Organic Friedrichshafen/Lake Constance

The Bodenseeradweg bicyle route around Lake Constance is arguably one of the finest (and most frequented) bicycle routes in the German-speaking part of Europe. But despite being such a tourist hotspot the region is surprisingly badly accessible by train as not even the major university town of Konstanz is serviced by frequent fast long distance connections. Bound to local and regional trains with almost no reasonable interconnections you'll easily end up with a nightmare of six or more train changes back to the origin of your journey if you happen to have a flat tyre or accident along the bike route or the weather is turning bad. From Munich the only reasonable connection are EC and regional trains to and from Lindau, and Constance can reasonably be reached from Karlsruhe or Zürich.

There are a handful daily long distance connections to and from Friedrichshafen like the daily ICE service from Berlin, and there are more frequent options to and from Stuttgart.

While a trip on a Bodensee ferry boat should definitely be part of your stay (the BSB boats even sport bicycle racks) you cannot rely on them as a fast and high-frequent means of transport between railway stations.

Combined with the fact that bike tickets on long distance trains are rare during the nice seasons, the sad fact is: A bicycle tour around lake Constance requires much more careful planning well in advance than you might think at first.

Eat, drink and sleep

If you wish to wake up to a gorgeous organic breakfast in a pleasantly decorated sustainable hotel, while your bike is safely locked to a roofed parking spot, Hotel Maier is the place to stay. The hotel is not located in the very city centre, but in the neighbourhood of Fischbach (between the industrial areas of MTU/Rolls Royce in Manzell and Airbus in Immenstaad). A nice side effect of the hotel's approach to avoid food waste: breakfast is served at your convenience. Order to your liking and have a chat with the friendly staff. The combination of a traditional farm house with a rough concrete building (housing a few bigger and more expensive suites) gives the place a very urban touch.

Unfortunately the hotel's organic restaurant, Die Speiserei, was closed during our stay, but the menu suggested fine local dining on predominantly local produce, an extremely tempting way to spend holiday money.

There's another, 100 percent organic restaurant in town: The V2O on the premises of the Zeppelin museum in the city centre. Located on the second floor of a former station building it sports a gorgeous view on the city port and is accessible to the general public. The place serves organic lunch, and, during the tourist season, dinner. While the kitchen is closed in the afternoon between 2 pm and 5 pm, you may spend the time waiting for a ferry boat here with coffee and cake or a little snack. The restaurant is closed on Mondays, but there's a no-frills organic bistro a few steps away serving simple lunch on weekdays.

If you fancy a partially organic, artisanal ice-cream or feel for a coffee break, pay a visit to cosy Mina Gelato, the ice-cream parlour cum cafe in the town's traditional West-German pedestrian shopping street. Despite the name, the gorgeous ice-cream isn't trying to play Italian, but, very exotic, is made following a Bulgarian recipe. Best ice-cream in town!

Food and necessities

The people behind V2O restaurant and bistro are also running an organic supermarket, Greenbox, which seems to offer lunch, too.

There are very likely more organic groceries in town and in its vicinity, but none of them are located along the very bike route. An exception is the beautiful Biohaus am See in Langenargen, a neat small town building offering a parking spot in the shadow for your bike while you refill provisions or replenish some calories. With its wooden furniture the shop has the air of a traditional organic neighbourhood grocery, but given the omnipresence of Lake Constance fruits in organic shops throughout the country I was a little disappointed to not find more local products here.

