This north German autumn classic combines green beans, pears and smoked bacon in one pot, the sweet-savoury-smoky balance the signature of Hanseatic seasonal cooking.
Birnen Bohnen und Speck dates to 17th-century North German farm cooking, when the late-summer green-bean and pear harvests overlapped. Hamburg adopted the dish from the Schleswig-Holstein hinterland through the 19th century. The recipe is fixed: green beans, small whole hard pears (Kochbirnen), thick-sliced smoked bacon, savory (Bohnenkraut), and salted potatoes alongside. Old Commercial Room and Fischereihafen Restaurant cook the seasonal version through August and September.
3 editor picks for Birnen Bohnen und Speck in Hamburg, ranked by editorial score. All Hamburg signature dishes · Birnen Bohnen und Speck across every city.
Old Commercial Room ★ 4.4
neustadt · Englische Planke 10, 20459 Hamburg
Old Commercial Room opposite the Michel in Hamburg has cooked Hanseatic harbour food since 1795 and is the city's canonical Labskaus address.
Fischereihafen Restaurant ★ 4.3
altona · Grosse Elbstrasse 143, 22767 Hamburg
Fischereihafen Restaurant on Grosse Elbstrasse in Hamburg-Altona has cooked classical Hanseatic seafood since 1981, with daily catch from the harbour below.
Deichgraf ★ 4.2
neustadt · Deichstrasse 23, 20459 Hamburg
Deichgraf on the historic Deichstrasse in Hamburg's Neustadt cooks traditional Hanseatic dishes on the city's oldest canal-side street, rebuilt after the great 1842 fire.