4732 N Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60625
Phone: (773)784-4444
www.chicagobrauhaus.com

Treffpunkt was the name of the first restaurant run by Harry and Guenter Kempf; it opened in 1967 but burned to the ground in 1984 after a fire broke out in the shoe store next door. And yet, this did not break the Kempf brothers' entrepreneurial spirit. Within a week, they were again serving Schnitzel across the street in the newly opened Chicago Brauhaus. Today, the Brauhaus stands as a last bastion of German heritage, especially considering the recent demise of Zum Deutschen Eck and the Golden Ox.

Visitors find themselves astonished by the genuine South German beer hall flair. The atmosphere here is sehr gemütlich: Bavarian-style long wooden tables, stained glass windows, banquet-style chairs, murals, all framed by a lot of German beer advertising and German flags. Serving are stout, gruff-mannered German waitresses in traditional costumes that will frequently be heard singing along with the music, usually provided by a one-man band jamming happily away in his Lederhosen to Edelweiss and Roll out the Barrel in the afternoon , and a full-blown German band almost every night. The Brauhaus also features yodeling and dancing contests.

The Brauhaus carries an impressive selection of German beer including Erdinger Weissbräu, Spaten, Warsteiner, Diebels, Hofbräu, Bitburger, Franziskaner Weisse, Stiegl, and Becks. All draft beer is served in glass steins there, with a choice of one-liter and half-liter.

The kitchen offers German favorites such as Sauerbraten, Wiener Schnitzel, Rouladen (slices of beef rolled around a pickle, onion and bacon mixture), liver dumpling soup, red cabbage, creamed herring, veal shank, Kassler Rippchen (smoked pork), roasted goose and rabbit, and apple strudel. See the menu at the Brauhaus homepage.

The atmosphere at the Brauhaus is particularly festive during Lincoln Square's Octoberfest, held during the second weekend in September. Brauhaus co-owner Guenter Kempf says he goes through about 150 kegs of Oktoberfest Spaten beer during the festival and the three weeks that follow.