I still don't get the fascination with Hofbr\u00e4uhaus. Working close by has led to countless happy hours there, and living close by has led to meeting friends there quite a bit...which means I've been there a lot, but rarely because it was my destination of choice.\n\nFirst, the beer is good and plentiful. Heck, depending on the monthly brew, the beer is sometimes REALLY good, and the food is decent. I've never eaten an actual meal at Hofbr\u00e4uhaus, but I've tried almost all of their apps since I'm typically there for happy hour, and they're all pretty good. Fried pickles, fried sauerkraut balls, soft pretzels with beer cheese...I mean, what's there to complain about? The perfect app menu for beer-accompaniment.\n\nUnfortunately, Hofbr\u00e4uhaus loses me with the atmosphere. I'm fully aware that it's the atmosphere that is supposed to be the draw, and based on the crowds they get, it's working. Perhaps I've outgrown the old get-drunk-then-stand-on-a-table-and-toast-in-a-language-that-I-don't-really-know stage of my life, but I often find the main room of Hofbr\u00e4uhaus to be loud and obnoxious as opposed to celebratory. Granted, I prefer being able to hear the people I'm talking to, and I don't need a random Tuesday in the Spring to feel like Octoberfest, but based on the number of people that go to Hofbr\u00e4uhaus, I'm clearly in the minority.\n\nThe safe bet for a good time at Hofbr\u00e4uhaus for those of us looking for a more relaxed experience that takes advantage of the positives of Hofbr\u00e4uhaus while skipping the annoying, is this: get a small group of friends and hit the outside beer garden when the weather is nice. There are few things more relaxing than partaking in a delicious liter of beer in the beer garden...next to the river...on a sunny day. If the weather isn't cooperating, another option is to get there early before the craziness starts in the evenings, but regardless of how happy the tunes from the accordion might sound, the drab environment just never does it for me.
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