Blue Ridge Country July/August 2022 - 71

FLAVORS
LEFT: Clara Lehmann proudly serves dishes
from the menu her grandmother created.
BELOW: The building housing The Hütte
is well over 100 years old.
ELAINE MCMILLION SHELDON
Several of the recipes used at The Hütte came from
families in the community. From the umlaut in the
name of the business to the sauerkraut served with a dill
pickle slice on top, the menu strongly reflects the SwissGerman
heritage of Helvetia.
The aroma of frying potatoes is ever-present in The
Hütte's kitchen as cooks prepare order after order of
rösti, a Swiss potato dish fried in butter in one of those
black-iron skillets.
Heidi and Clara buy fresh, lean pork shoulder sausage
from the IGA store in Rock Cave, West Virginia, add
nine spices to it, boil it and then cook it in a marinade of
wine and tomato sauce.
" The smell envelops the whole restaurant, " says Heidi.
" The meat we get from the Hawk family in Rock Cave
is absolutely beautiful. "
Beef roasts marinate two days for sauerbraten, to be
served in a sauce containing gingersnaps that is typical
of central Europe.
The sauerkraut is served hot, and Heidi says, " We
do a lot to make it wonderful. The applesauce is very
unique and also served hot. We do a chicken marinated
in white wine, baked, and served with curried pineapple,
kiwi, grapes and lime. The curry reflects Mütter's love of
Asian flavors. "
Eleanor liked to say that The Hütte is much more
than a place to eat, and that remains true 11 years after
her death. It's an unofficial Randolph County history
museum. Once functioning as a store, the building is
well over 100 years old. An old hay rake is a reminder
of the fact that the Swiss who came to Helvetia were not
originally farmers but had to adapt there in order to survive.
On the walls are Swiss primitive paintings done by
the late Delores Baggerly, who helped Eleanor open the
restaurant. And perhaps the most memorable antique is
the community's old telephone switchboard, which was
in use until the 1970s.
" To reach another party in town, you had to call the
operator, Stella Karlen, who would plug you in, " recalls
Heidi. " Our ring was short-short-long. If you had a longdistance
call, you had to go to Pickens. "
In February of 2006, we traveled to a small community
near Buckhannon, West Virginia, to interview Roger and
Donna Perry, in the wake of the Sago mine disaster that
had occurred the previous month. Roger had been in the
mine when the accident took place, but he and the men
on his side of the wall made it out, covered in coal dust
but alive. Of the 13 men on the other side of the wall
that day, only one survived. One of those who perished
was Roger's brother-in-law, Donna's brother, Alva Martin
Bennett. Coal mining was the only job he ever had.
Among decades of interviews we have done, this one
stands out as one of the most memorable and profound,
as we talked with this brave couple about the unimaginable
sadness they felt. They shared a scrapbook with
us about eight inches thick, filled with newspaper clippings,
documents, and family photographs.
During the interview, it had begun to snow. Roger
and Donna told us we might want to rethink our plan to
eat a late lunch in Helvetia, nearly an hour away. But we
were determined to press on into the valley. After such
an emotional interview, we needed the comfort of The
Hütte. So in the middle of a snowstorm, we had a Swiss
meal of sausage, rösti, sauerkraut, applesauce, cheese
and peas. And we have never forgotten the special magic
of The Hütte.
Fred and Jill Sauceman study and celebrate the foodways
of Appalachia and beyond from their home base in Johnson
City, Tennessee.
JULY / AUGUST 2022 71
Blue Ridge Country July/August 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country July/August 2022
