As we strive to prepare meals using the freshest, most seasonal, and locally sourced ingredients, ideally from nearby farmers, we’ve come to regularly visit several favourite places since moving to this area in 2011.
We decided to create a list to share with others and to support our local farmers and communities. We’re grateful they exist—many of them for generations—and hope others will discover and enjoy these hidden gems too.
The Stormarn area in Northern Germany comprises 55 municipalities of varying sizes and six main towns: Ahrensburg, Bad Oldesloe, Bargteheide, Glinde, Reinbek, and Reinfeld (Holstein). Located near the Baltic Sea, this region is characterized by lush farmland and fresh air. It’s a jewel for the Schleswig-Holstein province. This website is an excellent source of tourist information for the Stormarn area, including recommendations for recreation, accommodation, dining, and more.
If you live in or plan to visit the Stormarn area in Northern Germany and are like-minded about nourishing your body and soul, this farm-to-table guide is for you!
We plan to keep it a living guide and add to it as we discover more gems. If you know of a place we should add, please send us a message here.
This guide is available in Deutsch.
Farmer’s Markets
Buying our food at farmers’ markets began when we lived in Canada, but it increased after we moved to Germany.
We visit a farmer’s market at least once a week—sometimes even twice—and see it as a culinary outing. As you stroll through the stands, it’s a feast for the senses, with beautiful displays of fresh meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, cheese, bread, and eggs, alongside inviting specialty stalls offering freshly roasted coffee beans, fine teas, aromatic spices, local honey, bouquets of fresh flowers, and much, much more.
Here are three we highly recommend:
Bargteheide
Where: Marktplatz
When: Fridays, 14:00-18:00
This is the market we frequent the most. Uniquely held in the afternoon rather than the morning, and on a Friday, it’s an excellent opportunity to get your weekend shopping done early.
Many of the vendors are highlighted separately further down the blog.
Ahrensburg
Where: Rathausplatz 22926 Ahrensburg
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
This bustling market provides everyday essentials like fresh meat, fish, vegetables, and cheese to Nordseekrabbe (tiny North Sea shrimps), Spanish delicacies, and stands featuring freshly made dips, olives, and other specialities. Many of the stands we highlight further down are also at this market, so if we miss the Friday Bargteheide market, we can visit them here.
We were sad when one of our go-to butchers, Günter Feddern, stopped coming. Günter provided exceptional cuts of antibiotic-free, free-range meat, sausages, and his own homemade cold cuts. If anyone reading this knows if Günter has a stand elsewhere, please let us know!
Volksdorf
Where: Kattjahren 4, 22359 Hamburg
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
Technically, this market is not located in Stormarn, but we decided to include it as it is the largest of the three with a bigger variety of vendors—not just food but kitchen accessories, clothes, plants, and more.
Here’s where to go for a large assortment of smoked fish. The fresh pasta stand, Die Pastafrauen, is also worth a visit for its selection of homemade pastas—fettuccine, tagliatelle, gnocchi, and German Maultaschen (meat dumplings) in addition to ready-to-go meals such as lasagna. In our opinion, it’s one of the best markets we’ve been to anywhere.
After you’ve finished shopping (or before if you’re an early bird), you can stop at a small coffee wagon for a quick espresso or cappuccino, served by a charming gentleman. Or, during Matjes season, there’s a wagon offering up a nice selection and to-go buns for a late breakfast or lunch.
Ralf Stoffers
Where: Bargteheide Wochenmarkt, Marktplatz
When: Fridays, 14:00-18:00
Where: Volksdorfer Wochenmarkt, Kattjahren 4, 22359 Hamburg
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 08:00 to 13:00
A visit to our Friday Bargteheide market always begins with Ralf Stoffers’ stand. He and his daughter greet us with big smiles and nourish our souls with Entrecôte (for our traditional Friday steak night), duck, chicken, organic eggs, and especially lamb.
Years ago, Ralph coined Ralf Stoffers the Lamb Guy after making one of his special cuts from his own-raised lambs, as described in our grilled ‘Edelstück’ lamb ribs recipe. We’ve also made Moroccan-spiced leg of lamb, pan-seared veal cutlets with Za’atar, savoury roast turkey, our Christmas Day duck two ways (confit and breasts), and risotto with duck breasts and roasted red peppers—all from meat purchased from Ralf. We’ve also pre-ordered chickens from Ralf to make stock.
