Breakfast was as remembered, pretty much the standard,
except that the breakfast links had savory and nutmeg or
somesuch in them to keep them in line with the Bratwursts
of local renown. I had assorted proteins and fruit products
as usual, plus an extra banana for potassium.

There was some guy up front who raised a ruckus because
breakfast wasn't included in his rate, and he pushed and
pushed and got a concession for half price provided he and
his family ate only the breads and cold foods (I guess
that's the "continental" option). He complained loudly
throughout the meal; we could hear him well despite his
table being nowhere near ours. There were a lot of well-
tattooed young folks from the rock festival who quietly
ate and occasionally rolled their eyes at the guy.

Time to check out and get lili some more Starwood credit.
We took the bus downtown, deposited our stuff at the desk
at the Meridien, and wandered around town again, then had
a light lunch - sausages with bread and beer - at Bratwurst
Roslein, and I mused on how funny it would be if this
ended up being a stop on the tour to come. After which we
met all the FTMMers for the afternoon guided walking tour,
whose theme was the local foods of Franconia, with samples.
First stop of course: Bratwurst Roslein.

Followed by the (sites of the mediaeval) goose market,
granary, meat butchery, wine storage, the oldest church in
town, the town brewery, punctuated with snack stops with
more or less appropriate goodies - the hard but savory brown
bread, gingerbread, sausages, and so on; the sillily amusing
one was gummy candies to illustrate the wine place. Our
guide was an earnest, cute, and very nervous young student.
We tried not to be too disruptive and distracting and goofy.

The tour ended at the Altstadthof brewery, where we were
treated to a sample of the local red beer. The rest of the
crew went off to do the Bierfest thing, which we'd already
done, so we stayed here for a round: I had a rather nice
Schwarzbier.

Back to the hotel for a supposedly better junior suite,
which had its oddities. For one thing, to make the extra
space, it had been built out into the corridor, creating a
stenosis that must have annoyed people trying to get past
with their luggage. For another, the floors weren't flat,
with the passage into each area an open invitation for one
to stub one's toe. And most oddly, the sleeping and living
areas were separated by a TV and its mounting only. There
might have been a little more room than the other had had,
but the extra space was not apparent, and the bathroom was
about 2/3 the size (still perfectly adequate).

It was soon time to go to the cellar at the Alte Kuch'n,
where we were feasted as befits a group of rowdy mediaeval
knights and their molls (or whatever they were called),
with bardic musical entertainment. We learned a traditional
song, To Drunkenness, whose words any tippler can remember
even after several rounds:

Zum Rausche, Zum Rausche, tra lalala lalala lalala la,
Zum Rausche, Zum Rausche, tra lalala lalala la.

The food was served in big platters. To tell the truth, I
remember it in not so much detail, more because it was
(though perfectly fine) not memorable than because of any
condition of inebriation.

Here's the menu as presented by the Website:

Mead served in a bullock's horn

Wow, this was sweet. Not too alcoholic, but as I found later
in the trip, sugariness multiplies the effect of ethanol on
me. Not much honey flavor, either.

Flat cake with lard, herbal curd and radish

This was a scantily leavened bread served with
Griebenschmalz, which is so much more than lard - it's pig
fat mixed with ground-up cracklings; Krauterquark - dairy
product with vegetables; and Rettisch and Radieschen - both
big white and little red radishes, the white one cut up
with a spiral slicer that I doubt had been available in
mediaeval times.

Home made jellied meat

Head cheese. This didn't seem to go over too well with my
tablemates, so I got plenty. It was kind of sour but very
porky, and the texture was appropriate, which means not
American-friendly.

Rich beef soup with small dumplings

The small dumplings were !matzoh balls!.

Stuffed quail wrapped in bacon fresh from the stove

I was a little disappointed, as the quail were rather
overdone and whatever flavor quail have was overwhelmed by
the bacon. I like bacon, but a nice poultry flavor shouldn't
be submerged like this.

Roasted spareribs with cabbage salad and lambs lettuce

I had one. It was fine. There were also some nonrib bits
on the platter, including a pretty Schweinshaxe. For some
reason, the meat was covered with pickled peperoncini.

House made Apple-pancakes grandmas style

I was hoping for Kaiserschmarrn with apples, but this
was plainer and not moreish at all. The good thing about it
was that it wasn't too sweet.

The alpine dairyman's cheese and fruits

The cheeses looked pretty modern. The fruits were Red Globe
grapes.

So ... not particularly mediaeval. But I admit a lot of fun.

Especially with lots of Ritter Sankt Georg, a Franconian
beer, which was reasonably reasonable in price and quality.

As we had a big day coming up, afterbar barhopping was
deemed not to be a great idea, and we staggered to our
respective lodgings; most of us wisely had chosen places
near the train station, either the Meridien or the Hampton.