Albert's Schloss

I must confess, I love a themed restaurant, and I've wanted to try Albert's Schloss since I very first heard about it planning to open in the former Brannigan's unit in the Albert Hall on St Peter Street in Manchester City Centre. Presumably that's also how it got the name of  Albert's Schloss, from the Albert Hall (and so Prince Albert) and 'schloss' being the German word for a castle or country manor.

We get plenty of places in the UK bigging up Indian, Chinese, Thai, Italian and Japanese food in recent years, including plenty of theming, but we never seem to get many places extolling the comforts of good German food. Admittedly in the UK, people associate German cuisine with beer, and as Albert's Schloss bills itself as a friendly bohemian bierhaus, it can certainly pull the people in, and then spring on them the delicious food they are also offering in such a fabulous venue.

I mention the venue, because I absolutely adore it. The theming is a bit of a modern restaurant, but with lots of faux foliage, a nod here and there to the idea of old alpine ski lodges, and some elements of old school German bierhauses, such as a section of long shared tables and bench seating in front of  a small cabaret stage. (I'm told good things about the cabaret, I must come back sometime to see it!). But I love the entire feel of the place. It makes you want to wander around and explore, as there's lots of things to look at and that catch the eye as you try to read your menu. The theming even extends to the toilets, which is always a sign of dedication.

When we arrive, we are asked if we have booked, which we haven't, but luckily are still shown immediately to a table, and introduced to our waitress who tells us about the specials, and hands us our 'Luncheon Service' menus. The first thing I must admit I noticed is that the drinks were very expensive in my opinion, especially the fact that I only wanted a soft drink as I don't drink; a can of Ting can retail in Tesco at 33p,  but here it's  seen as some sort of high end special drink, commanding a price of £4, as is a bottle of Coca-Cola. However, that's just my personal take on the prices. I'm sure others may find them perfectly reasonable.

The menu itself though is superb, showing off a bakery section using their own artisan baked goods, small plates, traditional Alpine classics with a modern twist, a wurst section, and a sides section that shouldn't be dismissed, as it boasts some greats!

To start, we ordered the Schloss bread tin; seeded rye, sourdough, alpine special, something called "schloaf", and whipped butter. We also ordered the roast cauliflower and aged cheddar soup.

The bread arrived in good time, but the soup didn't, leaving us to believe that the waitress may have not heard us properly, and simply assumed we were going to be sharing the bread tin between us. We didn't mind this, as it turned out the bread itself was absolutely sublime. Each piece of bread with its own distinct flavour, not overly dry, and not dull. We really enjoyed it.

But then when we finished it, the soup arrived... maybe a delay in the order system, but that's forgivable, as the soup was excellent; comforting, rich, and seriously thick, topped with sourdough croutons.

For our mains we chose the chicken schnitzel with the recommended side of "sformato", described as baked truffled potatoes with nuggets of melting Alpine cheese (who wouldn't  go for that?!), and the "sausagefest" from the wurst menu, described as all three of the haus sausages (bratwurst, currywurst, and kaiserwurst), served with german potato salad, kraut, haus salad,  and a sweet and spicy mustard.

Whilst we waited for our food, I popped to the loo, and to have a look at some  more of the theming, which is where I saw bits like a fantastic little ski lodge scene, and in the basement discovered a free photo booth allowing you to take photos of your visit, and even pin them to the wall with those of other visitors. I liked this fun touch, and couldn't help but join in!

The food arrived. At first I thought the sausage fest looked a little expensive, but then I saw that each sausage lay right the way across a large oval plate... big beasty sausages! Each of them was superb in flavour, again with their own distinct tastes. The sauerkraut and potato salad were an excellent accompaniment, with their sharp tangy and creamy flavours balancing out well with the spicy meat flavours.

The schnitzel I must admit was a little underwhelming on its own. It was a little pale on one side, and didn't have any particular flavour, although the chicken itself was lovely and juicy. Perhaps some seasoning in the breadcrumb might liven it up a little? However, when accompanied with the mayonnaise and the delicious fresh salsa verde, it worked very well. It also worked well with the sfomarto. The sfomarto. I could give this dish a paragraph all to itself. In fact I could visit JUST for this unassuming little side. It was a luscious and creamy mashed potato, with glorious globs of melty cheese throughout, and topped with crispy golden cheese and fresh chives. As a side, this is one of the best I've ever had!

At this point we were predictably extremely full. The food had been wonderful, and on a par with some of the genuine places we've visited in Berlin, but that sfomarto sent it to another world! After having a drink and a breather, we decided to at least ask about the delicious looking bakery table that was near us, laden with loaves and delicious sweet bakes. I was a little put off by the fact that it's just out there in the public, right next to a 2 person table, but luckily the people who had been sat there throughout our meal didn't look like they had the flu, so we weren't too peturbed (but seriously, maybe some covers?).

Our waitress told us the day's bakes, and so we opted for a cinnamon knot, which came with dipping  chocolate, and a chocolate orange meringue kronut (the cronut being a hybrid of croissant and donut). We also had previously read online that Albert's do a superb hot chocolate, so opted for a couple of those too.

The cinnamon roll was good, and worked really well with the unctous chocolate dipping sauce. The orange meringue kronut was very tasty. The meringue was more the type that's piped then blow-torched rather than baked in the oven, but it was still very good, with a sauce inside that lifted the whole thing.

The hot chocolates were the perfect partner to these sweet delights. A lovely rich and velvety hot chocolate, piled high with whipped cream and a chocolate dusting, and big ol' marshmallow on the side. They were superb. They often serve them with a shot of salted caramel schnapps, which I can imagine really adds something, but sadly they had none left that day,  but I would agree with our waitress that the hot chocolates really stood well on their own even without the shot.

Albert's isn't a cheap dinner for two, but it's a good one. If you have a special occasion or a birthday treat, I would definitely recommend it. The food is excellent, the venue is magnificent and fun, and the service is professional and friendly. I'm only going from the food angle though, as there's likely to be an entire different angle should you want to go and try out the beers and cocktails, and watch some live cabaret!

But well done, Albert's, we'll definitely be back!  Das ist gut, ja!


Albert's Schloss
27 Peter Street
Manchester
M2 5QR
(0161) 833 4040
www.albertsschloss.co.uk