Herman Ze German - London

I worked directly at the charlotte street, and that made me incredibly dangerous for my bank account. it has become even better, as I have stopped working there – I love the ninth, and they are spoiled for the choice in this neighbourhood (pied a terre is another fantastic restaurant.)

Extremely good food. a 4 hours American pop-up in london had sought me burger, but not enough to stand for them in line. So I went to the new two-g of a local Burger chicken chain, which had 50% on food and therefore also a waiting queue of about 40 waited for space. when I realized fitzrovia is not a great place to hunt on a week afternoon after a short lunch. there are many options, but they are all overflowing. I quickly ran through my reading marks that herman ze german was around the corner and had bigger seats (2 floors) this was a big call, as many people also took their hot dogs away. so there was a waiting queue, but it moved very fast and there was space. When I saw the burger schnitzel on the menu, I knew I had to have it, but I wanted to try her famous sausage too. the menu has changed a bit of some of the pictures here on the map. you will not get a formula to fill it. they order and pay at the theke from an overhead menu and if they want to eat, they give them a deposit and supply the food to their table. also food combinations have changed. the pork burger came with fries or salat, so fries it. (if we pamper ourselves in karbs, go all the huf.) I chose the pork and bacon option and it was absolutely amazing. I also chose the chili sausage with the hottest curry sauce on the side and that was so good, I can back only for this curry sauce. it's good and spicy, not one of those fancy spies. the workers constantly check on them and have a natural smile on their faces. so even if they wait a bit (10-15 minutes since I have been ordering hot dog accusations were coming out much faster,) it is not a frustrating (as I sat at a proper table, within 5 minutes of entering, ordered and paid) I would rather sit on a table waiting for my eating than standing in the line outside a food link. they have a series of drinks in unusual combinations, the cola orange limonade was quite refreshing and they also have beer. would be happy to go back at any time, I feel a need for burger carving or hot dogs.

I don’t think I’ve ever visited Herman ze German sober. The Villiers Street branch is in staggering distance of Charing Cross station and certainly beats a McDonald’s on the way home. Now they have a new and much more grown up home on Charlotte Street, plus one on Old Compton Street. What I’d only known as a pit-stop place is actually nice to hang around in, especially the basement bar where some pretty decent music was playing. There were no drunks in sight (not even my friend Keith by the time he’d finished his maß of Paulaner Oktoberfest beer £10). Herman have a good array of German beer stocked – draft and bottled plus a good variety of soft drinks. I opted for a Fritz-limo lemonade £2.25 before I moved onto the Paulaner Weissbier wheat beer £2.95 for half a pint. I do love a surprise toilet. I expected the loos here to just be regular toilets but instead I felt like I’d just stepped back into my secondary school, apart from the toilets back then certainly weren’t unisex, imagine the trouble that would have caused. Visually the menu’s a little scraggy and studenty (although I do always appreciate a menu with photos) but don’t let that put you off, the wurst here is actually very good, we tried them all just to be sure. From the traditional – a juicy veal and pork, to the ‘special sausage’ – a firm pork and beef with cumin, who doesn’t love a special sausage? Herman import their wurst from a butcher called Fritz in the Black Forest, Germany, they’re gluten-free and they even do a veggie one, not that you’d know it as it’s invisible on the menu. Ze Wilde Bock £5.75 – was a firm and juicy bockwurst drizzled in curry sauce with a scattering of crispy onions and mayo, all wrapped up in a warm toasted roll alongside a handful of fries. Really very good and great value for money, however the chips aren’t the greatest on earth, dry with just a thin strand of fluffy potato in the centre. The Currywurst £5.95 came chopped with several options of sausage – brat (pork and veal), bock (smoked pork) or chilli (pork, beef and chilli), drenched in a tomatoey curry sauce with chips. The sauce varies in heat (just like Nando’s) from ‘mild’ for wimps to ‘ringer’ for hardcore chilli fans. Be warned though, we attempted the tiniest dab of this hot sauce and it blew our heads off. Anyone who enjoys this level of heat is a lunatic. There’s schnitzel and salad on the menu too, personally I find schnitzel a pretty dull thing to eat, but the punters must love it as HZG sell tonnes of the stuff, I’ll stick with a hot weiner in a bun thanks. There’s no desserts, not that we could have managed them, however we did spot a Yog frozen yoghurt shop next door on the way back to Goodge Street. Herman ze German really is great value and fun with friendly service. They made the sausage in their logo resemble a p s, so they get top marks from me.

Herman ze German has the best sausages in London. And if that isn't an advertising tagline, I don't know what is. Order your gluten- free sausage at the bar and enjoy with yummy, yummy chips. For the more health conscious, there's a bun-free option, but WHERE'S THE FUN IN THAT?! They do great lunchtime deals making it the perfect place to break away from the office. Good job, Herman!!

First time to this place and will be coming back. Very cosy surroundings and quiet romantic. The walls are decorated with pictures, I think famous Germans over the years. Service very friendly and very bubbly. Was explained everything on the menu and the beers where very nice.