18 Best Restaurants in Nuremberg: a Local’s Guide

It’s been a little over a year since I moved to Nuremberg, Germany, yet this is the very first post I write about my new home. I’ve decided to start with my favorite restaurants in Nuremberg because, well, most of the lists I find online tend to fail me. 

Here I come to a popular French spot in the Old Town only to get crepes as thick as good old American pancakes. At a Greek joint mentioned on every listicle in Internet I found a hair on my plate (sorry for the unappetizing details in an otherwise delicious post!). And a few taco joints I gave a try were a real disappointment. 

You might say, “Yulia, why the hell are you going to French, Greek, and Mexican restaurants when you are supposed to stuff your face with bratwurst, potato salad, and pork shoulder?” You are correct, and I totally do that. In fact, I think Nuremberg does German food exceptionally well. If you are visiting the city for a day or two trying traditional Franconian food is an absolute must.

But “pork on pork on pork”, as a tour guide described German cuisine to me once, is something you can’t have on a daily basis. If Nuremberg is not the first city on your trip around Germany, you’ll be thankful that I included options from all over the world. 

In this guide, you’ll find both German and ethnic restaurants, traditional and modern takes on cooking, fine dining and cheap eats. Without further ado, here are my favorite, tried-and-true restaurants in Nuremberg.

My Favorite Restaurant in Nuremberg At the Moment

globo — for Creative Take on Food

My absolute favorite Nuremberg restaurant right now, Globo, is what I’d call casual fine dining. The atmosphere is that of a fresh summer garden, with pots of greens hanging from the ceiling and strategically placed on every shelf and window-sill. Live-edge wooden tables and wicker chairs add to the rustic vibe. In summer, they set tables outside by the monument of Martin-Behaim.

The menu is modern, when possible organic, creative, and, most importantly, exciting. It’s one of those places where you take a bite of food and pause for a second to truly appreciate it. 

If you are looking for a vegetarian restaurant in Nuremberg, globo, while not strictly vegetarian, has plenty of options. The menu changes often and always features specials, so it’s best to discuss what to order with your waiter. 

globo — Theresienplatz, 1 (in the Old Town)

Price: $$-$$$

German Restaurants in Nuremberg

Brezen Kolb — for the Softest Pretzels

Love, love, loooooove Brezen Kolb! This is not a restaurant, mind you, but a small local chain of cafes and food stands around the city whose specialty is pretzels. If I had to recommend only one food to try in Nuremberg, that would be a freshly baked pretzel (preferably halved and smeared with butter). Yes, I’d recommend a pretzel over Nuremberg sausages of which you’ve probably heard by now. 

Given that pretzels have firm roots in the region of Franconia (of which Nuremberg is the capital), it is a must-try here. And the best ones come from Brezen Kolb. The only ingredients used to make pretzels are wheat flour, water, sea salt, yeast and malt. No butter or lard — which was a surprise to me. 

Brezen Kolb is a local company run by the same family since 1957. Make sure to stop by one of their cafes for breakfast or grab a pretzel on-the-go at one of the stands in the Old Town. They have pretzels with butter, cheese, salami, and even a few sweet options. 

Brezen Kolb — many locations in the Old Town and outside.

Price: $

Behringer’s Bratwursthäusle — for Traditional Nuremberg Sausage

Bratwursthäusle is where I take all my family and friends who visit Nuremberg to try the famous local sausage. These guys have been grilling Nuremberg rostbratwurst since 1312. You can get 6,8,10 or 12 sausages served with a side of potato salad, sauerkraut (cabbage) or horseradish.

Bratwursthäusle has its own in-house butcher shop where bratwurst is produced fresh every day. The sausages are grilled by hand on an open beechwood fire, which is a long-standing tradition. Charcoal or gas flame just won’t do. The logs are stored for at least three years before being used which is important for the flavor profile. 

The location is unbeatable — right by Saint Sebald Church and Old City Hall — which is super comfortable if you are looking for a place to eat after a day of explorations. In warmer months get a table outside, perfect for people-watching and listening to the church bells ringing. In winter, share a table with strangers in their small, but so cozy indoor dining area. 

Behringer’s Bratwursthäusle — Rathausplatz, 1 (in the Old Town, by Saint Sebald Church).

