scripture booklets….classic. Eating them while driving (the peanuts, not the scripture booklets), however, proved to be quite challenging. ST said my driving became rather ‘iratic’. Whatever. No one died, that’s all that matters.

I wish I had taken a photo of his cat, a beautiful fluffy black boy that his grand-daughter named Hello Kitty Penny Dale….I swear, it’s true.

The cajun peanuts were delicious….just a hint of peppery spice. We finished them off when we arrived at my parents’ place in Helen, with a nice, cold Miller Lite. An appropriate start for the weekend!

I know, Oktoberfest is almost over now, but Helen, Georgia’s very own faux Bavarian village, is still worth a visit through November. Fall folliage in the north Georgia mountains is beautiful on a crisp Fall day and almost makes one forget that Summer is over and the dreaded Winter is coming.

Helen is fun any time of year. The only difference, in fact, is the Festhalle that is open during Oktoberfest which officially starts mid-September and runs through the end of October. The Festhalle is just that, a “party hall” with communal picnic tables, wurst and kraut, pitchers of beer, and lots of drunk folks, some wearing lederhosen, and some rowdy ones wearing Bulldawgs T-shirts. Yes, Helen is what you get when you cross a redneck with a German, then add beer. Charming.

I’ve visited several times recently as my family is there on weekends and it’s a quick and pleasant drive from Atlanta. ST met me there and we had lunch with my Mom at Hofer’s. I apologize for the semi-devoured state of the brats, sauerkraut, pretzel knodel, and goulash in the photo, forgot to get the camera out before the forks were flying. A couple of Warsteiners washed it all down.

Hofer’s is one of the oldest German bakeries in the south, opened by Horst and Gerda Hofer in the late ’50’s. Now owned by son Ralph, the bakery makes the most authentic German kuchen, pastries, and cakes, although never as good as my own Omi’s! I think the trick is in the ingredients so the real thing just can’t be duplicated here in the states.

As luck would have it, they had plum cake, or Zwetschen kuchen, last weekend. My recent experiment with puff pastry (see post Project Puff Pastry) was a take on this German cake, traditionally made on yeast dough. Their version’s dough was too thick, but the flavor was good, with sugar sprinkled on top and real whipped cream.

ST and I proceeded to The Troll Tavern. No photos here, but it is a picturesque locale down by the river. The best time to visit is during the summer when you can watch the current carry hundreds of chubby kids and their folks in colorful tubes down the river. The food used to be better. The beer, however, is always good.

Next stop was the Festhalle. Admission is free on Sundays, so we grabbed a pitcher and took a seat outdoors. It was a beautiful day, I was with a gorgeous man, and the oompah band was playing silly German tunes. Prost!

Walking back through the town on Main Street we ended up at The Black Dog for a final beer and watched the start of the Falcons game. In the mood for a stout, the darkest beer they offered was a doppelbock called Celebrator. It had a sweet aftertaste that I didn’t care for….should’ve stuck with the pilsners.

Our Oktoberfest experience was awesome! As much as I love brats, kraut, spaetzle, schweinebraten, and such, I visit Helen so often that my palette craves something else….anything else. There are numerous options, most of them bar food, one Mexican restaurant, a pizza joint, Paul’s steakhouse on the river. But there is one restaurant that is above the rest in a culinary sense and that is Nacoochee Grill. It deserves its own post so check it out tomorrow!

Helen, Georgia is a quirky combo of faux Bavarian village and north Georgia white trash.  Cluttered with bikers, bratwurst, and honky tonks it’s hardly the kind of place one expects fine cuisine.  For years now, Nacoochee Grill has been the lone star in a sea of mediocre dining options in Helen.  There are a couple of decent German restaurants but most cater to visitors that think funnel cakes are fancy.  The menu features finer things like seared duck breast or grilled mahi mahi with mango salsa.  There are plenty of Southern inspired dishes too, especially the collards and sweet potatoes on the side paired with an entree such as the cornmeal dusted trout.

Having recently changed ownership, the menu has remained true to its original vision.  However, on my visit last weekend they certainly kicked it up a notch.  After tubing down the river and drinking a six-pack of Miller Lite the day before, I was ready for something a bit more refined.  Imagine my surprise when one of the appetizer specials was seared foie gras!  I tried to resist but to no avail.  I made it my entree with a sweet potato and side salad with their amazing honey balsamic dressing, one of my favorites anywhere. 

The foie gras was served on a baby biscuit round with toasted pecan and roasted apple chutney and a red wine syrup underneath.  A bit cloying, it could have used one acid element, but the foie gras was perfectly seared and delicious, and priced crazy low by Atlanta standards at just $13.

What could top foie gras in Helen?  How about some hot boiled peanuts!  I’d been craving them for months and finally found a vendor open on my way home.  Headed towards GA400 there were signs warning of an impending ‘Peanut Crossing’.  I was excited to see the pots still boiling and stopped for a big styrofoam cup to go.  Still hot when I got home, they were great with a couple of Oatmeal Stockyard Stouts from Trader Joe’s.