After five centuries you kind of expect Hofbräuhaus to get it right. That’s when the legendary Munich brewery started serving beer. Now the ancient establishment is among our area’s newest: the first North American Hofbräuhaus is offering authentic Bavarian fare and beer in Newport. Based on a recent Wednesday visit, I’d say the translation is working.
After considering sites in Cincinnati — where many felt Hofbräuhaus belonged, because of the city’s German beer-making history — the operators chose to land in Newport. At least it’s an old Hudepohl warehouse, now converted into two big wood-beamed dining halls with long rows of tables and benches for 350, very much in the style of the Munich facility. White-washed walls with dark, carved wood trim and wooden floors make it feel historic.
Of course, no one comes to Hofbräuhaus for a quiet, intimate meal: It’s all about noise and jovial gemutlicheit: Raise a few steins of Hofbräu (half-liters, $3.99; a big-gulp full liter, $6.99) and soon everyone’s your best friend, singing loudly with one another to music provided by three guys in lederhosen playing accordion, bass and drums.
If you just want to quaff a few, you can hang in the Bier Garden, which seats another 400. The graveled area, shaded with a few (newly planted) trees, offers more long tables.
Everyone here has a stein of something, from the legendary Hofbräu Premium Lager, redolent with malt, hops and yeast, to a fizzy Munich Weizen or an earthy, red-brown Original Hofbräu Dunkel. For American tastes, the imported German brewmaster has created light beer and a pleasant summer ale.
Despite Cincinnati’s German roots, we’ve long suffered without a fitting dining establishment. No more: Hofbräuhaus fills the void, and the prices are manageable. A hearty meal for four, with two rounds of beer, came to $90.
We started with a Sausage and Cheese Tray ($9.99) billed as peppered salami, knockwurst, and German butter cheese with bread. The cheese (some of which was cheddar) seemed much like the cubes you buy at the supermarket, but the meats were good and the thin-sliced rye bread was tasty.
I ordered Sauerbraten ($12.99), one of nearly 20 truly German items on the menu (which also offers American-style steaks, pasta and seafood, and even a Hot Brown ($6.99) with German ingredients). Although a tad dry, my marinated beef had Sauerbraten’s distinctive sour-sweet flavor, and the accompaniments — a sweet red cabbage, and doughy potato and bread dumplings the size of tennis balls — were more carbs than I could eat.
Other meals at our table included Oktoberfest Hendl (Roasted Half Chicken, $12.99), moist meat accompanied by a tangy German potato salad and coleslaw, and the Münchener Bierwurst (we’d call it a Mett, $8.99), with creamy mashed potatoes, fried cabbage and sauerkraut. Our fourth diner ordered Weisswurste ($6.99), a white sausage made with veal, cream and eggs. Delivered in a tureen of steaming broth that poached the links, it came with two pretzels (like you get at the ballpark) and sweet mustard.
We arrived at 6 p.m. to ensure getting a table (a no-reservation policy means waits of two hours or more on the weekend), so the atmosphere wasn’t as “Festhausish” as we’d hoped. In fact, we felt a distinct air of artificiality — a pretzel girl in a cute dirndl reminded us of Kings Island — and the service is efficient but not warm. (Our waitress had no idea about the various meats on the appetizer platter we ordered.)
By the time our plates were cleared, jolly diners lined every table, the Bier Garden was full, the band was playing and the beer was flowing.
All that was left to say was, “Prosit!”
Go: Third & Saratoga at the Levee, Newport
Call: 859-491-7200
Hours: 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-midnight Sunday
Prices: Entrées are $11-$19
Payment: Major credit cards
Red Meat Alternatives: Chicken, salads, or just hang in the Bier Garden
Other: Parking lot is free during weekday lunch hour (11 a.m.-3 p.m.); valet parking ($3) during dinner and evening.
This article appears in Jul 16-22, 2003.
