Munich: Augustiner Beer Hall

When we arrived at the Augustiner Beer Hall we were disappointed to see the place packed with no place to sit. But, we suppose that that was to be expected only a couple short days away from the beginning of Oktoberfest. After doing the rounds a couple of times desperately looking for a spot we finally nestled up next to some travelers from Australia. They had been travelling around Europe for 6 months and on a whim made their way to Munich for the festival.

The halls were loud, lively, and full of Bavarian character. We ordered two frothy beers along with a pork knuckle and potato dumpling. Bavarian cuisine at its finest! The great thing about the beer halls were the long communal tables that made it so easy to meet locals and fellow travellers. Provided with good beer (social lubrication) our usual timid selves were transformed into unabashed conversationists. Sharing a table with strangers is completely normal in beer halls, something you would never see in a restaurant in Montreal. Without such seating arrangements we would not have been able to meet and converse with so many wonderful people.   

After a couple more rounds of beer and some good conversation with our new Australian friends, we made our way back to the hotel which wrapped up a great first day in Munich. We left with some awesome souvenirs to take home: two, liter mugs; a 500ml ceramic mug; and the sleek 500ml glass pictured above. When departing from Munich we had the challenge of packing them up safe and sound in our back-packs, but here we are one year later and they sit proudly on our beer mantle. 

Thanks for re-living our beer hall experience with us! We hope you get a chance to go one day.

Prost!

- Adri