Romancing the Bean Series
by Caffeine Cowboy
Chefs Werner Vogeli and Karl Haas share childhood memories.
Tales from the Old County
I count
among my friends and mentors some venerable and highly respected chefs
and hospitality specialist. These gentlemen
are revered in the Dallas culinary community. They are iconic.
Many
learned their craft in the shadows of WWII. Swiss, Austrian, French, and German influences ignited their love of exquisite dining that they eventually brought to a
booming Dallas of the 70’s. It was time of great hotels and the explosion of fine dining in downtown Dallas that brought these adventurous young chefs that changed the image of dining and brought European luxury and elegance to the table.
I always felt
that they liked me, but after the research for this story I realized that my
charm my have been secondary to my devotion and accessibility to great coffees!
 | |
| Chefs Karl Haas and Peter Klaus Curley |
My 1st Dallas account as the Caffeine Cowboy was the City Club. I would tell people, "the closest coffee to heaven in Dallas was mine!"
They shared
pieces of their personal memories of coffee in their post war youth with me. jb
Chef Werner Vogeli: International Judge EWMCS and dedicated chef instructor Art Institute
of Dallas and El Centro. Legendary Chef of the City Club Dallas.
Founding father of the Texas Chefs Association, Past
President and Chairman
I began my apprenticeship at Gruner Heinrich
(named after the book written by Gotfried Kellar). It is located on the Belview
Platz in Zurich. This is a major circle much like the Arc de Triomphe area of
Paris. The first thing one sees is the racks of every available publication.
Patrons came daily and would checkout their choice of news or cultural
information much like in a library.
It was an alcohol-free restaurant serving
excellent cuisine. Pastries and desserts were very popular there and coffee was
definitely the common denominator. The afternoons were wonderful times when it
was very popular among the ladies to meet for light pastries and coffee
talk.
Coffee was
served by the portion. A silver service
providing two portions of coffee were served with one demitasse (a three ounce
cup). One could not request a refill but rather ordered another portion. The
cost was twice that of the finest beers, but that was not a hindrance, one
expected to pay for such a fine indulgence.
At home, we
were told as children that coffee would stunt our growth. I am amused now to
remember this and realize that this was a way to reduce our desire to also
share in the coffee. Burnt sugars,
roasted acorns, fruits, and nuts were often used to brew something to serve in
our cups. Coffee was and still is a
mysterious treasure to me.
Chef Karl Haas: International Vice President- Past President, USA Epicurean World Master Chefs Society
Executive Chef at the French Room at the
Adolphus
After WWII, I
apprenticed on an extravagant kitchen rail car used originally by the German
high command but used by the Allied Military General Court when I had become of
age. One of the bonuses for those of us who worked with the Americans was their
vast consumption of coffee. They would
toss in 2 lbs. of coffee at a time into giant urns all day long. They didn’t
care about the used grounds, but we did!
The German
citizens would stand in lines that were regularly 3 or 4 hours long just to buy
50 or 100 grams of coffee! That would be
enough in today’s times to make one or two pots. At that time, it was used much
more sparingly.
Only on
Sundays and special occasions was coffee served in my home. The rest of the
week we were very inventive, using roasted chicory, barley, and nuts in order
to pretend we were drinking coffee.
When I moved
to America in 1950, coffee sold for about $8 per pound in Germany. It cost only
98 cents per pound in America. It was
with great pleasure and pride that on a regular basis I was able to ship
2-pound cans (that was the limit) to my mother who had remained in Germany.
"Whenever my
mother, her sister, or any of her close friends had the great fortune to obtain
some coffee they would surely share this prize.
Coffee was treasured and traded like gold. It would have been
unthinkable and unforgivable to have had some coffee and be found to have not
shared it among family and friends.
My strongest
memory of coffee was with my mother. I
remember a time when I was given a cup as a small child and had not emptied
it. My mother, bless her, scolded me and
said, “I have cast pearls before swine.”
Leaving any coffee undrunk was an unthinkable act of disregard and
disrespect.
I am nearing
an age of considering retirement but the spirit of my mother lives on in each
cup. I could not possibly leave a cup unfinished. My sister lives in Germany,
and to my joy, she regularly sends me several pounds on a regular basis. Coffee
is part of my history, my heritage. It will always be this way."
- J.B. Blocker is a media consultant based in Collin County in North Texas. Advertise with J.B. by calling 469-334-9962. Email: jbnorthtexas@gmail.com
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