• Hotel Maier, Poststr. 1–3, w/ restaurant Die Speiserei Mon–Sun 12–14,18–23
• V2O, Seestr. 22, Tue–Sun 11:30–17, from January 24th, 2024 also Thu–Sat 17–22
• V2O Bio-Bistro, Buchhornpl. 1, Mon–Fri 11:30–14:30
• Mina Gelato, Karlstr. 36, Tue–Sat(Sun) 10(11)–18, May through Sep also Mon 10–18
• Greenbox, Allinger Sr.54, Mon–Fri(Sat) 8:30–19(16)
• Bio-Haus am See, Obere Seestr. 7, Langenargen, Mon–Fri(Sat) 8:30–18(13)

Organic Trondheim: Restaurants and Cafes

As a university city Trondheim has had a few places offering partially organic lunch for almost a generation, both, of the home-made vegetarian food kind, and those with a fine dining approach. Some of the pioneers closed their kitchens quite recently, others re-opened in larger locations after a closing period and fostered an entire cluster of restaurants based on ingredients from organic farms in the greater region. Coffee houses and cafes serving fairly traded coffee drinks with organic milk have been coming and going, but if you put a little effort in where to go you will find both, places for a quick coffee or sandwich, places to have a great time with friends, and inspiring eating experiences.

For a lunch or breakfast sandwich head for the cafe in the backroom of the organic Godt Brød bakery near Nordre gate, one of the pioneers of organic food in Norway. Choose the filling of your sandwich or savory bread roll (all ingredients except the Italian-style salami cut are organic), have a decent coffee drink (the milk is organic), tea, a sweet organic bread roll ("bolle"), and/or an organic juice (e.g. from the nearby Rotvoll juicery in Ranheim which has its own organic grocery on their premises). About half of the cold drinks are not organic, so check for the "økologisk" keyword. During the warm season, treat yourself with a pre-packaged organic ice-cream from Reins Kloster. Everything is offered to take away, too. Notable fact for vegans: The dough for the sweet bread rolls is dairy-free, the bakery uses porridge made from oat and water and rapeseed oil instead of milk.

The company has expanded vastly in the past few years, with shop openings in Oslo (which by now also hosts the headquarter), Stavanger, Bergen and a few other places and last but not least at its birthplace: If you cannot find a spare seat in the cafe where it all began simply walk a few more steps to Dronningensgate. With its upmarket shop front it's the perfect place for a coffee date.

A short stroll over the bridge there's a third branch by the waterfront, inside the Solsiden shopping mall with even longer opening hours. They have a spacious sitting area outdoor, although its use is limited due to the ever changing weather in Trondheim. Good to know: All Godt Brød branches accept anonymous payments without data traces, using cash.

Heartier food like organic egg and bacon for breakfast or lamb burgers for lunch or dinner, together with organic softdrinks can be had at Ramp Pub and Spiseri at Svartlamon. Vegetarian options are available. Service at this shabby-homely place may be a little slow, and not all of the ingredients are organic. Formerly entirely furnished with formica tables and chairs the interior has improved since, but gentrification hasn't replaced the proletarian chic yet. The kitchen closes at 9 pm.

Real organic food, vegan and vegetarian, is served at neighbourhood Cafe Stammen in Kongens gate. Unfortunately their opening hours are rather limited, so I haven't been able to pay a visit yet. Let me know about your experience if you happen to eat there before me.

Simple seasonal lunch with the little extra, home-made predominantly from produce of small-scale organic (though not necessarily certified) farms from the Trøndelag region, sourdough bread of traditional grains from the adjacent bakery, coffee and books, this is Sellanraa next to the city library and Kunsthall museum. Unfortunately they do not serve dinner and are closed on Sundays.

Fine dining based on local organic produce started with restaurant Credo in an old narrow street in the city center of Trondheim many years ago. The place had to close, but after a break, master-mind and chef Heidi Bjerkan started anew on new, formerly industrial locations in Lilleby. There are now three restaurants for various budgets, and a bakery: fine dining at Credo, informal rustic brunch, lunch and dinner at Jossa, and ramen soups with a Norwegian touch at Edoramen, run by different chefs who all share the love for unadultered, sustainable food. However, Michelin-decorated Credo is going to close by the end of January, 2024, to re-open on the premises of the National Library in Oslo, during summer or autumn, 2024. Let's hope that Jossa and Edoramen are going to survive without their mastermind. All places are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays as well as during the Easter and X-Mas holidays.

