We stayed at the Zauberlehrling for two nights in June organised by the company I am an agent for in the city. As with all German efficiency, I even knew which room I could expect to stay in and to look forward to something pretty special. Our flight was delayed at Heathrow, and we arrived two and a half hours later than planned at reception. The young girl on the hotel desk could not find our booking and the room we were to stay in was already occupied by someone else. She was very matter-of-fact about it and didn't seem terribly prepared to help or offer advice. Thankfully one of my German colleagues came to the rescue and we were given a room, which was rather 'bijoux' but nevertheless somewhere to lay our weary heads. Each room is themed, ours was tranquil and Japanesewith the name Kusamakura. The room was really comfortable, with giant pillows and a soft bed, though the airconditioning was rather noisy. We had a large bath and shower with various herbally potions to relax us, a bar of chocolate and half-bottle of wine which was complimentary. Breakfast the next day could have used an instruction manual, as even the tea-pots had us baffled. The focus is on fruit, yoghurt, interesting breads, some sliced meats and cheeses. You will be offered eggs; but not a cooked breakfast in the English sense. The presentation at breakfast was really a work of art.
Due to a communication breakdown neither myself or partner had packed the travel adaptor, so I asked at reception if I could borrow one. It was the same young girl from the previous day, she took a quick glance in the cupboard and just said they didn't have one. Then the gentleman owner arrived and turned the place upside down to help me, even sending another girl upstairs to look for one. He was super, and his wife was responsible for the breakfast art-work, so I was thoroughly impressed with their attitude. Maybe one day they will realise there is a weak link who has caused me to rate my overall experience as three star instead of four star plus.