May 25, 2009
Cool German Bierhaus in a very out of the way Alphabet City location. Even if you take the nearest subway you have to walk a significant distance through some rather sketchy areas to get here. I was happy to see how traditional this place was. Very social and fun, people singing German drinking songs. Nothing but German classics on the menu and you can order your brew in several different sizes.

March 29, 2009
Just a handful of German places left in NYC so for the few that are around, I’m happy to have them available. ZS is more akin to a beer hall with a similar atmosphere and of the German spots I’ve gone to the one that does the ’hall’ the best. German fare with german beers. Always worth a stop in if you’re jonezing for the old world feel.

February 12, 2009
I rate this one high since it has Schneider Weisse and a bunch of good German brews on tap. I need a place near me that does this. I went for the first time at New Years in 2008/9 and I brought my wife back twice out of 3 evenings there. This place feels like Germany. "Ok" service, awesome atmosphere, and excellent beer. Americans may not fully understand this place... the service is secondary. The beer is everything! And remember this... "Das Leben ist zu kurz um scheiss Bier zu trinken"

August 8, 2008
Overrated. Rude waitstaff, poor selection, and mediocre food. Loreley is better.

June 22, 2008
Litres of Spaten, communal tables and sausages galore. This is a really great place although hard to get to.

February 6, 2008
Fun place to hang and have some big sized authentic German beers as well as some real authentic delicous German food. Great place anytime, for dinner, just beers or on a crawl to add some diversity to your drinking day.

December 9, 2007
This was a fun place to visit as the crowd on Saturday afternoon was just getting over a huge Santa convention in Tompkins Sq Pk. We were lucky to get a table in a momentary slow period for the place, but it soon filled up again as we plowed into the menu. The beer selection was reported to be small, but the tap selection was good. They were serving these huge 1 liter steins of Weihenstefener (to my delight) as well as small examples of Kolsch. The food and service was good, even when the crowds came in. I was amused as the waitress gave me a quick lesson on how to pronounce some of the menu listings. We left the place and gave away our highly coveted table near the door while making a note to return for some more fun.

June 18, 2007
Very nice place. Quite busy, but fantastic food and beer after the wait. One of the few places I’ve seen 1L steins of beer being sold (outside of Germany, of course). Most of the people that work there speak German, so I was able to brush up on it. The place is pretty small for the number of people they pack it with, but that’s all part of ’biergarten’ ambiance. Downside = they only accept cash!

March 8, 2007 [ Updated December 6, 2007 ]
I love this place. If only it weren’t so out of the way. The food is really delicious and goes great with some nice german beer. The variety is not great, but the quality of beers is wonderful. Prices are a little on the high side, but still reasonable. It is a little cramped and very beer hall in decor and service. Don’t skip the camembert with lingonberry jam or the kaesespatzle. They seem to change their beers (or run out of stuff) between each of my quarter-annual sojourns yet Aventinus and usually Optimator are reliably available - get a 1/2 L of each!

September 15, 2006 [ Updated October 25, 2006 ]
Great place. I went here with my girlfriend who is Austrian so we realy can appreciate the German beers & food. This is the place to go when seeking great German beers and food. The weisswurst is awesome.