Gaststätte Lommerzheim

This guide to Gaststätte Lommerzheim in Cologne opens with an unlikely visitor: in 1999, during the G8 summit, Bill Clinton's staff tried to book a table at this small Kölsch tavern on Siegesstraße. It traces how its owner, Hans Lommerzheim, built the place after years as a traditional Köbes beer waiter, and the strict, order-free way he ran the bar alongside his wife Annemie. You'll hear about the cash register he refused to keep and the pork chops she fried for regulars. Best enjoyed at the bar, where a Köbes still decides when you get served.