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The most famous of Leipzig's restaurants is actually two restaurants: one that's upscale, international, and gourmet (down the stairs to the right) and a rowdy beer cellar (to the left) specializing in hearty Saxon fare, mostly roasted meat dishes. Goethe immortalized one of the vaulted historic rooms in his Faust, and Bach was a regular here because of the location halfway between the Thomaskirche and the Nikolaikirche.
Grimmaische Str. 2–4, Leipzig, Saxony, D–04109, Germany
Known For
- One of the oldest restaurants on the continent
- Tasting menu worth the splurge
- Extensive wine list
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon., Reservations essential
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A fireplace, charming rooms, an indoor balcony, and a lovely garden along with modern German "gastronomic" cuisine served by friendly waiters add up to a top-notch choice in town. Start with a tangy parsley and arugula soup followed by baked salmon or pork filet with a thyme-sherry sauce. Desserts run the gamut from sinful chocolate torte to fresh fruit sorbets topped with wild strawberries. A good choice of wines by the glass is available for non-beer drinkers.
Katharinenstraße 4, Torgau, Saxony, 04860, Germany
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This three-in-one inn, brewery, and restaurant has been serving traditional German food for 100 years and is still going strong. Its rustic atmosphere and servers in traditional garb put diners in the mood for a menu of hearty classics: crisp braised pork leg, marinated chicken with steamed vegetables, beef roulades filled with mustard and bacon, or a big chef's salad served in the shady beer garden or handsome dining room. The restaurant offers a program of themed evenings with music, entertainment, and an accompanying menu on special nights throughout the year.
Werdau Nr. 12, Torgau, Saxony, 04860, Germany
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. Jan–Mar., Reservations essential
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Bartel's riffs on traditional German fare with a contemporary twist, meaning plenty of lighter choices like chef's salad with plenty of crisp fresh veggies, asparagus soup, and whole local trout, along with the tried-and-true meat-based favorites: roast leg of lamb, veal with horseradish and boiled potatoes, scalloped pork, and Argentinian rump steak. The bright, attractive dining room is a welcome departure from rustic beamed ceilings and the usual gasthaus atmosphere.
Marktplatz 10, Bad Schandau, Saxony, 01814, Germany
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Tues., Reservations essential
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The English-language menu at this restaurant explains not only the cuisine but the history of Leipzig. Waitresses wearing traditional Trachten dresses may serve some of the finest Leipzig regional cuisine, but the restaurant itself is quite modern. With a prominent location on the Markt, the restaurant is popular with locals, especially for the incredible breakfast buffet. Barthels has managed to elevate the local Leipziger Allerlei (vegetables and crayfish in beef bouillon) to an art form by proudly insisting on local and sustainable produce. Enjoy a meal here with a fresh Bauer Gose.
Hainstr. 1, Leipzig, Saxony, D–04109, Germany
Known For
- Massive breakfast buffet
- Leipziger Allerlei (vegetables and crayfish in beef bouillon)
- Serves Bauer Gose beer
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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If the name didn't clue you in, the checkerboard floor, effigy of Napoleon, and menu of French bistro classics will—this is French bistro dining à la gay Paree. For starters, frog legs sautéed in garlic and wine, escargots in buttery parsley sauce, and baked goat cheese are almost a meal themselves. Followed by dishes like coq au vin, steak-frites, medallions of pork with blue cheese and sautéed grapes, you'll be lucky to have room for that frothy Grand Marnier soufflé or cheese plate for dessert.
Breiter Weg 202, Magdeburg, Saxony-Anhalt, 39104, Germany
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Reservations essential
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This comfortable restaurant serves hearty Thuringian specialties made from local ingredients under medieval vaulted ceilings; the outdoor tables are the perfect place to recharge after exploring the castle.
Am Markt 10, Eisenach, Thuringia, 99817, Germany
Known For
- Hearty Thuringian cuisine
- Comfortable vaulted halls
- Large portions
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Part of the centuries-old complex of buildings ringing the town castle, this ancient and popular hostelry is a great place to enjoy the view from the large dining room and tree-shaded terrace.
Dompl. 9, Meissen, Saxony, D–01662, Germany
Known For
- Hearty German cuisine
- Fine wines
- Sensational view of the Elbe Valley
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This somewhat spartan restaurant in the middle of Weimar serves traditional Thuringian cuisine with a healthier emphasis on greens and other regionally produced goods. With several vegetarian options, Erbenhof is a welcome break from the heavy food of the region.
Brauhausg. 10, Weimar, Thuringia, 99423, Germany
Known For
- Second-best dumplings in Weimar
- Seasonal game, especially rabbit
- Solid evolving Thuringian menu and friendly staff
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch
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Hidden on the far southeast edge of the city center, the Bayrischer Bahnhof was the terminus of the first rail link between Saxony and Bavaria. The brewery here is at the heart of a cultural renaissance and is the modern birthplace of Gose brewing in Leipzig. The restaurant is well worth a visit for its solid Saxon and German cuisine. The new station on the S-bahn makes it easier than ever to discover the glories of Gose.
Bayrischer Pl. 1, Leipzig, Saxony, D–04103, Germany
Known For
- Leipzig's best Gose beer
- Many other beer-inspired dishes
- Dishes cooked in a Römertopf (a terra-cotta baking dish that originated with the ancient Romans)
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Serious and uncomplicated Thuringian regional cuisine, including the best dumplings in Erfurt, is served in this simple restaurant. All of the dishes (and the secret dumpling recipe) come from Grandma Käthe's cookbook, which relies heavily on seasonal and regional ingredients.
