A vegetable waffle and salad were part of the weekly menu on a recent visit to Im Grünen Eck. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
It’s challenging to eat at restaurants as a vegan in Kaiserslautern. Some spots have a few dishes, but elsewhere, options other than a sad dressing-free salad are few and far between.
So a menu where you can just close your eyes and pick anything is pretty exciting. Im Grünen Eck, the restaurant on a corner a few blocks from the Stadtpark, has been open since August 2025 for those who are looking for plant-based dining options.
My companion and I, both vegetarians, fit the bill. The staff, including owner Margit Frey, greeted all guests, including a small dog that accompanied one couple. Frey opened her first vegan restaurant in Landau in 2016.
“At that time, fully vegan restaurants were still uncommon, and we were among the pioneers helping to establish plant-based dining in the region,” she said via email. “About four years ago, I passed the restaurant on to a talented young employee who continues its legacy today. “For family reasons, I later moved to Kaiserslautern. By chance, I learned that a local restaurant property was available for lease. The opportunity came at exactly the right time. We decided to take on the project and spent four and a half months renovating and redesigning the space.”
Flowers decorate a table at Im Grünen Eck in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
A bookshelf at the back of the cozy restaurant offers books in exchange for animal-welfare donations on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
Im Grünen Eck sits on a corner that is a short walk from the Stadtpark in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
It’s a family affair, with Frey’s husband, Reinhold, and daughter Merle-Marie Forstmann working at the restaurant, as well as sous chef and pastry chef Luz Aurora Palacios.
On our visit, we felt immediately welcomed to the friendly restaurant with wooden tables, flowers on the tables and lots of sunlight pouring in. We ordered off the weekly menu, which varies by day.
On the Wednesday we visited, it featured a refreshing soup with cabbage, carrots and chickpeas; a vegetable waffle; and a marvelously fresh salad with dressing that had a mustardy zing.
Whether you like the savory waffle would probably depend on how much you like the thought of a savory waffle in general.
Soup started off a recent weekday lunch at Im Grünen Eck in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
Other offerings on the weekly menu this time around included crispy tofu with red lentil and veggie curry, lasagna, spaghetti alla Norma and a deluxe burger.
The a la carte menu, which is available Wednesday through Friday, features a Buddha Bowl, burrito, burger, salad plate and a baked potato side dish.
If you’re wanting a more elaborate meal, there’s a four-course option on Saturdays and Sundays that changes monthly. Reservations are required for that.
Past options included ravioli filled with asparagus, vegetable roulade, pasta dishes and more. The restaurant also holds a monthly Vegan Stammtisch event, a community gathering with a special menu.
A creamy slice of mango cake was a sweet end to a meal at Im Grünen Eck in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
A slice of chocolate cake was topped with strawberry frosting at Im Grünen Eck in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
A foamy cappuccino made with plant-based milk was an after-lunch treat at Im Grünen Eck in Kaiserslautern on June 17, 2026. (Ann Pinson/Stars and Stripes)
To cap off our visit, we ordered a slice of creamy mango cake and a chocolate cake with strawberry frosting. The mango slice was our favorite. The chocolate was tasty but drier than the American cake I’m used to, although a delightful cappuccino helped wash it down.
My dining companion and I decided that visiting in the future just for dessert and coffee would be worthwhile and that another visit for a full meal after the fresh and tasty lunch seems inevitable.
Frey said she’s looking forward to continuing to show people how diverse, creative and enjoyable vegan cuisine can be.
“I am excited about what lies ahead and grateful for the warm welcome we have received in Kaiserslautern,” she said. “This city has given us the opportunity to continue our pioneering work, and I look forward to being part of its future — and all of this just before my 81st birthday.”
Marcus Kloeckner contributed to this story.
Im Grünen Eck
Location: Trippstadter Strasse 56, Kaiserslautern, Germany
Hours: Summer hours Wednesday to Friday, noon-2 p.m. and 5:30-9 p.m. (kitchen closes at 8 p.m.); Saturday and Sunday, 5:30-9 p.m. (kitchen closes at 8 p.m.). Closed Monday and Tuesday. For hours during other seasons, check the website.
Prices: Drinks, 2.90 to 9.50 euros; meal-size a la carte items, 9.90 to 13.90 euros; weekly menu items on our visit, 12.90 to 16.90 euros; June four-course menu was 45 euros.
Information: gruen-eck.de
