If your idea of culinary heaven involves lederhosen, then you’ll find nirvana at The Fort (8 Fort St., 413/788-6628, www.studentprince.com, 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Mon.–Wed.; 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Thu.–Sat.; noon–8 p.m. Sun., $10–23), a Springfield institution that has been serving bratwurst, schnitzel, and sauerbraten for more than 70 years. Its dining room, on the original 1660 site of Fort Springfield, is decorated with stained-glass windows and hundreds of beer steins.

Italian pride is on the menu at Mom & Rico’s Specialty Market (899 Main St., 413/732-8941, 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m. Mon.–Sat., $5–10), a lunch counter that serves sandwiches with imported cold cuts and pastas with sauces made on the premises. The owner, Rico Daniele, is also president of the Wonderful World of Bocce Foundation, and literally wrote the book on the lawn bowling sport.

For special occasions, Springfielders spring for Lido’s Ristorante (555 Washington St., Springfield, 413/736-9433, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. daily, $9–23), a stylish Italian-American spot with down-home but lovingly created pasta dishes and an Italian stone-lined dining room tended by ultra-friendly servers.