At the airport

Airports generally aren't the place for a conscious lifestyle, but if you cannot avoid to fly from Trondheim Airport Værnes you may at least have an organic coffee past security at Haven next to gate 35.

• Godt Brød, Thomas Angells gt. 16, Mon–Fri 7:30–17, Sat(Sun) 9(10)–17
• Godt Brød Solsiden, Beddingen 10, Mon–Fri 6:30–21, Sat(Sun) 9(10)–18(17)
• Godt Brød, Dronningensgt. 32, Mon–Fri 6:30–19, Sat(Sun) 7(8)–19
• Ramp Pub & Spiseri, Strandveien 25a, Mon–Wed(Thu–Fri) 16–23(1), Sat(Sun) 13–1(23)
• Stammen, Kongens gt. 55, Fri(Sat) 17(13)–23
• Sellanraa bok&bar, Kongens gt. 2, Mon–Fri(Sat) 10(11)–18
• Credo, Ladeveien 9, Wed–Sat 17:30–22 (until end of January, 2023)
• Jossa, Ladeveien 9, Wed–Fri(Sat) 16(12)–0:30, Sun 12–16
• Edoramen, Ladeveien 9c, Wed–Sun 16–21
• Haven, Trondheim lufthavn Værnes, next to gate 35

Permanently closed or no longer organic

The following places are either closed, with references remaining on the web, or ceased to offer organic items:

• Credo, Ørjaveita 4 (partially organic gourmet restaurant, re-opened on new location)
• Kafé Soil, Nedre Bakklandet 20d
• Makro Buffet og Restaurant, Prinsens gt. 4c (partially organic macrobiotic eatery)
• Trondheim Mathall, Prinsens gt. 30 (partially organic restaurant and delicatessen)
• Persilleriet, Erling Skakkes gt. 39 (one of the pioneers of organic vegetarian food in Trondheim, replaced by a vegan lunch bar, Erlings, where you perhaps also will find some organic items if you ask)
• Persilleriet St. Olavs Hospital, Olav Kyrres gt. 13
• Selma, TMV kaia 13 (pizza)
• Dromedar Kaffebar (various places, do no longer have anything organic)

Heidelberg: Cafes and eateries

For being home to so many sustainable and organic shopping opportunities Heidelberg has surprisingly few places serving organic food. The two I found are both very well suited for both, vegetarians and vegans, and essentially self-service, but I wasn't able to spot a single proper dinner restaurant where you're actually waited.

Both, lunch, snacks, coffee and dinner can be had at red buffet restaurant, next to the Alnatura organic supermarket on the premises of a former swimming pool opposite the Schwanenteich park. You can choose between two lunch dishes at a fixed price or serve yourself salads and warm one-pot dishes (all 100 percent and certified organic, vegetarian and often vegan) and pay by weight. Order drinks (cold drinks, teas or Italian-style coffee drinks) and predominantly vegan cakes and dessert at the cash desk while you pay, take your tray and find yourself a seat. For being an vegan-award winning restaurant I found the food quite uninspiring, without accentuated flavours, just good ingredients cooked together. Even the perfectly looking vegan hazelnut-espresso cake I had was missing a distinctive coffee flavour – good, but far from outstanding. Nevertheless the generally pleasant place was crowded (though not unpleasantly), perhaps due to missing alternatives. It's the only evening-open option for eating out, but closed on Sundays. You may also buy food to take with you.

The stylish yet positively unexcited Zeit für Brot bakery cafe in Hamburg is a pleasant neighbourhood spot for breakfast, lunch or a snack watching the bakers at work. So I was delighted to hear from niiebel that a new branch opened in Heidelberg in autumn 2023, and hope it's equally pleasant. Cinnamon roll addicts will hopefully find a favourite among the different varieties.

