News Clips
Re-print of
the article: "Dining in the Sun .... with Elaine Wilson"
Gold Coast the 1.of August 2002
Where on the Coast can you dine
on Schnitzel and Sauerkraut, in a wood- bedecked beer hall with carved
staircases and chandelier, a view of snow capped mountains, to the sound
of an oom pah pah band...
No, I'm not dreaming - I've been revisiting the German Club, a
little slice of Germany transported as if by magic to the sunny climes
of Queensland.
It might surprise some to know that there is quite a substantial German
community on the Coast, numbering in the thousands, in fact.
And if the German Club seems like a bit of a fixture, that's because it
is - it has just celebrated its 27th anniversary!
15 or 20 years ago it served to make members of the German community feel
at home, now the club is much more multicultural, with members and
patrons of all nationalities.
It's a nice cosy, homely place and everyone can get a warm welcome and
fell at home..
And indeed it is - lots of carved wood, including a fabulous chandelier
decorated with figures of animals and people from folk tales, long communal
tables laid with red gingham cloths to match the curtains, and large photos
of German
scenes around the walls. There's even a stag's head mounted on one wall,
a la hunting lodge.
The band is housed in a little chalet of its own in the midst of
a large dance floor, while the bar is another marvellous wooden feature
around which patrons can cluster for a drink and chat.
One of the nicest things about the club is that whenever you go,
there is music, music, music.
Thursday nights have become rock and roll night, with keen dancers coming
from far and wide for an evening's fun.
The rest of the time there is music for more sedate dancing - waltzes,
polkas, even tangos, provided by experienced and professional musos.
There is good German beer on tap - DAB (Dortmunder Actien Brauerei),
a nice malty brew that's sweet
enough to appeal to the ladies as well. And you can enjoy a nice bottle
of German wine - we shared a lovely fruity Rhine riesling.
Apart from the dancing, of course, most people go for the food
- a menu of really traditional German dishes along with a scatter of international
dishes, prepared by a Swiss-trained chef and all extremely reasonably
priced.
There are dishes you won't see elsewhere, such as our entrees.
Russian Egg Salad ($7.50) featured hard boiled eggs dressed in
mayonnaise and red caviar, along with potato salad and slices of French
bread.
The Herring Salad ($8.50) centred
around imported marinated , herring soused in oil and salt, but it was
not
overly salty and was lusciously tender. It was also accompanied by potato
salad and crusty wholemeal bread.
On the specials board was Hungarian Goulash ($10. 50), a delicious
home style casserole with lashings
of tender, chunky young beef, onion and red capsicum in a rich tomato
based sauce flavoured with paprika. It was accompanied by fluffy white
rice.
Our pick of the day, however, was the Jaeger Schnitzel ($13.50)
- a large and very tender veal schnitzel covered in golden brown, crispy
crumb coating and served either with a creamy mushroom sauce, or gypsy
sauce, as we chose - capsicums and onions on a rich, spicy but slightly
sweet sauce. It came with very tasty bratkartoffel - potatoes sauteed
with onions and diced ham - as well as seasonal vegetables and a little
sauerkraut.
All the portions were generous, making them even better value, with
no main course priced over $14.00.
For desserts, should you still have room there's a ternpting selection
of cakes. If you're looking for something a bit
different, you could do a lot worse than enjoying a slice of
German hospitality at the Gold Coast's own German Club.
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