German cooking school gets creative with camper van dinners

A cooking school in northern Germany has taken the concept of "meals on wheels" to new levels to stay afloat during a partial lockdown, offering candlelight dinners for those willing to bring their own camper van and dine in it.

Diners pull up to the parking lot of the Neumuenster cooking school, where they are provided with white tablecloths, candles, cutlery and glasses so that they can re-create the experience of dining out in the back of their van.

Waiters wearing face masks bring each course to the camper van, hot from the kitchen, and hand over dishes of duck, beef or other delicacies through the door.

Germany imposed a "lockdown light" in early November, which closed bars and restaurants but allowed schools and shops to stay open.

Restaurants are allowed to offer takeout meals, but for many diners that means eating from plastic containers rather than proper plates.

The camper van dinners at the cooking school are booked out until the end of January, but owner Bettina Seitz said she was working on adding more staff.

"During the coronavirus crisis in the spring we had to let some of our staff go. But now there is so much demand for our motorhome dinner that we are short-staffed," she said.