• Red, Poststr. 42, Mon–Sat 11:30–22
• Zeit für Brot, Hauptstr. 146, Mon–Fri(Sat–Sun) 8:30–20(19)

Closed

The city of Heidelberg still lists the following place in its latest guide to organic and local food, but the place unfortunately closed two years ago:

• Fein Food, Brückenstr. 1i1
• Café Steiner, Lutherstr. 28 (partially organic cafe)

Salzburg: Organic restaurants, eateries, and cafes

To find a place offering at least partially organic meals, snacks or coffee isn't a big deal in Salzburg, and places like the Bio-Burgermeister are frequent tourist destinations. But there's more than just healthy organic fast food – from pleasantly modernized Austrian bars over cultured beer spots to slightly esoteric day cafes there's a broad range of places to choose from. What you shouldn't expect are authentic restaurants offering elaborated international cuisines, but that's probably not what you are here for anyway.

• Austrian
• Burgers
• Coffee bars and cafes
• Indian
• International
• Italian/Pizza
• Vegan

Burgers

When you're hungry and don't know where to go head for the Bio-Burgermeister in the middle of busy Linzergasse pedestrian street. With its liberal opening hours (no closing day, open until 10 pm) and central location this no-frills burger grill is serving both, meat, vegetarian, and vegan versions, purely made with organic ingredients. The service is swift, the burgers and side-dishes fresh, crisp and tasty, and most of the soft drinks and the beer are organic, too (though you have to check the bottles for organic labelling). The hot varieties I would describe as spicy rather than hot, and they come up with interesting seasonal versions like the pumpkin burger with a pumpkin patty. For meat patties you can choose between medium-done and medium-rare. The place serves neither desserts nor coffee.

Unfortunately it has implemented bad habits of conventional fast-food places, too: It produces a lot of waste since the meals are served on cardboard one-way plates, and the staff is neither busy cleaning the tables nor refilling paper towels.

If the burgermeister is too crowded or you prefer to produce less waste a burger restaurant is just a few steps away: The Ludwig doesn't promise fully organic burgers, but organic patties made from organic beef, turkey or mushrooms, organic pulled pork and bacon. In addition to burgers the place also serves salad bowls, desserts and breakfast (including organic eggs in a number of varieties). Among the drinks fruit juices and teas are organic.

Located in a pleasant backyard with a small fountain this cafe cum restaurant is also a much nicer place to spend time with friends or family – during the warm season on the spacious terrace, on rainy or cold days in the large urban-rustic dining room.

Austrian

The Urbankeller is not just a perfect address for a rustic meal accompanied by local organic beer, wine, juice or lemonade in the restaurant or a civilised drink at the adjacent bar. It also houses a stage for live acts – predominantly rock, jazz or experimental theatre, and the occasional crime play reading. Although the place is certified by Bio Austria not everything is organic. Fully organic dishes however are clearly marked with a green logo on the menu, and a good deal of the un-marked meat-based dishes (including nose-to-tail ones using offal) are served with organic meat (check for the "bio" keyword). Vegan and vegetarian options are also available. If you consider one of the typical Austrian flour-based desserts ("Mehlspeisen") make sure to come with sufficient appetite.

Schallmooser Hauptstraße where the Urbankeller is located changes its name to Linzergasse (or Linzer Gasse, the naming is not consistent) when it runs over into a pedestrian area towards the river Salzach. Amid its touristic jumble you'll find the Stadtkrug, a family-owned hotel and restaurant of old, with roots in the 14th century. The family runs an organic highland cattle farm north of Salzburg and serves the beef at the restaurant specialising in typical Austrian dishes. The farm has its own slaughterhouse on premise which allows the cattle to die as stress-free as possible within their known habitat. The chicken served in the Stadtkrug is also organic as are some hard cheeses and the ice-cream and other products made from sheep's milk. The breakfast at the hotel unfortunately is not organic.

Directly located on Linzergasse, almost down by the river, but nevertheless not a place that tourists will recognise at a first glance, the Innergebirg restaurant serves traditional Austrian mountain cuisine with local ingredients from the Pongau, the Pinzgau and the Salzburger Land areas. All the meat comes from the Rostatt organic farm (which also is a farm stay). Note that the restaurant is closed on Sundays.

