Teske's Germania

Location: San Jose, CA
Cuisine type: German
Atmosphere: authentic setting, homey dining room
Meal: dinner
Price range: ~$20-$30/meal,
Overall grade: 8.25

Ben

An authentic German restaurant, from the feel to the entire menu. I ordered a dish extremely popular in Germany (was my favorite dish during the 8 months I lived there, though it is not German), a hungarian goulash. It had a very rich and moderately spiced paprika flavor with tender beef and delicious spaetzle on the side. Nina had a Jaegerschnitzel (breaded pork with mushroom sauce) that was equally delicious. 

They had a large selection of German beers on tap, and the true feel in every way of a respectable German restaurant (minus the pizza that seemed to be on every menu in Germany). The food selection, preparation, and flavors are perfectly what one could expect to get in any classic restaurant in Germany, and in my opinion it was probably more flavorful than most genuine restaurants in Germany (possibly an ever-so-subtle accentuation in spices to stand up to the american palate). The service was prompt, the dress ranged from formal to T-shirts, with the entrees a little pricy (ranging from ~$20-$35).

Food  9
Drinks  9
Service  9
Atmosphere 8
Value 7

Nina

It could have been a feeling of melancholy for the time we spent in Europe a few years ago, or just pure coincidence which landed us in this quaint little German restaurant on a Thursday night. As soon as we entered we were transported back in time and space to an old style German bar - dim lit, tinted wood bar counter and stools, and a few different varieties of Bavarian brews. After walking through the narrow bar area, we entered the dining room, which was not much larger - maybe 10, 15 tables at most. It had a low ceiling and visible wood beams which gave the place even more of an authentic feel. The crowd was very diverse, from young to old, from casual to nearly formal wear, but the atmosphere was casual and friendly, with the hum of chatter in the air.

I ordered my favorite German dish - Jaegerschnitzel. Basically, it is built around the classic veal schnitzel - tenderized filet dredged through flour, dipped in whole egg and coated in bread crumbs, then fried. What makes it a Jaegerschnitzel (hunter's cutlet) is the mushroom cream sauce served on top of it. Although this one felt a bit grainy, it was creamy nonetheless and definitely had a rich mushroom flavor that I enjoyed quite a bit. To make it more authentic German, it was served with a side of Spaetzle, a very egg-rich traditional noodle (more of a cross between a dumpling and a noodle), which doesn't have a lot of flavor on its own, but acts like the sponge to other flavors in the dish.

While the entrees seemed a little pricy for their simplicity, we soon realized that by ordering an entree we would get a full meal - soup of the day and house salad before the entree and dessert of the day afterwards. They told us they were out of their advertised dessert - appel strudel - and served us marzipan cake instead. The cake was sweet and slightly bitter with the flavor of the marzipan, with a moist and creamy texture, so I didn't mind the substitution at all.

I really enjoyed this simple, yet tasty German meal, as well as the authentic atmosphere. In the future I would definitely go back when I crave a good Bavarian brew on tap and a hearty meat-centered meal.

Food           7
Drinks         9
Atmosphere 9
Service        8
Value          8