BWW Previews: PAULANER Brings Bavaria to the Bowery

With Edi & the Wolf, Wolfgang Ban helped reinvent the experience of a Heuriger, a rustic wine-tavern serving straightforward, simple cuisine. With Paulaner, Ban (also of Michelin-starred Seäsonal) takes reinvention a step further, situating his latest contemporary Bavarian restaurant directly inside an active microbrewery.

Paulaner is a modern take on the traditional beer hall with great food. It's a hip and lively meeting place where large groups of friends can settle in at long communal tables, where reclaimed wood provides a warm contrast to the industrial chic of imposing copper and steel fermentation tanks; a place where everything from the beer to the bread, the sausage to the schnitzel, the pretzels to the stollen, is made in-house with locally sourced ingredients. Downstairs, there's a private room for more exclusive or intimate parties.

At the center of the action, Master Brewer Andreas Heidenreich creates his own versions of the traditional Paulaner-style beers with recipes of his own invention, while following the Purity Law of 1516; he uses only four ingredients-water, wheat, hops and yeast. No spices, fruits or other enhancements are used to create Hefeweizen, lightly hoppy with subtle bitterness balanced with fruity character, Munich Lager, a classic bright amber beer, and Munich Dark, rich dark amber with a malty flavor. Heidenreich has also created Munich Pale Ale exclusively for New York City, a top-fermented IPA-style beer with three varieties of hops, including Amarillo from Washington State, and a changing roster of seasonal beers. This season it's the Winter Bock, a strong dark beer with smoky, roasted aromas and malty caramel flavor. There is no fresher beer than the unfiltered, unpasteurized "Tank to Table" brew, which is also available for takeaway ingrowlers and mini-kegs.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Executive Chef Daniel Kill creates simple, yet sophisticated fare that tastes even better when matched with Paulaner's beers and wines. Both his background and his training contribute to his culinary style. A native of Bavaria who grew up on beer and brats, he rose to the top of his profession at Munich's Michelin-starredTantris and as Executive Chef of Wallsé, Café Kristall, Café Sabarsky and Blaue Gans.

A traditional starter that will be new to many is Obazda, a blend of creamy Camembert, butter, beer and spicy red pepper served with a freshly baked pretzel, still warm from the oven. Try it with a Hefeweizen, the most popular Paulaner beer. Then, move on to Chef Daniel's authentic house-made sausages: Weisswürste, delicate tasting veal and pork sausage; snappy Bratwurst, a blend of pork and beef; lightly gameyLamb Sausages; and the Paulaner, a smoky, dry-aged beef sausage made with beer and local cheddar cheese. Or order the Sausage Sampler (ideal for two or more) along with a flight of beers and discover your favorite combination. The Wiener Schnitzel hereis an iconic expression of the classic: pounded slices of tender veal, breaded and fried until golden brown and perfectly crisp balanced with sweet-tart lingonberries. The irresistibly crisp-skinned, juicy Pork Knuckle with roasted potatoes or the WholeRoasted Duck with pretzel dumplings are sized for sharing.

There's no more convincing reason to save room for dessert than the qualities associated with freshly baked goods (warm, fresh, aromatic). Selections includeSachertorte, chocolate cake with whipped cream, Warm Pear Strudel with caramel brittle ice cream, hot Apple Fritters with vanilla ice cream and Sweet Buns with apricot jam and vanilla sauce.

Weekend brunch is another special experience-a Bavarian spin on conventional New York brunch. It's hard to choose between savory options such as crispy and tender PorkSchnitzel or Rösti, a crispy potato pancake paired with house-cured salmon and crème fraîche. Sweet selections include Kaiserschmarrn, a fluffy pancake meets bread pudding with raisins and fruit compote. Every table is also treated to a complimentary basket of freshly baked breakfast breads, including croissants, muffins and brioche served with jam and butter, as well as a choice of a free brunch cocktail-Mimosa, Bloody Mary or your choice of beer.

Beyond just beer, Paulaner is also distinguished by its excellent wine list-featuringGerman, Austrian and local wines by the glass and by the bottle including a selection of Rieslings, and a variety of reds like Blaufränkisch Reserve Moric Burgenland. Thecocktail menu incorporates beers, local craft bourbons and whiskies (also available in tasting flights), wine and other spirits. One favorite cocktail is the RyeZirBaska, rye, stone fruit liqueur, snaps and bitters. An aged, dark beer snaps, produced in collaboration with a Westchester, New York-based spirits maker, is currently under development.

For the holiday season, Paulaner has set up a retail bakery near the entrance, featuring house-baked goodies, including hearty Rye Bread. Sweets include melt-in-your-mouth sugar-dusted crescent-shaped butter cookies called Vanillekipferl, fudgy Rum Balls and jam-filled almond flour cookies. There's also Christmas Stollen, the delicious fruitcake studded with dried fruit and nuts and topped with a light coating of icing.

Paulaner is located at 265 Bowery just south of Houston Street in Manhattan (easily accessible by subway, F 6 B M D trains 2 blocks away; N R in Soho),www.paulanernyc.com, 212-780-0300, and is open Sun-Wed 11 am-midnight; Thurs-Sat 11-1 am. The space (including a private downstairs party room that accommodates 65 people) is available for private parties, beer classes, brewery tours, corporate team building and other corporate meetings. For more information on special events, please contact Maria Cocchiara-Klein at 212-780-0300.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Paulaner