Price: $$

Schlemmer Eck — for the Famous Drei im Weckla

Continuing on the topic of Nuremberg sausages, Schlemmer Eck is the place to get your Drei im Weckla, or “three in a bun” translated loosely. Three Nuremberg sausages are stuffed inside a white round bun and finished off with some mustard (the latter you can do yourself). 

This is popular on-the-go snack you’ll find in stands all over the city center and at the markets. However, Schlemmer Eck is one of the most famous, locals-approved stands. Located in the heart of the Old Town, it offers Drei im Weckla for only 2 euro (2.20 if you add sauerkraut). That is their menu in its entirety which I find great. Schlemmer Eck does one thing and it does it perfectly well. 

Schlemmer Eck — Brunnengasse 37-35 (in the Old Town, 2 minutes walk from Saint Lorenz Church).

Price: $

Bratwurst Röslein — for Franconian Cuisine 

Bratwurst Röslein is the self-proclaimed largest bratwurst restaurant in the world. Not sure how reliable that information is, given that I found it solely on their website, but it is definitely a huge space that can accommodate 600 guests in the dining rooms and additional 250 in the beer garden.

They serve Franconian fare in cozy, albeit enormous setting. Think: original Nuremberg bratwurst, Franconian schäufele (pork shoulder), and crispy duck. You can even try all of the above by ordering their Franconian cuisine set.

Bratwurst Röslein — Rathausplatz, 6 (in the Old Town, right by Hauptmarkt).

Price: $$

If You Are Craving Something Other Than German Food

White Bulldog — for the Best Avo Toast and Coffee

White Bulldog is one of my favorite spots to hang out in Nuremberg. Owned by a Russian-Kazakh couple, the cafe offers some of the best coffee in the city, delicious homemade cakes, and a few breakfast items. Their menu is short and sweet, just like I prefer.

But the one thing you should try here is their avocado toast. Prepared with artisan rye bread, fresh avocados, and poached egg, the toast is pure perfection. You can add salmon or slices of mango to it. 

The cafe is open on Sundays — something that shouldn’t be taken for granted in Germany — which makes White Bulldog a perfect brunch spot.

White Bulldog — Hirschelgasse, 1 (just outside of the Old Town).

Price: $-$$

Antipasteria da Gallo — for Delicious Italian Pasta 

There’s no lack of Italian restaurants in Nuremberg, however I found the vast majority to be widely underwhelming. Antipasteria da Gallo is a rare exception. They serve amazing antipasti and pasta dishes in a homely and cozy space hidden in the streets of the Old Town. 

It’s steps away from the Hauptmarkt, yet, I doubt many tourists find their way to this little gem. The place gets incredibly busy at night, so reservations are a must. My personal favorite is a simple pasta with truffle which is not on the menu (just ask the waiter for it).

Antipasteria da Gallo — Radbrunnengasse, 2 (in the Old Town, 5 minutes walk from the Hauptmarkt.

Price: $$

Colombo — for Authentic Sri Lankan Kottu

If it’s not your first time on this blog, you already know that my husband is Sri Lankan and I spent the past decade living on and off the island. So it only makes sense that once we moved to Germany, finding a Sri Lankan restaurant in Nuremberg was a must. 

The funny thing is Colombo serves Sri Lankan and (!) Italian cuisines. The strangest combo ever! I’ve never dared to try their Italian specialties, but I can vouch for Sri Lankan dishes which are exquisite. 

The one thing you must try is kottu, a popular street food in Sri Lanka, full of carbs and fat. The base of kottu is strips of thin, almost transparent, oily roti (flat bread) which are mixed with meats, vegetables, and spices. Once you order, listen to the sounds from the kitchen: you’ll hear your kottu being made before you even smell it. The ingredients are cut into small pieces and cooked on the grill with the help of two metal blades. The sound of blades hitting the grill is the sound of kottu. 

Other great things to consider are buriyani (a rice dish) and string hoppers with curry. They have a small kitchen and only one or two cooks, so be prepared that the food will take a while, but it’s totally worth waiting for!

Colombo — Humboldtstraße, 124 (outside of the Old Town, about 12 minutes walk from the Hauptbahnhof).