What’s also brilliant about Ralf Stoffers is his homemade meals from his products, such as Goulash, chicken fricassee, chili con carne, Königsberger Klopse, and more. We also buy fresh corn on the cob and sunflowers grown on Ralf’s farm in late summer.
Many of the butchers and meat vendors at the previously mentioned farmers’ markets prepare ready-to-grill meat that is already marinated in various BBQ sauces. Ralf offers deboned chicken thighs in curry sauce (a lunchtime air fryer favourite of ours), as well as beef, chicken, and pork skewers, bacon-wrapped beef and pork tenderloin medallions, lamb rack finger burners, and more. Perfect for a no-fuss grill evening. He also has hunter friends, so when something like deer or wild boar is in season, he makes these specialties available as well.
Ralf and his family mean a lot to us. Since our son moved out earlier this year, he gets his chicken from Ralf every Friday. As Heather wrote in A tribute to Farmers, buying food directly from a farmer is an incredibly great feeling and a mutually beneficial exchange of support.
Farmers help keep us healthy and inspire the meals we enjoy and share with family and friends.
Hoose Landschlachterei
Where: Hauptstr. 2, 22941 Hammoor
When:
Tuesday, Thursday & Friday: 7 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wednesday: 7 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Where: Wochenmarkt Ahrensburg, Rathausplatz
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
When you walk through the doors of Hoose, it could be 1950 or earlier. The butcher is friendly and offers a wide selection of freshly prepared meats and sausages from regional animals, as well as cold cuts, cheese, and ready-made meals. Our recipes for Oma Marion’s oven-baked pork roast with Hefeklöße, beef tallow, heart and liver for Mogly’s homemade cooked dog food, smoked beef brisket on a charcoal grill and crackling porchetta on the grill came from Hoose. We also buy her smoked sausages to snack on while golfing.
One local specialty we buy there mainly on weekends is Zwiebelmett, which resembles raw, coarse-ground pork and is, in fact, made from it, with some added spices. It’s traditionally served pressed thickly onto open-faced buns and covered in raw onion slices. We replace the onions with chives as Ralph’s stomach can’t handle raw onions. It’s essential to keep it cold and eat it within a day.
We found out once that our son likes it too, so we always have it on hand if he’s coming over for breakfast.
Fisch Kalinowski
Where: Bargteheide Wochenmarkt, Marktplatz
When: Fridays, 14:00-18:00
Where: Wochenmarkt Ahrensburg, Rathausplatz
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
Fisch Kalinowski offers a wide selection of fresh fish and seafood. They also offer a nice assortment of smoked fish, shrimp, crab, and other seafood salads (including mayonnaise-based options for spreading on buns and bread), and we’ve regularly purchased their oysters. This is the place to go if you’re making bouillabaisse, as they have a great variety—a one-stop shop!
If you’re hungry, they deep-fry delicious homemade battered fish that will keep you fueled as you continue making your rounds at the market. On Saturdays at the Ahrensburg market, you’ll find lineups for it at their stand. It may seem unusual for breakfast, but it’s delicious.
Fisch Peters
Where: Wurth 12, 22941 Bargteheide
Opening hours:
Tuesday-Friday: 08:30 – 18:00
Saturday: 08:30 – 18:00
When we first moved to the area, this fish store was owned by Fisch Berni & Töchter. We often bought our salmon and tuna there to make sushi, in addition to smoked salmon and their homemade battered fish. We mainly bought our fish from the Kalinowski stand at the Bargteheide and Ahrensburg farmers’ market.
After the new owner took over, we occasionally continued to buy our fish from him. There’s also a wide selection of salads, sauces, Lachs Frickadellen (salmon cakes/burgers), in addition to mussels and Matjes (herring) when in season.
But one day, when Ralph stopped in to buy salmon to prepare sashimi to accompany our Thursday takeaway sushi, the lady behind the counter took the time to explain how the owner carefully sources salmon that is sustainably raised off the coast of Scotland in colder water, so they do not use any antibiotics. This has always been a reservation of ours when eating salmon. Now we eat it guilt-free!
