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| - I admit that I've been putting off a trip to Hofbrauhaus for a long time. It wasn't that I was against going there, per say, but my absolute hatred of the South Side Works and what is offered there--both establishments and personalities--made me think I would loath it just because of its location. But my affinity for beer, especially beer in giant glass mugs, and the fact that it was the location of one of my good friends 25th birthday party celebration finally brought me in.
I arrived sometime around 11 on a Friday night to a line circling around the side of the building. At once I thought my fears were confirmed, a long line of what I perceived to be South Side douche bags. But as I got closer I realized that it wasn't just a bunch of frat boys in line, but there were people of all ages and all walks of life waiting to get in. On top of that the line moved very quickly and all in all only spent about five minutes waiting to get inside.
Once inside I made my way to the bar area, which was much more spacious than I thought it would be. That being said, Hofbrauhaus was still extremely crowded leaving little room to stand without bumping in to someone or having someone bump in to you. The dense crowd also left long waits for beer. The bartending staff tried their best to keep up, but there is only so much they can do when you have hundreds of people making human sardines around the bar all trying to order a beer at the same time.
I ordered a liter of Dunkel, and when it was finally served to me, tasted pretty good. I'm not all that familiar with German style beers so I'm in no position to comment on its quality, but from an amateur perspective I thought it possessed a strong and unique flavor. The price for a liter wasn't bad, especially considering the location of Hofbrauhaus. I believe the "big mug" ran somewhere between $7 and $8. I wish I would have had more time to try a few of the other brews but I didn't get the chance.
The atmosphere of Hofbrauhaus is a bit more rowdy than I expected. Long rows of thick wooden tables and benches line the open space between the bar and the stage which aren't used for sitting but instead standing upon. From this perch one feels like he or she is the life of the party singing songs and swinging mugs about, beer sloshing out like a geyser.
The band was lively, fun, dressed in authentic Bavarian dress, and I could tell they really did have a passion for the music they were playing, but I was really hoping for something a big more authentic. Most of the songs they played were American covers, nothing but a few songs were German.
My experience at Hofbrauhaus was a lot better than I originally thought it would be. It wasn't as much of a corporate juggernaut bar like many of the other bars in the South Side Works area, even though the amount of people they allow to be packed in at once makes you wonder if they care more about their profits or the experiences of their patrons. Will I come back? Probably yes, but only from time to time. I much prefer smaller less crowded and noisy bars, but if I have to pick a larger venue bar Hofbrauhaus would be the place.
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