Like much of Belleville, we’ve been anxiously awaiting the opening of the new Hofbräuhaus restaurant located just off of Illinois 15. For years. Literally. It was supposed to open back in 2016, and they have announced something like six or seven estimated opening dates, only to have each date come and go with no schnitzel or beer in sight, leaving Belleville wondering if the restaurant was ever really going to open.

The billboard that they put up in downtown St. Louis says it all…“A Unique Experience over 400 years in the making.”

Has it only been that long?

Obviously, the billboard references the original establishment in Munich, which first opened in 1589. But I think the developers of the project missed the irony of the statement on the advertisement, because it certainly feels like we’ve been waiting at least that long for the restaurant to open!

Anyway, the Hofbräuhaus announced today that they are officially in soft open mode. I don’t know the full details of what that means, but I do know that for the next three weeks or so, until their grand opening on April 18th, you can finally get a German meal there! Even though we’ve become a bit disillusioned with the project over the years, we’re still looking forward to enjoying a dinner at the Hofbräuhaus at some point in the coming weeks…we’re just hoping the restaurant itself is managed better than the construction project has been!