Beethoven is an iconic musician. While I wouldn't say this place measures up to the infamy of its…read morename, Ludwig's is still making me sing a happy tune.
We arrived after when we assumed the lunch rush would be, during the one o'clock hour, famished. At first it seemed that it was a solo show as we were briefly greeted by a worker who said she would be with us in a minute before spending more at the open kitchen. We used the time to weigh our options, many nods to musical legends that left me at first indecisive. Suddenly a second worker arrived, apologizing for the wait and providing excellent service as she helped explain my omlette options and asked about our day.
She took our name and we got choice of our tables, each with its own unique set of salt and pepper shakers. We went for the bear and honey, getting a front row view of the kitchen work. We could have sat at the chess set and people watched out the window, or hovered to watch the hallway action before taking our meals outside, but we had been on foot for miles, and melting into the chairs while the jazzy student radio played on and we took in all the peculiarly wonderful decor sounded ideal.
We grabbed a water from the cooler (we didn't see the prices, but for two meals and a drink we got out for under 30) and sipped at it during the short wait. Because *somebody* mentioned it was my birthday, the woman serving us even offered me a free macaron. I initially declined (I don't milk my birthday for freebies) she insisted that both me and my company take a free mini bite, his being a little cake. For the train ride home, she offered. We had inquired about tree nut allergies, and later research found most macarons have almond flour, which is a potential hazard to me, so it was gifted to our friend who picked us up later that evening as a thank you. They both liked their little treats.
The food itself, very lovely. I had finally decided on a mushroom onion omelette as they don't have black olives. The mushrooms are bite sized, and the strands of onion are easily manageable to cut through with the plastic tableware they provide. Everything is disposable, which while not environmentally the best, is probably all that is manageable given the small amount of space the restaurant takes up.
The omelette is three eggs, neatly folded over the veg. It came with four half slices of sourdough griddled toast, covered in butter. I don't usually eat it this way, though it was a nice change of pace and not so greasy that I didn't even need a napkin to wipe the residue off my face like some diner food. The toast was in the sweet spot of not too soft, nor too crunchy and left me refueled after our long journey.
My hungry company went for the Jack Black burger, hold the tomato. It is a half pound of meat, which according to him was filling to a point of being glad he ordered the thin handcrafted pickles, as I could help finish the few he had left instead of having to carry a to go box around the rest of the afternoon. The bun had also been cooked, coated in a chipotle aioli that carried more flavor than it did spice. Leaf lettuce and pickled red onion that maintained their bite also dressed the burger, along with a slice of pepperjack. Unlike me, he had to grab the napkins. Like me, he was satisfied. They were kind and let him wash his hands in their sink before we left, leaving a tip in the jar.
I'd say I'll be back, but we were just in town for the day, so instead, thank you, for good food and good service.