The German Arms, Hahndorf

http://germanarmshotel.com.au/

With Matt absent tonight, it was time for me to ride solo. Dinner at the German Arms, and imagine my delight when I discovered that tonight was schnitzel night! $12 schnitties, every sauce and topping imaginable, and four – yes, four – choices: chicken, beef, pork and squid. Squid schnitzel? Well, I’m sure I’ll try it one day, but I wasn’t really convinced. Something about that just doesn’t sound right. “Chicken Schnitty with mushroom gravy thanks!”

The meal arrived, and it was the polar opposite of my Ox meal the week before. The schnitty is thick and juicy – tender on the inside and crispy on the outside, as a good schnitzel should be. The generous serving of thick mushroom gravy complements it perfectly. However, I foolishly ordered vegetables on the side instead of salad, and I face the ultimate penalty – no chips. My vegetable serving is also unimpressive: two tiny roast potatoes, a piece of pumpkin and three slices of cucumber. Slim pickings. Luckily the schnitzel itself is delicious and at $12 I feel like I have received value for money. My friend has ordered a chicken parmigiana, which is also thick and tender. She has wisely chosen salad (which she doesn’t touch), but even so, the serving of chips seems far from adequate.

The restaurant itself has a bit of an old-fashioned atmosphere, which I really enjoy. Many places in Hahndorf are similar in this way – certainly the town has managed to maintain much of its nineteenth century German heritage. The pub is not overcrowded, but there are enough people here to create a buzzing, happy environment. The staff are extremely polite and deliver excellent service. Overall, a very pleasurable dining experience.

The Verdict: Schnitzel Night is definitely the night to be here (Thursday by the way) – and make sure you order the salad. Probably not a place where you’d choose to have a big group get together – the friendly, relaxed atmosphere here is ideal for smaller groups. If you decide to give the squid schnitty a try, let me know how it goes.

Taste 4.5/5, Size  3.5/5, Value 3.5/5, Sides 2/5, Experience 4/5
Total = 70%

The Oxford Hotel, North Adelaide

http://www.oxfordhotel.com.au/

Having never been there before, I always associated the Ox with its famous ox burger and the crowds of drunken St Marks College students who stagger in and out of there on their pub night each Wednesday. The restaurant has a classy type of pub atmosphere (although with a bit too much music from Britney and Beyonce for the liking of some people), and a variety of options on the menu ranging from your typical pub meals to more fancy choices. Twenty dollars for a schnitty (and two dollars extra for sauces) was more than we expected to pay, but seemed worth it for a decent-sized pub schnitty.

When the meals were brought out, we were a bit surprised. Sitting on each of our plates was a massive salad, a huge pile of unique Ox-style chips (more on them later)… and somewhere underneath all that was a schnitzel. Surely the schnitty is supposed to be the centrepiece of the meal but, in this case, it was unimpressive in size and hidden under the chips and salad, as though the chef was ashamed for people to see it. Matt’s chicken schnitzel was little more than a glorified mcnugget, while by veal schnitzel was even less attractive – thin, dry, fairly bland, with a soggy crumb coating which was falling off the meat with every incision I made. “I would not call this a particularly good schnitzel”, commented all-round good bloke Jonathan Hamer, himself the disappointed owner of a chicken parmy (appropriately named, as it would have been able to fit on the palm of his hand). When my schnitzel arrived, my friend Ada looked at it with a mixture of scorn and pity on her face. Her own meal - a chicken and corn salad - looks, smells and apparently tastes fantastic. Indeed, every non-schnitty meal that I see seems to be of a very high standard.

On the bright side, the salad is very generous (I know, I’m clutching at straws here), and the ox chips are very much to my liking. Instead of being shaped like normal chips, the potatoes have been cut into thin, disc-shaped pieces before being fried. They’re very salty, and – in everybody’s opinion – a real winner.

The Verdict: This is a good place for a schnitty if you’re a healthy eater, as you get about five times as much salad as schnitzel. But in all honesty, I wouldn’t recommend the schnitzels from here to anybody. However, the chips were fantastic, and some of the classier options on the menu seemed to be very good. The restaurant is an ideal place for larger groups, and has quite a relaxed atmosphere. They just haven’t quite mastered the schnitty.

Taste: 3.5/5, Size: 2/5, Value: 1/5, Sides: 3/5, Dining Experience: 4/5
Overall: 54%

Matt & Mark’s Schnitzel Crusade

Something occurred to me recently. Whenever I go out for lunch or dinner, the same thing always happens. I experience the initial anticipation of what meal I’m going to eat. I then arrive at the restaurant and read carefully through the menu, wondering which unique, fancy, mouth-watering meal I should choose. I discuss the options with the people around me, to see what their thoughts are. And then, almost invariably, I order a schnitty. Maybe a steak every now and then. A pizza once in a while. Very occasionally something that a more cultured person than myself would refer to as a ‘proper meal’. But on most occasions, the schnitzel proves to be irresistible.

And I’ve come to realise that I’m not alone. The world seems to be divided into two groups – those who love schnitzel, and those for whom the feeling is something beyond love. Matt and I, after working out that we were both undoubtedly in the latter group, decided that we had a duty not only to ourselves, but to all of our fellow schnitzel-loving Adelaideans… our mission: Find Adelaide’s best schnitzel. So if you share our enduring desire for a good schnitty, and want to find out where you can find one, please follow us on our journey, as we explore the city and suburbs of Adelaide one restaurant at a time.

At each restaurant, we will rate the schnitty on taste, size and value for money. We will also take into account the sides (chips, salad etc), as well as the restaurant itself (experience, atmosphere, service, music etc). Ultimately, we will provide an overall rating of the entire schnitzel-eating experience, and tell you why you should – or shouldn’t – eat at this restaurant.

If there is a restaurant that you feel we simply must try as part of our schnitzel voyage, then please let us know. We’re open to all recommendations!

Anyway, time for us to open up our wallets, put on our extra loose pants and get down to business. We hope you enjoy hearing about our adventures and benefitting from our expert reviews!

Much Love,

Mark & Matt

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