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GERMAN RESTAURANT BRINGS A TASTE OF BERLIN TO BEEVILLE
Photos by Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com Stammtisch signifies the table reserved for special guests at Gasthaus Berliner Bear. The Stammtisch table is a German restaurant tradition where only select patrons are allowed to sit. Apple dumpling in a bourbon caramel sauce at Gasthaus Berliner Bear. Gabi Kroschk opened the eatery in July 2009.
GERMAN EATERY BRINGS A TASTE OF BERLIN TO BEEVILLE
BY CIARA MCCARTHY cmccarthy@vicad.com
BEEVILLE – Gabi Kroschk does not cut corners.
Everything she serves at the Gasthaus Berliner Bear, the German restaurant she owns in Beeville, she makes from scratch. She won’t even buy potatoes that are precut, instead cooking, peeling and cutting by hand.
That’s what makes the difference in the authentic German food she serves at her restaurant. Customers have told Kroschk that restaurants in Fredericksburg, which has become famous for its German heritage, don’t come close to what she makes in Beeville.
Kroschk, 55, opened the Gasthaus in 2009 after years of friends and family encouraging her to share her home cooking with the world.
During her childhood in Berlin, Kroschk learned to cook from her grandmother, and the two spent almost every free minute together cooking and baking, she said.
“This is what we loved to do together,” she said.
Kroschk learned not to skip steps from her grandmother, like when the two would start preparing for their family’s Christmas meals weeks in advance. To make stollen, a bread with nuts, spices and fruit, the two would start the process in October so the bread could be stored in a cool, dark place to get soft enough by Christmas.
Kroschk and her husband moved to the U.S. in 1995 and have lived in Beeville for 20 years. She initially worked for the nonprofit Beeville Vineyard before she was convinced to open the restaurant by people who had tried her food. Kroschk said it took her a while to open the restaurant because she didn’t think of the food as anything out of the ordinary – it was just the food she made every day at home.
“For me it’s home cooking, what I’m doing,” Kroschk said.
Now, people visit Beeville from throughout Texas after hearing about Kroschk’s restaurant.
The restaurant’s signature dish is schnitzel, a breaded and pounded pork chop topped with mushroom cream gravy. Kroschk also created an alternate version of the dish, pairing schnitzel with jalapeno cream gravy to bring a little South Texas influence to her traditional German menu.
In addition to the schnitzel, the restaurant’s menu includes sausage plates, goulash and more, plus desserts like apple dumplings and chocolate cake.
Kroschk’s insistence on making everything from scratch means that the job is sometimes painstaking, but she said that’s what makes the difference.
“The most important thing is you cook from scratch,” Kroschk said. “Easy is not always the best way.”
IF YOU GO
THE GASTHAUS BERLINER BEAR
2510 N. St. Marys St., Beeville
HOURS // 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday and Wednesday; 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and Saturday; closed Sunday
CALHOUN COUNTY