Since then, we have made a regular trip there for our salmon sashimi, which accompanies our Thursday night sushi rolls ordered from Tsubaki in Großhansdorf, Koyaki Sushi in Bad Oldesloe, or Shinzō in Bargteheide.
Tee & Gewürze vom Marktstand
Where: Bargteheide Wochenmarkt, Marktplatz
When: Fridays, 14:00-18:00
Where: Wochenmarkt Ahrensburg, Rathausplatz
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
The owner of this stand, Djalal,is a gentle soul who offers a vast selection of loose fruit and herbal teas, spices, and other condiments. He mixes many of the spices and teas himself. He is a spice expert, so if we can’t find something specific, he can always recommend a substitute.
We discovered he speaks good English during a visit from Heather’s sister, who had a delightful conversation with him. She met up with him again on her most recent trip and bought a fruity green tea that Heather has been enjoying for years.
Käseparadies Christensen
Where: Bargteheide Wochenmarkt, Marktplatz
When: Fridays, 14:00-18:00
Where: Wochenmarkt Ahrensburg, Rathausplatz
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 07:00 to 13:00
If you love cheese, you will adore this true cheese paradise. This family stand has been at the weekly market for over 70 years, now in its third generation with current owners Nils and Nicole Christensen.
Their selection of cheeses is both local and international, and they offer a delicious range of homemade cream cheeses and Ralph’s favourite ‘cheese salad’, made with a variety of cubed cheeses, red and yellow peppers, mayo, and herbs.
They’re happy to let you sample a cheese if something catches your eye. We usually pick up our cheese for Raclette here—a New Year’s Eve classic in Germany (originating in Switzerland).
Hof Ruge
Where: Jersbeker Straße 80, 22941 Bargteheide
Opening hours:
Monday to Saturday, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (open on holidays as well)
The Ruge family has been farming in and around Bargteheide for 10 generations. They are passionate about animals and adhere to organic regulations, avoiding genetic engineering.
This is the place for delicious organic, raw milk straight from the cows. In German, it’s called a Milchtankstelle, which translates in English to a milk filling station (Tankstelle is also used for gas stations, to tank or refuel).
It’s self-serve, so you can bring your clean bottle or buy one from their vending machine. The cost of their milk is incredibly reasonable for the quality, far less than what you’d pay at the grocery store for bio milk.
You can also buy organic eggs from their chickens, potatoes, and other organic items in their vending machines, including pasta, honey, meat, cheese, ice cream, and more. If you’re lucky, you’ll be greeted by a group of happy turkeys, chickens, and cows from behind the fence near where you park. Children will enjoy visiting this farm.
Self-serve eggs
We decided to create a separate section because there are three additional places, in addition to Hof Ruge, where we can recommend sourcing your eggs, especially when needed on a Sunday or holiday.
Bargteheider Landei
Where (vending machines):
Farm: Tremsbüttler Weg 85, Bargteheide
In town: Rathausstraße 6, 22941 Bargteheide
Heather wrote this post about eggs from Bargteheider Landei because it was the first place she found to buy eggs outside of the farmer’s market or grocery store hours. She was intrigued by how they could be safely dispensed from a vending machine!
Hof Seemann
Where: Fischbeker Straße 7, 23869 Elmenhorst
Opening hours: Mondays-Sundays, 6:00 – 22:00
This farm has been around since 1752 and is now in its ninth generation. This is the address for their farm store, where you can purchase potatoes, pasta, cheese, cuts of meat, hay, and straw from their meadows, in addition to their fresh, bio eggs. All self-serve!
Anns Biohof
Where: Zum Mühlengrund 9, 23869 Elmenhorst/OT Fischbek
Heather came across this little gem while walking Mogly. You buy the eggs (organic) from the cutest little wooden house, and across the road, you can see their chickens happily strutting about.
These organic eggs are slightly more expensive than those from other farmers, but Heather is convinced they’re the tastiest—especially when we boil a few to snack on at the golf course.
Obsthof Lienau
Where: Bergstraße 2, 23843 Neritz
Opening hours:
Monday to Saturday: 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m
Closed on public holidays
The name of this 100+ year, multi-generational farm store translates into ‘fruit farm’ in English, and that is what you’re greeted with when entering it—especially the aroma of their wide selection of apples, grown on their orchards beside the store. Here’s a list of the apple types they sell. In the fall, you can pick them yourself.
