An absolute insider tip , where we often stop with our guests after a brewery tour, is the Rüttgers . In the middle of the old town, but away from the tourist hustle and bustle, it is mainly the people of Cologne who meet here! The small pub at Buttermarkt 1, right next to the very popular Lebanese restaurant "Beirut", is run by Angela Rüttgers, the good soul of the old town , who has been looking after her guests with love and dedication for 17 years.
Like the virgin to the child
How Angela came to own her pub is a very special story. Not many of her guests know, or at least knew, that Rüttgers had been in her hands from the very beginning. In fact, most people associated the cozy pub with the name of Angela's mother Edeltraud. Edeltraud was the face of Rüttgers for many years. Angela was actually on a completely different path professionally.
Angie, as we guests affectionately call her, studied business administration and began her career in a call center. Edeltraud, on the other hand, has always worked as a bar and service worker and is well known for this. But when the pub where she worked for many years had to close in 2006 due to the lease not being renewed, Edeltraud was already 59 years old - it is well known that it is difficult to find a job at that age. But luckily there is family!
Working together to achieve our goal
Angie couldn't and didn't want to let her mother down. What was more obvious than to open her own bar where her mother could do as she pleased? That would bridge the time until retirement, or at least that was the idea. The location on the Buttermarkt was quickly found, the lease was signed, everything was ready to go. And so it began. Angie took over the bar on paper, Edeltraud, known as Edel for short, took over most of the operational business and it was decided to give the bar the family name Rüttgers. After a year and a half, the landlord turned to Angie. He was insolvent, the business premises were being auctioned off, but she had the chance to buy them. What should she do? Wait for the auction or even take part in it with the possibility of losing a bidding war and perhaps being thrown out of the bar after such a short time? Angie didn't hesitate for long . She didn't even wait for the auction, she seized the opportunity and purchased the premises!
Due to Edel's popularity, the business took off in no time! Angie helped out in the evenings, but left a little earlier because the alarm clock for her main job rang at 6 a.m. Over time, the business required more and more attention, Angie reduced her hours at work and concentrated more on Rüttgers. After a few years, she quit and devoted herself solely to the shop. Then fate struck in December 2019.
Edeltraud died suddenly after a stroke. Angie had just married the love of her life, whom she had met when Rüttgers opened. Angie carried on, not knowing that the next big challenge was waiting for her: the pandemic. Two hard years followed and Angie was on the verge of deciding against the restaurant business. Many of her guests had changed careers and no longer came to the old town; after all, Rüttgers is the place to go for an after-work beer, especially for the restaurant workers in Cologne's old town. But suddenly the deadlock burst. The guests started coming back and business started to pay off again. So luckily Angie is still with us as the old town landlady!
The charm of Rüttgers
Whether you're sitting at the bar at Rüttgers and puzzling, gathering around the large beer barrels as a group and chatting, playing for a Kölsch or two on the dart machine or trying your luck on the slot machines, Angie always has an eye and an ear for her guests. You don't just feel welcome here, you are! Rüttgers also offers the great advantage that you are not subject to any "tourist rip-offs" here, but can enjoy your drinks at a fair price. Incidentally, they have the popular Reissdorf-Kölsch on tap. And of course Angie also has a drink with you now and then!
If you don't know what a Stößchen is, then it's time to go on tour with us, we'll be happy to explain it to you. And of course we have many more facts and anecdotes about Cologne, Kölsch and the breweries in store! Finally, one more request: Follow us, share, like and comment on our posts and if you like what we do, then recommend us, whether digitally or analogue! So that we can stay with you for a long time in the future and provide you with more blog articles, but also with our tours! Thank you at this point, we hope to see you soon on our tour! You can also book directly here!
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