MUNICH HOFBRÄUHAUS

Description

Essentials about the Munich Hofbräuhaus in brief

It is Germany’s most famous pub, known far beyond Munich’s borders all over the world: the Hofbräuhaus. Munich does have many breweries and beer gardens. But if you want to get to know the unique original, you can’t avoid a visit to the Munich Hofbräuhaus. Here, up to 30,000 locals and tourists have fun every day with regional cuisine, music and folk dancing, waiters in traditional costume and, of course, plenty of barley juice.

The history and architecture of the Munich Hofbräuhaus

It’s hard to imagine nowadays, but it’s true nonetheless: Until the late 16th century, the Bavarian royal court imported beer from Hesse, Lower Saxony and Saxony. In order to reduce the court’s expenses for the expensive beer imports, the Bavarian Duke Wilhelm V commissioned the construction of the Hofbräuhaus on September 27, 1589 as a brewery to supply the court and its servants, which is also where the name of the Hofbräuhaus comes from.

Not least due to the worsening agricultural conditions in the course of the 16th century, the court purchased less Bayer wine and favored the production of beer instead. The increased production volumes soon caused the Hofbräuhaus to run out of capacity, so attempts were made to outsource production to a new building. In 1607, the new Hofbräuhaus was completed at the site much later known as “Platzl,” the present location of the Hofbräuhaus. In 1610, Duke Maximilian allowed beer to be sold to innkeepers and private individuals, and he soon obliged Munich’s innkeepers to serve Hofbräu beer as well by means of the Schankrecht.

With the increase in tourism in Munich towards the end of the 19th century, the Hofbräuhaus enjoyed growing popularity, so much so that in 1896 Prince Regent Luitpold decided to relocate the brewery to Innere Wiener Strasse on Gasteig in the Haidhausen district (where the Hofbräukeller is located today) and to greatly enlarge the guest area of the Hofbräuhaus and have it rebuilt in the neo-Renaissance style. On May 22, 1896, the last beer was brewed at the Platzl, in September the demolition of the old brewhouse began and in February 1897 the so-called “Schwemme” was opened as the new guest area. The neighboring administration building was also demolished and replaced by a large restaurant area. On September 22, 1897, the Hofbräuhaus was ceremoniously opened in its new form, which largely corresponds to today’s.

On February 24, 1920, a sad political event took place in the Hofbräuhaus. In front of about 2,000 people present, the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP) was founded. As part of the founding, Adolf Hitler announced the NSDAP’s ominous party program. During World War II, the Hofbräuhaus was completely destroyed in an air raid in 1945, except for the Schwemme. For the 800th anniversary of Munich in 1958, the reconstruction was completed with the reopening of the ballroom.

The Munich Hofbräuhaus today

To this day, the “Staatliches Hofbräuhaus am Platzl” (as it is officially known today) is an attraction for tourists from all over the world. It attracts up to 35,000 visitors a day and generates tens of millions of euros in revenue for the Bavarian state every year. In 2004, a replica of the Hofbräuhaus based on the original was built under license in Las Vegas in the United States.

Probably the most beautiful room in the Hofbräuhaus is the vaulted hall known as the Schwemme, where beer was brewed until the end of the 19th century. The Schwemme seats around 1,000 guests at wooden tables. On the upper floor of the Hofbäuhaus, lovingly furnished beer parlors await another 2,500 visitors. And those who prefer to sit in the fresh air can do so in the Hofbräuhaus beer garden, in the shade of chestnut trees and surrounded by historic walls.

By the way, anyone who thinks that only Americans, Chinese and Japanese sit at the tables in the Hofbräuhaus is very much mistaken. A good half of the daily guests are regulars, as around 120 regulars’ tables meet regularly at the Hofbräuhaus. Truly long-established regulars are the proud owners of a compartment in the Maßkrug safe, where they can put their own beer mug. However, such a compartment is not for everyone, as it has been “inherited” among the owners for generations.