Another beergarden down in the old town is associated with the local brewery Die Weisse specializing in weiss beer. They also brew one alcoholic and one non-alcoholic organic variety (watch out for the bio label) which nicely go together with a hearty Austrian meal – the beef here is organic and you may ask the waiter for likely other organic ingredients. Of course there's indoor seating, too.

On the other side of the Salzach river September 2018 saw the opening of a new fully organic, predominantly biodynamic restaurant and bar opposite the museum of modern art inside the Mönchsberg cliff, the Humboldt, a pleasantly modernized version of an Austrian "Gaststube", with geometric dark-wooden interior, a light-and-steam installation serving as a fire place surrogate, green cushions, table-clothes made from felt, and a green-lighted bar. For lunch on weekdays you can choose between two set menus consisting of a soup or salad (your choice), and a vegetarian or omnivore main dish which come at 9 or 11 euros, respectively. In the evening the kitchen emphasizes on Austrian signature dishes like the Viennese Schnitzel (a delicate, crisp, yet melting dream), boiled filet ("Tafelspitz"), and pancakes ("Palatschinken") as dessert (which were quite unexceptional). The menu clearly marks organic, biodynamic, vegan and vegetarian items and also lists the sources of all ingredients which usually are Austrian farms and producers, often located in the vicinity. In all drink classes organic options are available, and often you have no choice but to drink organic. The bar keeps open until late each day, making it the perfect place for an evening out, and there's outdoor seating, too.

Indian

Back in town, just a few steps from the Stadtkrug vegetarian fusion food with roots in the Indian cuisines has been served for almost 20 years at Spicy Spices. This pleasant eatery may not be the place for the romantic dinner but is a nice location for a chat with friends, accompanied by a healthy lunch, a coffee, chai and/or cake, all organic. You can also shop for their home-made spice mixtures, chutneys and pickles which make tasty gifts.

International

The second surviving organic restaurant of old also draws its inspiration from the subcontinent and East-Western fusion. The Heart of Joy is a vegetarian (vegan friendly), predominantly organic cafe cum eatery run by followers of Sri Shinmoy. The latter is openly presented which may not be your idea of the perfect surroundings for a recreational sip of coffee or an Italian, Austrian, oriental or Indian inspired lunch in this otherwise pleasant location. Students are entitled a ten percent discount, and breakfast on weekends is being served all day.

For a simple lunch or a piece of home-made organic cake you may also try the A* bar in nearby Auerspergstraße.

If you are near the main train station on a weekday during daytime the bistro Leichtsinn ("carelessness") is worth a try. You'll find it if you leave the train station in western direction via Südtiroler Platz and walk in southern direction along Rainerstraße parallel to the tracks until you reach Elisabethstraße. Tea, beer, and cheese are always organic here, and the owners promise to prefer organic and regional ingredients, but admit that some ingredients such as avocados definitely won't be organic. Unfortunately I did not get an answer to whether the meat and other products of animalic origin are organic, so better ask about them. The menu changes daily, and you always have the choice between a soup, one vegan, one vegetarian and one meat- or fish-based dish in addition to salads (mix your own from the salad bar), home-made foccachia sandwiches, wraps, quiches, and empanadas (the owner-chief originates from Ecuador). The place is great for breakfast, there are home-made cakes (also vegan), shortbreads and fair-trade coffee, and if you need provisions for your travel, simply order to take away.

Fine dining restaurants in the 2020ies can be reasonably expected to work together with small-scale organic gardeners, bakers and/or butchers, but they often do this in the closet. So I found the Genussprojekt at Ursulinenplatz, with a view on the river Salzach, but I am disappointed to report that the only classified organic ingredients on their menu are fruit juices and beef. Beef-lovers may give it a try and ask about the veges, the flour, and whether there are natural wines, too. So far no first-hand review from me yet.

