Although my roots are Iranian I would call myself pretty German when it comes to some food habits. Anytime I travel or live abroad the bakery Zimmermann is one of those spots I miss first. Germany is famous for its bread and Germans love it. Therefore there are plenty of bakeries in big cities like Cologne. But most of them don’t bake their bread themselves and small long-established bakeries like Zimmermann are becoming increasingly rare.

Zimmermann is a small heritage bakery in the heart of Cologne which is family owned and operating for almost 130 years now. It became famous for its good quality bread, cakes, international specialities and its famous “Schwarzbrot” (black bread), a German speciality, which is a dark wholemeal bread. The Zimmermann family also bakes with original recipes passed down in the family, with only high quality, raw and natural ingredients.

Whenever I enter Zimmermann it feels like I’ve traveled through time; the sign outside the shop and the interior are simple and functional and seem to have been the same for years. I remember how I visited Zimmermann during my childhood with my mother regularly so I have always been a good customer. Especially when I live abroad I fill my luggage with any kind of their 50 different breads and even take orders from others. If you are traveling by plane you should buy with care; this bread is pretty rich and heavy.