St Martin’s Day falls on the 11th of November and it celebrates St Martin of Tours, one of the first „non-Martyr saints“, a soldier-turned-Bishop who lived in the 4th Century. There are many legends surrounding his life, but only a few are relevant for us specifically.
Namely, it’s St Martin goose, St Martin rolls, St Martin wines, and St Martin “arriving on a white horse”.
Traditionally, St Martin is said to be arriving on a white horse, meaning that November 11 tends to coincide with the first snowfall of the winter season. While due to a little thing called climate change, this hasn’t been the case very much lately, St Martin remains the day on which you feast on comfort food before the Nativity Fast hits on November 28: there’s a few legends involving geese and St Martin, but the fact is St Martin goose with cabbage or sauerkraut and dumplings is an absolute St Martin’s Day classic, along with sweet rolls filled with either nuts or poppies.
The one thing you should know is that St Martin’s goose feast has literally exploded as a food event in recent years, and it has become THE busiest weekend for many great restaurants. So if you haven’t made a reservation for your goose by now, you should drop everything and start making calls right now. St Martin’s weekend is pure madness, in a good way.