Högers Hotel und Restaurant

We dropped in on Sunday afternoon for "Kaffee und Kuchen" without a reservation. The conservatory is beautiful, and it's a lovely place to spend a few hours. The coffee and cake were wonderful, with a great choice of cakes, and the staff were very friendly. We'll be back.

Dinner was excellent from appetizer to main course to dessert, everything was really tasty. Breakfast started well too, with friendly staff happy to accommodate extra requests, but one day the fruit salad was a little moldy. That shouldn't happen, and hopefully won't again. The room looked modern and nice, though the mattress wasn't comfortable and the shower barely had any pressure, like the water was only turned halfway on. You also have to carry a key around instead of using an electronic lock. The hotel is in a quiet little village, which seemed quite suited to older guests who make up most of the clientele. It may not be as appealing to younger people looking for things to do, and the next big city is a 30-40 minute drive away.

My mother lives in Melle, and we happened to come across this place after getting tired of the Dutch four-star hotels there, where we found lots of food but the quality was low. We hadn't heard of Bad Essen and weren't keen on more Oher Fachwerkhäuser, as we thought. But even on the way in, the surrounding woods were a lovely surprise. The little spa town is quiet, friendly, and deeply relaxing. Our daughter loved the huge, amazing playground, and the small fountain in the idyllic square in the historic part was another favorite. The hotel sits right on that square, in a partly historic building, perhaps from 1920. It made me feel like Wilhelm Meister at his Gasthaus. The staff were incredibly friendly, with maybe one exception, typically Westfalian. The rooms were nice and modern but not very big, and the sauna was very quiet and relaxing. Breakfast was incredibly good, with regional produce and strong Kaffee served in Kannen, about a pot's worth. Dinner is also available at the restaurant, with local ingredients and some Italian influence. The Orecchiette were not overcooked. It would be hard to find better food in the whole region. Between breakfast and dinner, you can take a walk in the woods all around.

A decent place in a good spot, and the breakfast was fabulous. I did miss having water in the sauna area to freshen up, and there was no coffee or tea in the room.