Italian

Arguably the city's best pizza can be had when entering a non-descript entrance on Franz-Josef-Straße south of Paris-Lodron-Straße: Here you find a place boringly dubbed Organic Pizza Salzburg, and this is exactly what it is: A totally unpretentious venue serving glorious 100% organic pizza in vegetarian, vegan and omnivore varieties, all well worth their 9.80 to 16.80 EUR. Instead of the standard base made from wheat you may order one made with spelt. Choose your drinks from the fridge (most, but not all organic), and have a home-made organic and vegan cake with fairly traded ingredients and/or a locally produced ice-cream to end your meal. No frills, just love, and in contrast to other fast food places covered here you will be served on real plates instead of paper waste. Unfortunately the place is closed on Mondays and Sundays.

Vegan

For Italian and decidedly vegan food (including pizza) you have to wait for the re-opening of Vegitalian. This no-frills restaurant stepped in as the hotel restaurant of The Keep near Salzburg Hauptbahnhof train station between spring and autumn 2022 and is planning a re-opening in Nonntal. It's not 100% organic, but most ingredients come from regional and/or organic producers. No further review here (yet) since I haven't had the chance to visit.

Just a few steps from Organic Pizza Salzburg you'll find a novelty in the city: a crowd-founded vegan cafe. The Gustav serves breakfast, sandwiches, soups and salads as well as smoothies and cakes, everything predominantly organic. Unfortunately it is closed most days of the week, so check below to avoid a bad surprise.

For a vegan or vegetarian, partially organic lunch, dinner or weekend brunch the neighbourhood of Gneis was a pleasant destination before the Covid-19 pandemics. Then chef Julia and her happily carnivore dog announced a refurbishment of the The Green Garden, and I am still waiting to see a re-opening. The place consisted of two locations, a daily (except Mondays) open restaurant, and a cafe cum wine bar annex. There was no general commitment to organic certification, but Julia promised to use predominantly fresh seasonal Austrian ingredients as far as possible produced without chemically synthesized fertilizers and preservatives. The tea (including iced tea), most wines, some beers, eggs and goat cheese were certified organic. On the menu you were to find bowls, soups, salads, vegan burgers as well as pasta and vegetable versions of Austrian signature dishes like the schnitzel, but the place was great for breakfast and healthy snacks, too. During the nice season The Green Garden sold vegan organic ice-cream to both, guests and passers-by.

Coffee and cakes

For the real coffee thing head for Röstzimmer 15 a few meters from "Spicy Spices". A cosy living room serving artisanal (though not necessarily organically certified) chocolates and pastries with Ethiopian organic coffee roasted in the room next door where you also can have a small lunch.

An Italian-style coffee drink prepared with organic milk can also be had at Fabis Frozen Bioyogurt.

Fancy an organic coffee drink on the go, made with organic milk or plant-based drink, on your way from the old town before crossing the Mozartsteg pedestrian bridge over the river Salzach? Take your coffee mug and stop by what's arguably the city's tiniest coffee house, We love coffee. Unfortunately they do not have any eathenware and will serve their Italian-style coffee or flat whites in a paper cup. What a waste – since I did not have a cup at hand I cannot say anything about the quality.

When you take a stroll or bicycle tour along the river Salzach in southern direction (towards castle and zoo Hellbrunn) stop by the farm cafe of the Bienenlieb beekeepers. You may simply step by for a coffee break or a home-made organic soup with honey bread, but if you are planning to have breakfast on Saturday (from March through December) make sure to call upfront for reservation.

