Michigan’s Best Local Eats: German brings giant beers, Bavarian fare to Steinspark Biergarten

PORTAGE, MI -- At Steinspark Biergarten, the giant German beers and German food options are the draw.

Some efficiency issues have hampered the business, but Owner Norbert Gimmler has made process improvements since opening day last year.

The outdoor beer garden and German-style eatery at 2603 E. Milham Ave. has an improved customer flow this year, Gimmler said. People can now carry their beers throughout a larger fenced area, including the food court.

All beers on tap, currently are German beers, although it still offers some local beers, like Bell's, in bottles.

It takes a few minutes to fill their liter mug of beer, which is 34 ounces for $15. So now, Steinspark has two taps each for its top sellers -- an imported dunkel and a kolsh beer.

"So now we have two taps of each that you can pour in parallel and it goes a lot faster," Gimmler said.

Food trucks are invited to the site Wednesdays to provide a variety of food for customers to pair with their imported beers, so Steinspark closes its kitchen that night.

"If I really want food trucks here, I have to make it worthwhile and make them really want to come back," Gimmler said.

Norbert Gimmler under the arch at his business, Steinspark Biergarten, in Portage.

He is also short on cooks, he said, and closing the German kitchen on Wednesdays allows Steinspark to open its kitchen for lunch Thursday through Sunday.

"Finding good cooks is the biggest bottleneck," Gimmler said, and they are still looking for employees.

"We cook everything from scratch," he said, including breading the pork fresh. "I think that shows through the food."

Steinspark remodeled the kitchen for a better workflow. That has drastically reduced wait times that were sometimes an hour or two last year, he said. Steinspark separated the cooking and plating area so the cooks and platers don't get in each other's way.

Gimmler, a food process engineer who worked in research roles at Kellogg Company, said he's used to troubleshooting and fixing things.

"It's much more efficient," Gimmler said. "I would say almost 10-fold from that tiny little change."

The menu includes currywurst, bratwurst, Vienna-style schnitzel, Hungarian schnitzel, Jägerschnitzel, Founders beer brats, schnitzel burgers, classic American hot dogs, Bavarian soft pretzels, pommes frites, loaded spätzle, cucumber salads and more. Schnitzels can be substituted with breaded veggie patties, the menu says.

Other improvements this year include a wooden path that connects Steinspark to city sidewalks, and a second beer permit that will allow Gimmler and his crew to serve beer in the Oktoberfest tent, once the late-season tradition kicks off, he said.

Gimmler lives in Portage. He was born in Germany and lived about four kilometers from the metal fence that marked the former border with East Germany. He said he wants his beer garden to be a social meeting space. Dogs are welcome too, if they are on a leash and behave, he said.

Steinspark is closed Monday and Tuesday. It's open Wednesday from 3 to 10 p.m. (food truck options only); Thursdays from noon to 10 p.m.; Fridays from noon to 10 p.m.; Saturdays from noon to 10 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 8 p.m., weather permitting. Check Facebook and visit steinspark.com for more information.

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