Hof 35 in Bockenheim

Life can be full of surprises if you're open to them.

I ventured out on my own today to a place I'd been before but never by bike--Bockenheim. I had purchased a pair of shoes for my daughter from one of those shops where you can find almost everything (Tedi--almost like a dollar store but a little nicer...can be found all over Germany) but they were too small. I drummed up the courage to go get them exchanged while I looked up a few key vocabulary words and recon'd the route on Google Maps. I rented a NextBike and off I went.

Exchanging the shoes was, fortunately, a breeze so I decided to walk around a little bit. I had eaten at a corner Döner place with friends the previous week, but I was sort of looking for a surprise off the beaten path, and I found it in Hof 35 (Leipziger-Straße 35).

I turned in to a little alleyway and was immediately greeted by the smell of freshly brewing coffee, as I looked up to see the cutest little balconies reminiscent of something in the Mediterranean. There was also an outdoor eating area lined with potted herbs and plants between two shops: Galerie (a framing shop and beautiful home goods store) and Kindermode, an upscale children's clothing boutique (unfortunately--or perhaps fortunately!--closed at the time). Turns out the dining area belonged to a restaurant/bistro called Hake's, so of course I decided to try it out!

I ordered a Café con Leche and the Tortilla Stulle. (Stullen are thick pieces of fresh bed topped with various toppings from simple butter to elaborate sandwiches. The name originates from northern Germany, and simply called Schnitte or Butterbrot in most of the rest of the country.)

This particular Stulle was basically a Spanish tortilla (egg and potato omelette) between two pieces of fresh white bread with a mayonnaise/mustard spread, lettuce, tomato, roasted red pepper and cucumber. Awesome! It needed pepper but I always like more pepper than is probably normal. It was an unexpected combination, but delicious and such a creative way to use up leftover tortilla!

I had a really nice time sitting in this little haven...hope you can make it over there to try them out, and let me know how it goes!