Price: $$

Crazy Nate’s — for the Best Tacos and Burritos in Town

Having tried a fair share of tacos in Nuremberg, I can confidently say that Crazy Nate’s are the best you are going to find in the city. To be honest, the sheer idea of trying tacos in Germany was scary. Especially that I used to live in Austin, Texas, and tacos were the staple of my diet. 

Luckily, Crazy Nate’s lived up to the expectations. They prepare everything from scratch: salsa, guacamole, marinades for meats, and refried beans. Most of the ingredients are sourced locally and no preservatives are added in the process. 

You can choose between tacos (street-style are traditionally small and Crazy Nate’s style are slightly bigger) and burritos (huge!) and fill them up with shredded chicken, carnitas or barbacoa. If you are vegan or vegetarian, they have tacos with tofu or cactus. Margaritas and local beer (we are in Germany after all) are also on the menu. 

Crazy Nate’s — Kirchenweg, 38 and Untere Zwinger Straße, 9 (both locations are 20 minutes walk away from the Old Town).

Price: $

Ganesha — for Hot and Spicy Indian Fare

Located smack in the center of the Old Town, Ganesha has been serving Indian food in Nuremberg for 30 years. It’s a family-run restaurant, operated by the second generation today. 

The menu is extensive and a little (read: very) overwhelming at first. I find myself always going for a variety of curries with a side of butter naan or garlic naan (freshly-made flat bread). Some of my favorites include chicken korma, lamb karahi, and palak paneer (cheese and spinach curry). 

Make sure to choose a variety of preparation techniques and spice levels. For example, if one of the dishes is cooked in a curry sauce, another can be fried on a pan. Ask the waiter to adjust the spiciness of the dish if you can’t tolerate hot food. 

Ganesha — Winklerstraße, 3 (in the Old Town, 1 minute walk from Hauptmarkt).

Krummbeere — for Amazing Turkish Kumpir (Baked Potato)

A random find that turned into one of my favorite little joints in Nuremberg, Krummbeere specializes in 3 things: coffee, cakes, and kumpir. The latter is a huge baked potato that is mashed with butter and cheese, then topped with all kinds of ingredients. 

Potatoes are baked in a special oven at 300°C for about 90 minutes which helps to preserve the nutrients. The toppings vary from German-style bratwurst and roasted onion, to Mexican tortilla chips, salsa, and guacamole, to vegetarian option with hummus and couscous. 

Once you are done with kumpir, don’t deny yourself the pleasure of a good cup of coffee (they offer Turkish coffee too) with a homemade cake. The place is small, but super cute and cozy.

Krummbeere — Südliche Fürther Straße, 31a (just outside of the Old Town).

Price: $

Atlantik Döner — for a Cheap Meal on-the-go

According to locals (and my husband), this is the best place for Turkish döner in the whole of Nuremberg. Hence, the lines around lunch and dinner time. Fear not, though, even if the line is out of the door, it usually moves very quickly. 

There’s no sitting space inside, just a couple of tables where you can have your döner standing or take it to-go if the place is too crowded. The bread is baked freshly every day, the meat is juicy. I just wish there was no salad, tomatoes and a bunch of sauce in the döner — you can always opt out, though — but that’s how all Turkish restaurants in Germany stuff döners.

Atlantik Döner — Karolinenstraße, 45 (in the Old Town, 3 minutes walk from Saint Lorenz Church).

Price: $

Thanh Vietnamese Home Kitchen — for Vietnamese Cuisine 

For a taste of Vietnamese cuisine, head to Thanh. A family-run restaurant, Thanh offers Vietnamese specialties like rice paper rolls, pho, warm rice noodle salads and rice dishes. The recipes have been handed down from generation to generation, and the owner’s mother can be often found in the kitchen. 

Thanh Vietnamese Home Kitchen — Kirchenweg, 75 (20 minutes walk away from the Old Town).

Price: $$ 

Best Places for Drinks and Dessert in Nuremberg

Machhörndl Kaffee — for the Best Coffee in Town

Hands down, my favorite coffee spot in Nuremberg. Following the best traditions of third-wave coffee shops, Machhörndl looks for the highest quality coffee grounds all around the world and roasts them on its own premises. 

