Characters of La Cruz; Andrea Kuffner of the Black Forest restaurant. Experiencing Germany in a quaint Mexican village.
Four Canadians from opposite sides of the country, one couple visiting, the other lives here, dining at a German restaurant in a quaint Mexican town listening to flamenco music performed by a German who lives in Mexico and a Mexican who lives in the USA… yes, that’s a typical night in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle at the Black Forest Restaurant. What makes it typical;
- People from all over the world.
- Music… always music in our little town and;
- Food: Chef Winfried always pleases with his creative flare for the yummy!
The Black Forest restaurant is celebrating its 23rd year in business… a great feat in any town, and in La Cruz, that’s monumental. Owned by Peter and Yvonne Demetz and Andrea and Winfried Kuffner brings people together! When I asked Andrea what brought them to La Cruz and had them opening a restaurant here, this is how she responded.
“My grandmother used to tell me stories about her work in some of the finest hotels in the Black Forest Region which sparked my imagination. So, I decided to learn the trade. I loved it, still love it especially the possibilities to travel and meet interesting people. For a while we lived in the Black Forest, however, we wanted to open our own restaurant, but where? It was a new challenge for us and we were looking for a place where we could start small and grow with the area. When my brother Peter and his wife decided to move to Puerto Vallarta in Mexico to start work here in the hospitality industry, we were very interested. When we visited them, we knew we found our new home. At the time there had not been many ethnic restaurants in La Cruz and everybody was happy about a new choice. The restaurant has now been open since October 1998; our birthday is always easy to remember as the restaurant is the same age as our girls.” WOW, twin baby girls and a new restaurant that must have been an undertaking!
What do you want people to know about the restaurant?
“Most people assume that as a German Restaurant we offer only ‘so-called’ typical German Cuisine or heavy, hearty, food; Bratwurst, Sauerkraut, heavy cream sauces and such. At our Oktoberfest festivals, we do serve these traditional dishes, however; our regular menu reflects the light and healthy food choices of Germany over the last 30 years that we grew up with and that we would like to give back to our guests.”
All menu items are wonderful… I highly recommend their margaritas, the chicken liver pate salad, and the Schnitzel Baden-Baden.
They’ve seen changes in their 18 years. Andrea says “The greatest was the name change from “Papasito’s” to “Black Forest Restaurant” in 2004 and the revised menu from a more international cuisine to embracing our German heritage, culinary wise, in 2014. The last was more a gentle, gradual change over many years. Of course, the marina brought a lot of changes to La Cruz, I’ve noticed that the local residents are much more committed to a clean and eco-friendly environment. I work a lot with young people and I see so many of them with enthusiasm reduce, recycle and reuse. Right now there are many restaurants that are implementing programs for green and sustainable jobs and other environment-friendly programs for a more sustainable lifestyle.”
When I asked Andrea to share special memories one stood out most clear “In 2006 we traveled in our (Mexican licensed) car to Vancouver, BC to visit some friends. We stayed in Vancouver, but we certainly did explore the region. So one day we went to the Okanagan Valley. We stopped at a fruit stand where another customer approached us as he heard us talking in German, asking where we are from. We explained that we are originally from Germany, the Black Forest, and now live in Mexico, close to Puerto Vallarta, in the little town of La Cruz de Huanacaxtle where we own a German Restaurant. At that point, he said, “yep the Black Forest Restaurant, I have been at your restaurant”. We never thought that we’d meet by chance a customer from the Black Forest Restaurant in such a remote area. This gentleman came with a big group once a year for several years. As you can imagine we do have lots of good memories. We are usually very close to our clients and most of them have become friends over the years. So we share our happy and sad moments with our friends. “
On Fridays, experience the Gypsy way of celebrating with the untamed gypsy flamenco of Latcho and Andrea; reservations recommended. 329 295 5203 or contact@blackforestpv.com. I highly recommend their margaritas, the chicken liver pate salad, and the Schnitzel Baden-Baden.
Every month they have a Beer Fest with Beer Tasting; call for details.
A great video… tap here.
