I’m writing this review in the aftermath of my very first Restaurant Week and I have to say, it’s quite the experience for any Philadelphia foodie. I embarked on Restaurant Week with the same end goal that I try to always live up to when going out to dinner: the goal to try something new. I’m a pretty adventurous eater and I’m familiar with Asian, South American, and Indian cuisines but believe it or not, the various European cuisines are what often elude me. Never having been one to try much in the way of traditional German dishes, when I saw the robust Brauhaus Schmitz name on the list, I knew I had found something worth checking out. A glance at the menu with my boyfriend (also my dinner guest of the night) solidified that choice.
Brauhaus Schmitz is located on 7th and South streets, and not exactly close to any of the subway stops. On this 20-something degree night, we grudgingly decided it would be most comfortable to Uber there and back. We arrived about 20 minutes early, to a comfortably filled front bar and dining room setup. We were promptly greeted and showed to our table in the rear dining room that featured cozy wood finishes and another bar.
Our server, who was attentive throughout the night, greeted us mere moments later, offering us beverages and menus. Brauhaus Schmitz has a four-course Restaurant Week menu, with two options for a first-course soup, four options for second-course appetizers, six options for the third-course entrée, and three options for dessert. After thoroughly enjoying my meal and leaving the restaurant, I did realize that I forgot to take pictures of each course and I’m still kicking myself for that. Thankfully, I managed to find Yelp reviews with images of almost everything I ordered!
Course One: Soups
For this course I chose the hearty Ungarisches Goulash, or the Hungarian Goulash. The hot stew was a welcome reprieve from the frigid, windy weather outside. Made with tender braised beef, sweet red peppers, potatoes, and spicy Hungarian paprika, it really hit the spot for winter comfort food. The only aspect of this that I didn’t really care for was the portion size. While the bowl appeared to be of modest size, the heavy ingredients in combination with the bread for the table made this a very filling appetizer, which wasn’t ideal with several more courses on the way.
Course Two: Appetizers
The next course guided me to a house-special Charcuterie Plate. The portions for the charcuterie plate were much more modest, allowing me to take in the flavor without being too full. The charcuterie was reminiscent of thin-shaven salami. The sweet cherry compote and the house beer mustard that accompanied it made for two distinctly different pairings that worked equally well with each other. I layered the sourdough bread with the charcuterie and a smear of beer mustard for a nicely spiced flavor, and then the rye bread with the charcuterie and the cherry compote for a dark, sweet one. Mostly full, I eagerly awaited the chance to taste my next course.
Course Three: Entrée
For my entrée, I chose the Wurstplatte, or the Sausage Platter. I picked two sausages, bratwurst and weisswurst, with sides of sauerkraut and spätzle (which is soft, small, lightly fried doughy tidbits that our server actually likened to pasta). The sausages were juicy and full of flavor, and the sauerkraut was the best I’ve ever had—and I don’t even really like sauerkraut. I was really pleased with the meal, but absolutely stuffed. I barely ate half of the entrée, and the other half was packaged into a takeout box that I will eagerly tear open tomorrow, when I don’t feel full to bursting.
Course Four: Dessert
I could barely stomach the idea of dessert at this point, and I ordered fully aware that I would only take a couple of bites of whatever I chose. I ended up going with the Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, or the Black Forrest Cake. This was a decadent chocolate double-layer cake, with a creamy vanilla frosting between the layers and topped with homemade whipped cream. The whipped cream was adorned with milk chocolate shavings and cherries. It was absolutely beautiful, as far as desserts go. It tasted even better than it sounds, but I was only able to take a couple of bites before I declared myself absolutely full for the night.
Overall, I enjoyed my dinner at Brauhaus Schmitz. For $35 I enjoyed a hot, comforting four-course meal that was hearty and indulgent. My only real complaint would be the portion sizes. I felt bad only taking a few bites of each course, given how much I was paying. However, our server was happy to box up the entrée (the only part of the meal that would actually keep in the fridge), and each course arrived within minutes of the last. I’m happy with the experience that I had, and I would gladly return here to dine again.
Long live Restaurant Week, fellow foodies.