Thursday, December 02, 1999
German brewery coming
Money flowing for Hofbrauhaus; site still in air
BY CLIFF PEALE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Supporters of a new Hofbrauhaus brewery and restaurant on the Cincinnati riverfront have nearly completed private fund-raising for the project but have not secured a site, they said Wednesday.
The Bavarian company, which operates one of the world's most famous beer halls in Munich, wants to start its American expansion here with a 15,000-square-foot building just east of Paul Brown Stadium.
Planned to open in 2001, that building would spill into a beer garden overlooking the Ohio River, creating the authentic atmosphere that could make Hofbrauhaus among the biggest tourist attractions in this area, said Andi Udris, Cincinnati's development director who will become president and chief executive officer of Hofbrauhaus America LLC on Jan. 1.
“We're not going to build these on the interstates,” Mr. Udris said. “We're looking for urban settings with great views.”
A German architect hired by Hofbrauhaus was in Cincinnati on Wednesday. And Mr. Udris has been pitching the project to private investors around the area, hoping to close an offering that could raise several million dollars.
That money will be used both on the Cincinnati restaurant and one future site each in Illinois, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Indiana and Michigan, he said.
But before construction can begin, organizers still must negotiate a lease with Hamilton County for their favored site on the riverfront.
“I've told my investors that there's no guarantee” about the site, Mr. Udris said.
Talks probably will not start until Mr. Udris leaves the city at the end of the year. But Hamilton County Administrator David Krings said the county had not even started planning for the site, which is just south of the new Theodore M. Berry Way and adjacent to the football stadium site.
“We haven't gotten that far,” Mr. Krings said. “I've learned with the riverfront development that nothing is final until it is actually being built.”
If that site falls through, alternatives could include Covington or Newport or the Main Street entertainment district in Over-the-Rhine.
But the investor group is determined to concentrate on the Cincinnati site, Mr. Udris said.
Bob Schneider, president of the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce, agreed that the Hofbrauhaus should be on the riverfront to attract both tourists and families, not just after-hours bar traffic.
“I don't know that (Over-the-Rhine) is the right area for them,” he said. “They really need to be in a day location.”
Plans call for the building here to feature a beer hall on the main floor, with a quieter dining room below. The two restaurants will seat about 500 people combined, and the lower level will open onto a beer garden that will double the capacity.
Hofbrau Muenchen is the Bavarian state brewery and among the biggest tourist attractions in Munich, drawing about 1.8 million visitors per year. Its international expansion includes locations in cities such as Tokyo and Hong Kong, but none in the U.S.
Officials here hope to recreate the atmosphere of the cavernous beer hall in Munich with details from large tables to the liter-sized glass steins.
They have recruited a Bavarian chef and brewmaster, who will supervise the on-site brewing operation. The business plan calls for substantial revenue from beer and merchandise sales.
The target market is men older than 30 and families, along with the flood of tourists they hope will visit the riverfront.
“It's a premium beer for a more mature audience,” Mr. Udris said.
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