All the essentials are here—from a wide variety of fresh vegetables, potatoes, fruit, local cheeses, meats, bread, milk, yogurt, dates, to packaged goods, juice, wine, beer, coffee, tea – the list goes on and on! They also sell food for animals, fresh hay, and plants.
Take a look at what they offer here. Their main sign, viewed from the highway, will feature what’s in season.
What we love about this place is that they’re open on Sundays. Although we try to get everything we need earlier in the week, it’s so handy to have this farm store nearby in case something is forgotten, or when we arrive back from a Sunday flight and need some essentials.
This is a place to bring children, as they’ll enjoy visiting their goats, chickens, and sheep.
For those who love cakes and coffee, be sure to visit this store on weekends from March to October, when an on-site food truck operated by Lütte Leev serves scrumptious homemade cakes and hot or cold espresso drinks. See below for more information.
Lütte Leev
Where: Bergstraße 2, 23843 Neritz (Obsthof Lienau)
When: Friday to Sunday from 12–5 pm, March to October (visit their website for exact dates and holiday closures)
As mentioned above, this is a great way to begin or end your shopping at Obsthof Lienau—treat yourself to a homemade piece of cake and a cup of coffee from the quaint food truck located beside the store.
The truck is run by Kathi and Merle, friends since their student days, who share a deep passion for sweet little treats, large and classic cakes, and beautiful wedding creations.
You can also order their cakes by email. Sugar-reduced, vegan, and lactose-free options are available as well.
Kleverhof
Where: Mönkenbrook 26, 23869 Elmenhorst
Opening Hours – Farm Store:
Monday to Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Opening Hours – Post Office:
Monday to Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 6:45 p.m.
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Closed on public holidays
This is another multi-generational family farm store offering a diverse selection of organic fresh vegetables, fruit, eggs, baked goods, packaged items, and other pantry staples, along with a range of household essentials. They also provide bulk canisters of rice, pasta, muesli, and more, which you can purchase with your jar or one they provide.
They offer an impressive selection of fresh cheese, bread, and buns, in addition to wine.
One of their highlights is that they grow a variety of tomatoes in a greenhouse on their farm, including both old and new cultivars. You can also buy their seeds and tomato plants.
They also provide mail and delivery services. A true general store feeling of bygone days that lives on!
Buchenhof
Where: Buchenhof 1, 22941 Delingsdorf
Opening hours:
Friday from 16-19
Saturday from 10-14
Sunday from 10-14
Or by appointment
Ralph heard about this place from our friend who lives in the village near their farm, and discovered they have great cuts of frozen beef. We’ve seen the sign at the entrance to the farm from the main highway between Bargteheide and Ahrensburg, but Ralph never went in because at the time we were buying most of our beef from Günter Feddern at the Ahrensburg market.
One day, he decided to stop in and, wow! The owner, Alexander Weiß, greeted him as he got out of the car and proudly took him over to his temporary store (his new shop was just being built). Ralph couldn’t get over how clean it was—even the drive-in shed next door could have passed a health inspection. Alexander explained that he crossed his beef from Angus, Wagyu, and Longhorn cattle to achieve the desired taste and fat content. The cattle are all raised on the farm, and you can see them in the fields as you drive up.
At that time, he only had frozen cuts, but he also offers fresh cuts for a few weeks after butchering. (To be informed when that is, sign up for his newsletter via the box that pops up when you click on his website.) He has his cattle butchered off-site, and his meat is vacuum-packed.
Needless to say, the beef is delicious, inarguably the best flavour we’ve ever tasted. Justifiably, the cost per kilo of beef from Buchenhof is much higher than our other sources, but when it’s time to splurge, a huge tomahawk steak or brisket from Buchenhof is the only choice!
We took Heather’s parents and sister from Canada there, and, being raised on farms and still having dairy farmers in the family, they enjoyed it. It so happened that a few calves were born the night before, so we got to see them in the field under the close watch of their mama.
Heather’s mother made an interesting observation—there was no farm smell at all. Once she pointed it out, we realized she was absolutely right. What an amazing place!
And if you need a place to stay in the region, they rent out this beautiful house located on their property surrounded by nature.
Heather Roth Communications 