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| - I visited VBGB Beer Hall and Garden last Saturday night for a birthday party. It's a great venue for large group gatherings. The restaurant/bar is presumably modeled after German beer halls and gardens.
Inside, there is a huge horseshoe-shaped bar with plenty of seating. On the floor, there are several large picnic-style, communal tables (like a German beer garden would have). Above, there are a handful of TV displays tuned to sports.
Outside, there is big patio with more tables and many games. Games include giant Jenga, giant Connect Four, giant chess, cornhole, and more. Since it was cold outside, the patio was enclosed and heat lamps were brought out to provide a measure of warmth.
Ample free parking is available in a paved parking lot directly outside the building. I'm not sure when this place opened, but it feels relatively new. A reservation was made for our party of 20+, so two tables were blocked off with signs for our group.
You can get beer at the bar and there's a window by the kitchen where you can order food. After placing your food order, you're given a number to place at your table and your food is brought out to you. VBGB's food menu mainly consists of bar food such as fries, onion rings, wings, chicken tenders, and burgers. I was told by the staff that their most popular items are their jumbo pretzels, bratwurst, and kabobs. I like their affordable pricing -- not a single item over $10.
I tried the following:
Chicken bratwurst with spinach and feta ($6)
Quinoa salad ($3) - black beans, corn, tomato, cilantro, lime vinaigrette, colored tortillas
Fried pickles ($3)
Cinn-A-Yum pretzel ($5) - jumbo pretzel covered in cinnamon & sugar, w/ vanilla icing on the side
Complimentary sauerkraut and sauteed peppers and onions are available for any bratwurst or hot dog order upon request. I had sauerkraut put on my chicken brat. I also had it served in VBGB's housemade pretzel bun, so I ended up with a very unique brat. It wasn't a pork brat and it wasn't served in a typical bun.
It didn't take very long for the food to arrive from the kitchen. The brat was freshly grilled and the bun was freshly toasted. The brat was large, but I wouldn't consider it jumbo. The meat was juicy and seasoned well. I could taste the spinach and feta, but the flavors were subtle. The sauerkraut wasn't bad. As for the bun, it definitely tasted like and almost had the consistency of a pretzel.
The quinoa salad was good. It was served with a side of hard, colored tortillas. I could have done without the tortillas and more quinoa. The quinoa salad was healthy and refreshing. It was served in a small paper tray.
The fried pickles were served piping hot. They came with a side of dipping sauce, which I didn't try. The fried pickles were good enough on their own. I recommend sharing this side as it's a bit greasy.
The Cinn-A-Yum pretzel is the dessert spin on VBGB's jumbo pretzel. The pretzel is indeed jumbo and they coat it in a thick layer of cinnamon and sugar. It's expectedly sweet and you even have the option of having it coated with vanilla, chocolate, caramel, or raspberry icing. I had the (vanilla) icing served on the side and used it as a dip. Due to their sheer size, I recommend sharing these pretzels too.
Jessica was our server and she seemed pretty cool. Very friendly, as were many of the staff.
Overall, I had a good time at VBGB. It had a nice relaxed and casual atmosphere and proved to be a good meeting place for a big group of friends.
Trivia: VBGB stands for Very Big German Beer.
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