Today I thought I would move back toward beer. I am not going to concentrate on a specific brewery though, but on a landmark and institution– the Bier Garden in Portsmouth, Virginia.  Portsmouth has a beautiful old town area that dates back to the earliest days of  America.  The port here is very deep and it became an important shipyard early on in our nation’s history.  Unfortunately, Portsmouth’s  heyday is well in the past.  Businesses have a very hard time surviving in this beautiful location. The City has a reputation for crime, poverty, and mismanagement– all of which have contributed to the lack of business. However one business has survived for years because of its unique and charming atmosphere– The Bier Garden.

The Bier Garden sits right on the main street (High Street) in the old town of Portsmouth.  Although it doesn’t look like much, it is a haven for local beer drinkers. They offer a large selection of beer in bottles and on draft.  Beers hale from all over the world but concentrate on Germany, Belgium, and England.  If  you are looking for a beer from one of these countries, this is the place to find it.  The beer menu is actually larger than the food menu.

The owners are German and, in addition to the large selection of beer, the restaurant is excellent.  I am a vegetarian, so I love the  lensen kase spatzle (lentils with spatzle,which is kind of a German macaroni and cheese).  I love to start my meal with a nice authentic German pretzel as an appetizer.  Friends have never told me that they have had a bad dish here.  The prices are quite reasonable too which makes this place a great place for lunch or dinner.

Because The Bier Garden is very popular with locals and visitors, it can get quite crowded, especially on the weekends. The dining area is rather small and the bar (which sits at the back of the building) can become elbow to elbow. During the summer,  part of the dining area becomes al fresco and, during the winter, this area is covered and heated with propane heaters which except on the coldest days keeps it quite comfortable. During the summers, there is additional outside seating but the crowds are also bigger.

I would highly recommend, if you like beer and find yourself in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, that you make your way to The Bier Garden for a good meal and a brew or too.