Summary
As it turns out, spending the morning exploring the gorgeous Ludwigsburg Palace works up quite the appetite, which took me by surprise. One moment, I was perfectly fine, and in the next, those hunger pangs hit with surprising ferocity.
With that, we headed over to the gallery in Schlossplatz, although clearly not for the art—as beautiful as it sounded.
At the top of the gallery is the Cube Restaurant (the website is in German, so using Google Translate might help). It’s one of those places that not only offers delicious food but also provides a stunning view of the city, making it one of the best places to visit in Stuttgart!
We had planned to participate in a class later that afternoon, making something that’s a key part of the city’s heritage. However, after spending more time at Ludwigsburg Palace than we originally anticipated, lunch turned out to be a relatively short affair!
I opted for the beef and potato gratin, while Lloyd, who was as hungry as I was, selected a soup. His surprise when the soup arrived as a starter added a bit of humor to our meal. I couldn’t help but laugh, knowing it wasn’t enough to satisfy the hunger we both brought into the restaurant. We didn’t have enough time to order anything else, or we would miss our next appointment. (After laughing, I did—reluctantly—offer him some of mine too).
After lunch, we quickly made our way over to the Stuttgart Cooking School (Kochschule Stuttgart – another German website, so using Google Translate might also be helpful if your German isn’t up to scratch 😀). We were somewhat distracted by the Christmas market and the sights along the way.
Fortunately, the German dish we were going to make that afternoon was Maultaschen, a traditional German specialty from the area. Essentially, it is a delightful parcel made of meat, herbs, and spices, wrapped in pasta, and it tastes absolutely delicious (when prepared correctly, of course).
To say that Lloyd was pleased about this was an understatement. The food at Cube Restaurant was truly impressive, and it was unfortunate we didn’t leave enough time to enjoy it fully (I mean, I was fine—I had a decent amount to eat, but Lloyd drew the short straw with his choice).
Interestingly, Maultaschen originated during Easter when people often gave up meat for Lent. Some clever German monks devised a way to circumvent this by enclosing meals in pasta parcels, which technically counted as eating pasta, not meat, and thus this Swabian delicacy was born.
The preparation of Maultaschen involves mixing ground meats, sausage meats, eggs, herbs, and some old bread soaked in water, forming a fragrant paste.
You then stretch out your pasta dough and wrap the meat mixture into it in various forms (there are lots of different ways to do this).
After rolling everything up, you boil it for a few minutes (don’t worry, the eggs keep the mix inside from falling apart by binding everything together), and voilà! Maultaschen for everyone!
Over the course of the next few days, I tasted a lot of Maultaschen (I made it my mission to try as many as I could), and none quite measured up to the one we made right there.
At first, I thought it might just be the freshness of it all (since it was made right then and there, using fresh ingredients for the most part). However, I believe the skill of the chef played a significant role as well; it was fragrant, brilliantly spiced, and much lighter and tastier than I had expected (I anticipated it to be ‘heavy’ akin to a dumpling, but it really wasn’t).
The cooking school also features a restaurant and a hotel. Rather than face the cold, we decided to relax for a while with a cold beer and warm tea (no prizes for guessing who had which drink 😄) before heading out to explore the markets.
Back in town, the city started to illuminate as nighttime descended and crowds began flocking to the Christmas markets…
A must-visit spot is the Old Palace, as the lights here enhance the already impressive architecture, making it even more beautiful.
The food throughout our journey and evening in Stuttgart exceeded expectations. We hadn’t done much research regarding dining options prior, making this a delightful surprise. Being already at the hotel provided the perfect opportunity to pop open a bottle of local red wine (produced just a few miles away from here) and simply unwind!
As the next day approached, we’d be finishing our time in the city, and I am eager to share the beauty we discovered during our travels.
