A passion for country life – an idea inspires a village.

The Ländliche Kaffeestuben café

Limlingerode at the southern edge of the Harz mountains is a village that isn’t on the way to anywhere. But it still attracts lots of visitors. So there must be something really special here. And there is – the Ländliche Kaffeestuben café.

This is Marie-Theres Mund, smiling into the camera of a television crew. The team is here especially to see her. She has won the Thuringian Tourism Prize, along with many other awards. Fulfilling her childhood dream has involved regional cooperation, enthusiasm and impeccable quality.

Marie-Theres was only 25 when she took over the Ländliche Kaffeestuben café rooms from its previous owners, who were about to retire. Not only did she make one of her childhood dreams come true – even as a little girl she’d always enjoyed baking with her mother – it also enabled her to establish a career for herself in her home village of Limlingerode. She grew up in a house just three doors down from the café and still lives there today.

Welcoming atmosphere

Located in a quaint, timber-framed farmhouse that is around 250 years old, the café contains a maze of small rooms that offer seating for guests. The walls are painted different colours and there’s no sense of uniformity here. The overall impression is timeless, with authentic rustic furniture, pretty decorations and a living room ambiance – definitely unique!

If you like the decorations in the café you can even take them home with you, as some of the pieces are available for sale. Guest can browse through an extensive selection of decorative objects, tableware and gift ideas in the former barn – just don’t disturb the farm cats, which like to find a comfy spot in the middle of the shop to curl up and sleep.

Marie-Theres has been running the business for more than four years now. Every morning, she and her mother are in the kitchen, creating the most delicious cakes and gateaux that are sure to delight any cake lover by that afternoon. They produce up to 15 types of cake every day.

Delicacies from the local region

Traditional recipes, local ingredients and premium quality are the hallmarks of the Ländliche Kaffeestuben. This morning, the camera team accompanied Marie-Theres when she went shopping. To the butcher, the baker and to her local egg supplier. Their existence is by no means a given, even in the countryside. But the region sticks together. Wherever possible, Marie-Theres uses regional produce. The flour for her cakes and gateaux comes from the Bodemühle mill in nearby Bischofferode, a family business going back over 160 years that is currently run by the fifth generation. The bread and the home-reared meat come from neighbouring villages, organic eggs are now sourced from the Sophienhof farm, and whenever possible she uses seasonal fruit in her cakes.

The gooseberry meringue tart is one of the café’s absolute bestsellers, but strawberry and cream gateau, Swedish apple pie and chocolate and banana cake are also very popular.

The quiet little village of Limlingerode has a population of around 250. Located very close to the Green Belt national nature reserve, which marks the former border between East and West Germany, it is slightly hidden, surrounded by rolling meadows, fields and paddocks. This isn’t really a place that people visit by accident, and those that do come tend to be heading for the Ländliche Kaffeestuben. Inside the café, locals and tourists sit side by side at the round, square or rectangular tables, the rooms filled with a contented murmur of conversation.

The farm’s former stables are now used for celebrations, with guests sitting on old feeding troughs that have been converted into benches. Accommodation is also available in two cosy holiday apartments in the loft.

You can enjoy delicious cakes and gateaux every afternoon from Tuesday to Sunday at the café – and also at home. The café also sells lovingly selected decorative objects.