Fritz was not a professional
writer or artist. In fact, he was also a "Master
of the Trade" in the honorable profession of butcher and sausage-maker just
like his father before him. He was trained from an early age to succeed his
father in the family business. My father showed early artistic talent and even
had childhood dreams of becoming an architect, but those dreams had to be laid
aside because of the economic realities of those days in his family.
At that time, if the oldest son showed any intellectual abilities, he was
university bound; the second son was then expected to take over the family
business. And thus it was for my father. All the other sons of the family
except the youngest, were also trained in this field. The youngest son was then
able to receive a university education.
Many hands were needed to keep
the Gasthof functioning and so the daughters of
the family were also expected to do their share in the "Laden" or meat shop, in
the kitchen and in the inn. In addition, there were apprentices, maid servants
and other hired hands to make certain the guests in the restaurant and inn were
well taken care of.
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My father, Fritz Lindner, was born in
1899 in a small German town in
northeastern Bavaria. His parents were hardworking innkeepers who established
a successful business and eventually built their own establishment which
quickly became a favorite place for excellent food and drink, as well as a
welcome spot for good conversation and Bavarian "Gemütlichkeit". My
grandfather was a Metzgermeister - a Master of his trade. As a young woman, my
grandmother attended cooking school in Vienna and became an expert in
Viennese-style cuisine. Nine sons and daughters lived to grow up. My father
was the second son.