• BioBurgerMeister, Linzergasse 54, Tue–Sat 17–20
• Ludwig, Bruderhof/Linzergasse 39, Tue–Sat 11–22
• Urbankeller, Schallmooser Hauptstr. 50, restaurant(bar) Mon,Wed–Sat(Sun) 17(12)–24
• Stadtkrug, Linzergasse 20, Tue–Sat 15–23
• Humboldt, Gstättengasse 4, Tue–Thu(Fri) 10:30–23(24), Sat(Sun) 9–24(23)
• Die Weisse Wirtshaus, Rupertgasse 10, Mon–Sat 10–24
• Innergebirg. Linzergasse 12, Mon–Sat 11–22
• Spicy Spices, Wolf-Dietrich-Str. 1, Mon–Fri(Sat) 11:30(12)–14:30, Mon–Sat 18–20
• Heart of Joy, Franz-Josef-Str. 3, Mon–Thu(Fri–Sun) 8–19(20:30)
• Leichtsinn, Elisabethstr. 1, Mon–Fri 8–17,Wed–Thu 18–22
• Bienen-Bistro, Membergerstr. 1, Wed–Sat 10–18:30
• We love coffee, Rudolfskai 37, Mon–Fri(Sat–Sun) 7:30(9)–18, PH closed
• Genussprojekt, Ursulinenpl. 4, Tue–Thu(Fri–Sat) 16(14)–23(24)
• Organic Pizza Salzburg, Franz-Josef-Str. 24a, Tue–Fri(Sat) 17(12)–22
• Gustav, Wolf-Dietrich-Str. 33, Thu–Fri(Sat) 11(10)–20(18)

Temporarily closed

• The Green Garden, Nonntaler Hauptstr. 16, expected to be re-opened after refurbishment in summer 2023
• Vegitalian, Schwarzstr. 50 (awaiting new opening in Nonntaler Hauptstr. 43 perhaps early in 2023)

Closed or no longer organic

• Ährlich, Wolf-Dietrich-Str. 7
• Enoteca Settemila, Bergstr. 9
• Zum Hirschenwirt, St.-Julien-Str. 21-23 (no longer organic)
• Franziskischlössl, Stefan-Zweig-Weg
• klein & fein, Rupertgassei 9 (cafe and delicatessen)
• Kuchenfee, Paris-Lodron-Str. 19 (partially organic cafe)
• Ökohof Feldinger/Rochushof, Rochusgasse 6 (organic supermarket and self-service restaurant)
• Rosencafé, Steingasse 4 (fully organic cafe cum gastro bar)
• Stadtimbiss, Franz-Josef-Str. 19 (successor is not organic)
• Schützenwirt, Dorf 96, St. Jakob am Thurn

Heidelberg: Zero Waste

For (re-)filling your kitchen cupboard and shop for un(pre)packaged food head straight to the northern shore of the Neckar river, to the Neuenheimer Markt market place. On Wednesday mornings (until 1 pm) a farmer's market is held here, but a few steps away you will also find the city's only package-free supermarket dubbed Annas Unverpacktes ("Anna's unwrapped goods") which with its outer wall made of turquoise tiles looks like a converted butcher's shop from the outside. As all zero waste convenience stores I've come across so far it's strictly vegetarian, but omnivores simply walk outside and turn left to find an artisanal butcher's shop at the next corner.

Until some years ago the Metzgerei Blatt was working according to the Neuland principles of animal welfare in meat production which are close to, but not fully organic, and in 2015 turned to fully organic principles. The shop was closed when I went there (as it's generally closed on Wednesday afternoons), but the owner assured me that the staff would fill my purchase into my own clean boxes as long as they were intended for personal consumation (instead of catering a bigger crowd). Ready-to-eat meat dishes are also available to take away.

Directly opposite the Neuenburger Markt there's also a shop of the local wholefood bakery Mahlzahn named after the dragon in Michael Ende's famous children's novel "Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver". Here the shop assistants will happily put your bread, rolls, sweet and savoury pastries into the bags or containers you present.

The bakery workshop itself is located in the Weststadt neighbourhood where you also can buy a small selection of loose-weight seasonal fruit and veges and assorted pre-packaged organic food items to supplement your breakfast, lunch or coffee table. When I went there in hope for an early organic breakfast it however turned out that this bakery doesn't follow the zeitgeist to serve coffee and snacks to eat on the spot everywhere -- no coffee machine here, no bar tables. (The rolls were delicious nevertheless.) Mind you that this bakery does not use white flour at all.