Michaelisstr. 3--4, Erfurt, Thuringia, 99084, Germany
Known For
- Perfect beef rolls with dumplings and cabbage
- Not touristy, despite location in the city center
- Friendly staff who are happy to convince you of the superiority of Thuringian cuisine
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Magdeburg's bastion of haute cuisine, this gastronomic restaurant is the city's top choice for elegant dining. The young chef, a part of the esteemed Jeunes Restaurateurs group, scrupulously sources local meat and produce to create dishes with imagination and flair: marinated pork with mango and cranberries, cordon bleu of wild boar with quince and roasted bacon, or whole roasted trout with mixed baby vegetables and celery root purée. Desserts are light and fruit-focused, and the excellent cheese plate is hard to pass up. You'll want to sample the well-chosen wine list covering Europe and the best of Germany.
An der Halberstädter Chaussee 1, Magdeburg, Saxony-Anhalt, 39116, Germany
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon., Reservations essential
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Brewing Braunbier (a hoppy, top-fermented beer) has been a Quedlinburg tradition for several centuries, and this brewpub offers both locally made beer and food to go with it. The Lüdde brewery traces its history to 1807, when Braunbier breweries dotted the Harz Mountains, and it was the last surviving brewery when it closed its doors in 1966, reopening after German reunification. It remains the only Braunbier brewery in Quedlinburg.
Carl-Ritter-Str. 1, Quedlinburg, Saxony-Anhalt, D–06484, Germany
Known For
- Brewing the Braunbier called Pubarschknall
- Incredible beer-based game dishes
- Pleasant beer garden
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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Tucked away in a yellow wooden-beam house, this historic restaurant has been painstakingly maintained by the Richter family since 1873. The dining room is adorned with rare antiques, documents, and medieval weapons, as well as copper and tin tableware. The terrace is the perfect place to watch Meissen pass by.
An der Frauenkirche 12, Meissen, Saxony, D–01662, Germany
Known For
- Exquisite Saxon-German menu
- Personally produced white wines
- Wild game
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. No dinner Sun.
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One of the liveliest restaurants in town re-creates an 18th-century beer cellar in the basement of the Taschenberg Palace. The furniture and porcelain are as rustic as the food is traditional.
Taschenberg 3, Dresden, Saxony, D-01067, Germany
Known For
- Saxon Gesindeessen (pan-fried rye bread with mustard, slices of pork, and mushrooms, baked with cheese)
- Traditional old-Saxony fare
- Bread bakery at the entrance
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You can be sure that nary a toxin or additive will pass your lips at this organic outpost set in a handsome house on the banks of the Elbe, where diners can stroll by the gardens that provided their salads and veggies or dine on the lawn and watch the boats glide by. Fresh, seasonal, no GMOs, and humane treatment are a few of the exacting standards for your meal; the others are great taste, plentiful portions, and a pleasing presentation for dishes like Ayervedic tabbouleh with grilled veggies and pear-chutney chili, baked oyster mushrooms and lime-cucumber-avocado salad, cod fillet with a butter parmesan crust, or sea bream risotto.
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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One of Germany's oldest restaurants and pubs (dating back to 1454) served its hearty Thuringian and Saxon fare to Martin Luther and the like—who certainly had more than a mere pint of the beers on tap. The menu in the reconstructed, cavernous, and always buzzing dining hall doesn't exactly offer gourmet cuisine, but rather an impressively enormous variety of game, fish, and Bratwurst dishes.
Burgstr. 19, Leipzig, Saxony, D–04109, Germany
Known For
- Traditional Thuringian cuisine
- Thuringian sausages served with either sauerkraut and boiled potatoes or onions and mashed potatoes
- Sauerbraten (sour roast beef)
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The Watzke microbrewery operates two brewhouses with the same beer and hearty menu in the city center. The location directly across from the Goldene Reiter statue of Augustus the Strong is the more pelasant for outdoor dining and people watching. The other location is at Dr.-Külz-Ring 9.
Hauptstr. 11, Dresden, Saxony, D–01097, Germany
Known For
- Watzke beer
- Daily specials, like pork knuckle
- Popular with locals and beer enthusiasts
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The name of Bautzen's best Sorbian restaurant means "pantry." Very popular on Sorb holidays, Wjelbik uses exclusively regional produce. The restaurant is in a 600-year-old building near the cathedral.
Kornstr. 7, Bautzen, Saxony, D–02625, Germany
Known For
- Historic setting
- Sorbisches Hochzeitsmenu (traditional Sorb wedding meal of roast beef with horseradish sauce)
- Seasonal specialties such as lamb and white asparagus
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The "tunnel" refers to the barrel-ceiling ground-floor restaurant, where foaming glasses of excellent Gose beer are served with a smile. The friendly staff will also help you decipher the Old Saxon descriptions of the menu's traditional dishes. Upstairs there's a larger wine restaurant with an open fireplace.
Barfussgässchen 9, Leipzig, Saxony, D–04109, Germany
Known For
- The best pan-seared Rinderrouladen (a filled beef roll) in the city
- Cozy upper-level wine restaurant
- Traditional Saxon cuisine
