Lommerzheim

"Lommerzheim ... the legend lives on" - that's the title of one of the books available about this legendary inn on the Schäl Sick, Cologne-Deutz. It gathers the beautiful stories about the cult pub, which opened in 1959 and was reopened in 2008 after a long renovation.

In 2004, Lommerzheim was so charmingly in need of renovation – since 1959 only a few repairs had been made – that the Rheinisches Freilichtmuseum even tried to buy the entire building to reconstruct it with its interior on the museum grounds. What an accolade! But things turned out differently. It is said that the brewery Päffgen, which purchased the house from Lommerzheim's widow after "Lommi's" death in 2005, managed the challenging task of preserving the original atmosphere after a long renovation. If that's not a promise for your visit.

With own song by Miljö: "Su lang die Leechter noch brenne" (As long as the lights are still burning)...

Hans Lommerzheim, like Willi Millowitsch, still posthumously belongs to the true Cologne originals: in 1999, he reportedly "waived" a visit from Bill Clinton due to the regulars. And when the man said "closing time" – he meant it: there was nothing more. To keep the memory alive, not only is there the song "Su lang die Leechter noch brenne," but also the "Hans Lommerzheim-Weg" diagonally opposite Lommerzheim and the fountain donated in 2009 in the beer garden with a bronze relief of beer-tapping Hans – alongside numerous anecdotes and memories captured in word and image in books about the legendary innkeeper.

Gaststätte Lommerzheim, your extended living room

Back then in 1959 and today the renovated guest room measures just 50 sqm. But you can also find cozy seating in the extended vaulted cellar or in the beer garden on the property – depending on the weather, of course.

Menu: gladly for the big appetite

Chops, finger-thick and juicy, with braised onions – and Päffgen Kölsch from the tap, and a little something else worth mentioning: that's what's to eat here. For instance, bratwurst, garlic sausage or homemade potato salad. Or the classics Halven Hahn or Metthappen and blood sausage. Just like always.

So much history: since 1945

Hans Lommerzheim took over the business from his parents, who had been running an inn in the same house since 1945, in 1959. The interior largely corresponded to the 1959 opening decor until 2004. The barroom had some wood paneling and the wallpaper was brown-stained. There were just a few simple tables and some bar seating available. Until Lommi's death, there was no television, cigarette machine, music system, or cash register. The toilets were in the backyard, and the 30-liter wooden barrels were rolled into the barroom from the adjacent cool room.

The transformation over the decades simply didn't happen at Lommerzheim; the inn established itself as an "island in the changing times" and seemingly fulfilled a longing for reliable permanence, as the authors write in the book "Lommerzheim – kleines Glück op Kölsch." Since the 1980s, the ordinary inn became the "cult pub" for which Lommerzheim is still known today and which often results in long queues at the door – often starting in the afternoon.

Anecdotal: Hans Lommerzheim and life

At the Cologne City Museum, there is a special artifact from Lommerzheim: the bone of the last chop consumed by a regular on December 31, 2004. The entire "culinary ensemble" consists of the gnawed, preserved remnants next to knife, fork, plate, and mustard pot – and has the consent for viewing from Annemie Lommerzheim, who passed away in 2016.

Numerous stories exist about the inn, which still consciously presents itself externally as a renovated dump. One tells of Hans's father, who had the habit of distributing free soup to the children of the surrounding streets once during the post-war years. Or that one shouldn't address Hans Lommerzheim to order the Päffgen Kölsch – then one was consistently ignored. He brought the Kölsch when he deemed it right. Incidentally, he calculated the tabs in his head afterward.

After Lommerzheim became well-known, it is said that Lommi liked to pay students standing and place-holding for later-arriving guests with Kölsch. When things got tight in the evening, a few empty water crates were fetched from the yard and supplied with phone books as seat cushions. Voilà, your spot was ready.