Altogether there are four Mahlzahn shops, all with identical opening hours, the third one located in the neighbourhood of Rohrbach, and the fourth in Handschuhsheim (literally: "glove's home").

In general you will have difficulties to find organic bakeries not willing to fill customer-provided clean bags and boxes, and the new (in 2023) Zeit für Brot shop thankfully make no exception.

To buy all items for a zero waste breakfast at one stop head for the city's branch of the Denn's organic supermarket chain: The staff at its meat, dairy and bakery counters offers to fill cheese, cured meat products, sausages and bakery items into your containers. If you buy a coffee drink on the go in your own cup you'll receive a 30 cents discount, and you can also buy lunch to take away in your own jars instead of having it at the self-service bistro.

The other nationwide operating organic supermarket brand, Alnatura, operates three branches in town. They do not have a dedicated focus on zero waste, but there's a slowly increasing assortment of food in returnable glasses (e.g. mayonnaise, "canned" corn and other preserves, or vegetable spread) apart from unpackaged fruits, vegetables, and bakery produce. Unfortunately you must be familiar with the glass types to find them, and they are always among the most expensive options.

If you prefer independent shops the two Fair & Quer supermarkets in the neighbourhoods of Handschuhsheim and Wieblingen are worth a try. Unfortunately I did not have the chance to visit them (as advised by my Mastodonbubble), so I cannot say whether their waste and package reduction measures exceed those of comparable dedicated organic supermarkets in Germany. The shop in Wieblingen offers organic lunch Monday through Friday from noon to 2pm.

Student initiatives

I wasn't much surprised to hear from my Mastodon bubble about zero-waste and repair initiatives run by the university's students' parliament. Unfortunately I have not had the time to visit the campus, but I happily list them here: The self-service bike repair shop Urrmel and the package-free organic food co-operative Appel un' Ei. The latter is located between "Chez Pierre" and "Café Botanik" at the university's main refectory and is regularly offering lunch made with produce from a communal market garden.

• Annas Unverpacktes, Ladenburger Str. 37, Tue-Sat 10-18:30
• Bio-Metzgerei Blatt, Ladenburger Str. 41, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8(7:30)-13, Mon-Tue,Thu-Fri 15-18
• Vollkornbäckerei Mahlzahn Neuenheim, Ladenburger Str. 15, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8-18:30(13)
• Vollkornbäckerei Mahlzahn Weststadt, Gaisbergstr. 74, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8-18:30(13)
• Denn's, Bahnhofsstr. 33, Mon-Sat 9-20
• Alnatura, Langer Anger 7-9, Mon-Sat 8-20
• Alnatura Weststadt, Rohrbacher Straße 73, Mon-Sat 8-20
• Alnatura Altes Hallenbad, Poststraße 36/5, Mon-Sat 8-20

More to try

Here are a few more shops which I found during my research but didn't manage to visit myself:

• Vollkornbäckerei Mahlzahn Rohrbach, Rathausstr. 1, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8-18:30(13)
• Vollkornbäckerei Mahlzahn Handschuhsheim, Mühltalstr. 2, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8-18:30(13)
• Fair & Quer Wieblingen, Adlerstr. 1, Mon-Fri(Sat) 8-20(18)
• Fair & Quer Handschuhsheim, Steubenstr. 52, Mon-Wed(Thu-Fri) 8-19(20), Sat 8-16
• Appel un' Ei, Im Neuenheimer Feld 304a, Mon-Thu 16-18 plus usually 12-14 outside the semester break
• URRmEL, Im Neuenheimer Feld 706, Tue,Thu 16-20 outside the semester break, Thu 14-20 during semester break, PH closed

Closed

You may still find references to the following organic grocery on the web, but be assured it's no longer there:

• Apfel und Korn, Märzgasse 16 (convenience store)