by Adele R
Originally published in Currents, April/May 2005
Copyright ©2004-2005 AWC Hamburg

It was a dark winter day in Hamburg which is, weather notwithstanding, my favorite city in Germany. It had started out dry and I was grateful for that as I speed-walked, New Yorker style, down the streets to my beloved Isemarkt to pick up croissants and pâté. Yes, I know that I can buy croissants at any bakery, or bagels for that matter, even a form of squishy white bread, if I wanted it. Life in Germany has changed enormously from when I moved here in the late Sixties, not to mention in just the seven years I spent back in my beloved New York from 1995 to 2002.

I was on a mission that day because I was expecting friends for breakfast. This is another favorite thing: having my women friends come for breakfast, or lunch or coffee. (I also give an occasional dinner but it is lot more work and relatively expensive for someone on a serially shrinking dollar budget.) My tiny living room, with its orange taffeta curtains and yellow walls, glowed warmly in the soft lamplight, my pretty china (with AWCH mugs for the Caffee Lattes) and silver candlesticks looked charming and inviting, and I looked forward to my guests. But I still had those croissants to pick up at the Isemarkt.

The entire two kilometers from Hoheluftchaussee to Eppendorfer Baum, under the rainproof roof of the U-bahn along Isestraße, is one gigantic green market on Tuesdays and Fridays (8:30 until 14:00). But one can get a lot more than just vegetables, organic and otherwise, here. There are at least three or four stands with wonderful fresh fish, organic butchers, a great vegetarian stand which has vegetable quiches, vegetable and potato casseroles, as well as great soups and fresh pressed juices to take home or eat at the stand. The best cheeses, including some rare French specialties, can be found here at Thiele Käse, and directly across from the Thieles, a stand with fresh pasta and sauces. There are any number of stands with clothes for adults or children, hats, scarves, shopping baskets, jewelry, candles and other items and delicacies too numerous to mention. And of course, fresh flowers en masse. And, at the junction of Brahmsallee and Isestraße, Delices de France, the stand with the croissants and pâtés.

The two Frenchmen, Messieurs Didier et Cartier, bake the croissants right there in a special oven in the open air and the smell of fresh-baked pastry is totally seductive. I eat one on the spot and, as usual, I am not disappointed. A delicate crisp crust, buttery soft insides and impeccable flavor herald a master French chef at work. Then there are tartelettes filled with mushrooms, wrapped pastries with pieces of duck, and other delicacies also baked on the spot. And the pâtés! I choose three, along with the croissants, pick up a bunch of flowers and race to get home before my guests (and the sleeting rain) arrive.

Isemarkt Stands

Here are a few of my favorite stands at the Isemarkt. Begin at U-bahn Hoheluftbrücke and walk toward Eppendorfer Baum. I use the house numbers on the left or street names on the right to find the general location of the stands quickly.

Fresh fish: Herr Quast often has wild salmon from Canada, along with other fish. On your right, across from house #5 before Innocentiastraße.

Fresh and dried herbs and spices, including fresh coriander: Kräuter Hexe, on the left just beyond Innocentiastraße.

Organic vegetables: the two stands I prefer are Gut Wulfson (directly after the fish stand at Innocentiastraße on the right) and on the left at the crossing of Brahmsallee.

Käse Thiele: four brothers and their wives sell a huge variety of cheeses, including rare French specialties, at one of the largest stands on the market. Just beyond Innocentiastraße on the left.

Floresbela: unusual flowers and bouquets created especially for you by Frau Kiesewetter (only on Fridays). Directly across from Käse Thiele.

Fresh pasta and all its accoutrements at two great stands: one closer to Hoheluftchaussee, across from house #25 on the right, or further along on the right, across from house #53 – Frische Pasta.

Organic meats and cold cuts: Bio-Fleisch on the left at house #28 (Klosterallee).

Croissants freshly baked right there, pâtés and more: Delices de France at the corner of Brahmsallee on the left.

Vegetarian take-out: on the right, across from Delices de France, corner of Brahmsallee.