Engelberg Magazin No. 24

Natürlich darf im Tea Room ein typisches English Breakfast nicht fehlen.

Geschäftsführer Martin Pfiffner, so wie man ihn kennt: mit einem Lachen im Gesicht.

The new Christen Beck Tea Room in Engelberg serves such delights as a selection of fine teas, “Queen’s Coffee”, and traditional British savour- ies. It also offers summertime fare such as home-made ice-cream sundaes, iced tea, and beer brewed from leftover bread. One ver y specia l sound can be heard in the Tea Room a longside the roar of the milk f rother by the cof fee machine, and the bell on the oven, repor ting that the f ragrant Cornish pasties are ready to come out. It ’s the hear ty laughter of Mar tin P f if fner, the Tea Room’s

regu lars – f rom teenagers to pensioners. Some customers even come here on a daily basis. Here, they can drink a cof fee in peace and quiet – or, more aptly, choose f rom the remarkable selec tion of teas. As tea has to steep for up to eight minutes, that leaves plenty of time for chat ting, reading, or even knit ting. Mar tin is delighted that his ef for ts to make the Tea Room as welcoming as possible have paid of f. His joy f u l laugh rings out as he describes how the customers get comf y here and enjoy life in the slow lane. Taking one’s time over a cup Brösmeli – a beer brewed f rom surplus bread – and heaven ly sundaes f rom home-made ice cream. Guests can a lso choose f rom a selec tion of light and hear ty break fasts. Those looking for something ex tra specia l can book an af ternoon tea. You will need to put aside a good two hours to enjoy it properly. Scones, dainty sandwich- es, elegant sma ll cakes and other treats are ser ved on a three-tiered stand. L ike ever y thing Christen Beck produces, the goodies are made in-house f rom loca lly sourced ingredients. The Tea Room’s bread and cake shop has a ver y dif ferent appearance to the baker y that used to be here. “People like the open-plan shop with its larger, more clearly laid-out displays,” says Mar tin. Café and shop mutu- a lly benef it f rom one another, and in both Mar tin on ly employs loca l staf f. It ’s impor- tant to him that diners and shoppers feel at home here. Mar tin wants the Tea Room to be as distinc tive and as memorable as his laugh. of tea, and a lit tle something to go with it, is an impor tant par t of British tea cu lture. The Tea Room a lso ser ves home-made iced tea,

manager: “The loca ls are glad to have me back as a host in Engelberg and to hear my fa- mous laugh again,” says Mar- tin. And there it is once more – a loud, infec tious laugh. Mar tin is a trained

The Tea Room is a wonderful place to meet friends and get away from it all.

confec tioner and pastr y chef who has lived in Engelberg since 1992. He is a well-known charac ter in the v illage af ter working as head pastr y chef, food & beverage manager, and managing direc tor at Hotel Tref f (now the Ramada) and in the Spannor t restau- rant. His f riend ly, f rank and relaxed man- ner made him a popu lar host. For the past four years, however, he worked behind the scenes as head confec tioner and pastr y chef at the Christen Beck store in Stansstad. When the owner of Christen Beck, Thomas Christen, decided to turn an ex isting Engelberg baker y into an English tea room and shop in 2018, it was clear who shou ld lead the venture. “I was excited about the projec t f rom the ver y star t,” chuck les Mar tin. He worked with Thomas to plan the shop, selec t f urnishings, and dev ise an appea ling menu. “A ll of that has made the Tea Room a par t of me; it ’s like going to work in my own home.” The cosy Tea Room a lready has lots of

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g astronomie | food+drink

gastronomie | food+drink