You can choose between espresso-based drinks made with the help of La Marzocco coffee machine (always an indication of great coffee!) or one of their filter coffees. Besides, they often experiment and add specialties to their menu. 

The coffee shop was started 10 years ago by a team of two which, over the past decade, turned into a team of 15 with 3 locations in Nuremberg. 

Pro tip: they have delicious pastel de nata at their coffee shop in the Old Town.

Machhörndl Kaffee — 3 locations: an espresso-bar in the Old Town and 2 cafes in Gostenhof (near Nuremberg Trials Memorial).

Cafe Bar Katz — for Late-Night Drinks and Coffee

As most of the coffee shops in Nuremberg close at 6 pm (that’s right, who needs coffee after 6?), Katz is pretty much the only option available for late-night coffee which I personally love. If you are not too much into coffee, they serve alcohol too. And cakes. And a little bit of food. All in all, it’s an excellent spot to hang out at night, after you are done with exploring the city and dinner. 

The space, with its old-timey couches and armchairs, art pieces on the walls, and window-sills used as benches, feels like a hipster living room. In warm months you can sit outside facing Hans Sachs Platz and people-watch.

Cafe Bar Katz — Hans Sachs Platz, 8 (in the Old Town).

Price: $-$$

Wicklein Lebküchnerei — for the Freshest Gingerbread Cookies

This is not a restaurant or a cafe per se, but I just have to mention the best place to get your lebkuchen fix! Lebkuchen is a traditional Nuremberg cookie associated with Christmas (although these days you can buy it year round) and is an absolute must-try when in the capital of Franconia. 

It’s prepared with a range of spices like cinnamon, ginger, coriander, pepper, and honey. The cookies are large rounds about 10 cm in diameter. Do not confuse these with lebkuchenherzen — gingerbread hearts — that you’ll often see at Christmas markets and other German celebrations, including Oktoberfest. The enormous heart-shaped cookies are pretty, but completely inedible.

For the real lebkuchen head to Wicklein Lebküchnerei. Its roots can be traced back to 1615, and their shop is located right on the Hauptmarkt where Christmas market takes place. Now the important part! The shop has a variety of packed lebkuchen that is produced at the factory. What you want is their freshly baked cookies — you’ll see them in a window right when you walk in. Those are baked daily on the premises and taste heavenly! 

Wicklein Lebküchnerei — Hauptmarkt, 7 (right on the Hauptmarkt where Christmas market takes place).

Price: $

Neef Confiserie — For All Your Cake Needs

This year, when my friend came to visit me all the way from USA, she stated that eating a good apple strudel was on the top of her must-do in Nuremberg list. That’s how we found ourselves at Neef, the cake paradise. 

On weekends, the place is buzzing with people and you might have to wait a little while to get a table. You might even have to share the said table with strangers. But the cakes are well worth it. They have a wide range of pies, cakes, cookies, artisan chocolate, and what not. 

The apple strudel turned out to be extremely good (especially with the warm custard sauce on side). And so were Black Forrest cake, poppy seed pie, and lebkuchen. 

Neef Confiserie — Winklerstraße, 29 (in the Old Town, 5 minutes walk from Hauptmarkt).

Price: $-$$

Buonissimo — for the Mind-Blowing Pistachio Gelato

While wandering around Nuremberg’s Old Town, you’ll come across multiple gelato shops. Most of them serve more or less the same thing. Gelato that is good and does the trick, but really nothing like what I’ve tried in Italy. 

Now, Buonissimo serves that kind of gelato too. But. They have several flavors that they call “Premium gelato”, and pistachio is one of them. Mixed in gelato are streaks of rich pistachio paste that make the whole thing unbelievable. Since I found it this summer I couldn’t stop coming back for more. 

Buonissimo — Plobenhofstraße 6 (in the Old Town, right on Hauptmarkt).

Price: $

* * *

I hope this guide to my favorite restaurants in Nuremberg was helpful in planning your trip! I know that it differs quite a bit from other lists you’ll find online, but that was my intention. I only included the places that make me feel excited and happy. Hope that’s how you’ll feel too after dining at one of these restaurants in Nuremberg. 

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