I can't believe I'm writing this review. We've gone to the Brudergarten for about two/three years now. Every single time, the experience had been phenomenal. Unfortunately, we won't be going back following the experience we had last Saturday (16 Mar 24). We went with our whole family and children. We were informed that we couldn't sit in the middle partition of the outside dining area because "that is an adult only area." When we asked where we could go, we were informed that we could sit in the left most area with children, and the reasoning we were provided by the manager was "because people smoke in the middle, and our waitstaff might trip over children." Okay - that's a generally reasonable response. I get having a portion of your restaurant sectioned off to adult patrons only. The real problem lies a little deeper...The kids area is an actual danger to children. It's has no grass or astroturf but rather has rocks and stones as a walking area. There is rusted furnaces, an almost broken swing, a giant can of GASOLINE, and shares the area with the AXE THROWING venue. Furthermore, there is exposed electric wires, AC piping, a fire pit, and two loose 20ft ladders propped up on the building. To top it off? We were informed by the wait staff that people are also allowed to smoke in the kids area as well. I'm actually astounded. When I asked if the staff were able to provide a more logical reason as to why this is the childrens area, the manager simply said "this is the way the owners preferred the outdoor seating to be arranged."Look - we've been going here for a long time, we have two mugs purchased, and have even purchased a hat (picture attached), but I'm not kidding - the tone deaf response to this dangerous excuse of a childrens area has resulted in us never going here again. I strongly discourage any family looking for an outing going to Bru, and encourage you look elsewhere.Please see the attached pictures. The pictures with astro turf is the ADULT AREA. The rocky area is the CHILDREN area. Astoundingly tone deaf and anti-family.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
W Y
This was a great place for families, now very limited. Family, specifically children, have been relegated to unsafe areas. The owner has stated it’s a pub, and has put that principle first, unconcerned about the family atmosphere. We’ve been going there for years, won’t be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 3
John H
It was a good night, until... What is a 3% restaurant fee? When you put it on my tab without asking or notifying me, I call it "unscrupulous" and a "deal breaker".Following is a long winded explanation about how hard covid was on them (as though it wasn't hard on the rest of us) and how the best solution was to charge everyone a surprise fee. It would actually be better to raise menu prices because then you would at least know what you're paying when you order. This is a sneaky way to charge more without appearing to have raised prices. As I said, "unscrupulous".
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Katherine Kaplan
Kid-friendliness: The owner grabbed a child by their hoodie because they walked on the cornhole board. Regardless of the situation you never lay your hand on someone’s child we have never met her before, so no I would never take my family ever again and neither should you.
Henry Hostetler
Good German beer and German music. O'Esh Die Dritten on the Juke box.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beer Brat with Chips
Dan M.
We have been going there since they opened but over the last 6 months something has changed in a bad way. Great food! Great beer selection! Great place to enjoy both. However, the staff is extremely unfriendly towards families with kids during the day time and treated my wife and I very poorly each of the last three visits. The outside seating are is set up so that kids are not allowed to sit in the middle area. The owner approached us as we were sitting down and was extremely ugly to us. The majority of the customers were families with kids. We watched 5 families get run off by the staff for sitting with their kids in this middle area. There wasn't a single person sitting in the middle seating area. Really stupid business plan to attack the majority of your customers and drive them off. My wife and I went in one evening for some drinks and the security guard at the door was an absolute psychopath. Freaked out when I said "hey man how are you" and became extremely aggressive towards me. He was aggressive to other groups at the bar throughout the night. Very unprofessional for someone in the role. After our visit today I don't know that we will go back. It's a shame because it a cool place with great food and drinks. Too bad the owner is rude and has an issues with her staff. Really hope she reads this and takes it seriously and makes some changes. Would hate to see our small town lose this place.
Kaitlin Wesson
Disappointing the kids section is on the rocks! Confused why the adults section is on the turf and the kids are playing on rocks, kinda dangerous for little ones. Also wouldn’t it make sense to start adults only at a certain time not all day on a saturday. Hoping this isn’t going to become non kid friendly considering this has been a staple for the community
Food: 5
Service: 5
Darla Powell
Emma is the best!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
frederick stewart
Didn’t eat the bar food, had to seat there because smash burger shared seating with them.I will visit and drink at Bru, the outside seating is fun and worth a visit.
Atmosphere: 5
Kat C.
Hubby and I came to Southern MD for a day trip (we live in PG, near college park) and were thinking to try a brewery that is new to us. In an online search, I came across Brudergarten and it looked like exactly what we were looking for! The ambiance was reminiscent of an authentic German Brew Haus and the beers that were offered were amazing! I say this because they offer a great variety - something for everyone! There are GREAT local brews (the St. Mary's Stout and there was a Sour from LAD.. those were my favorites) as well as some other MD breweries in other areas (like EVO, etc.) as well as national brands (Coors, etc.) so, everyone has a choice. I love when places offer VARIETY and Bru REALLY understood the assignment. They also offer live music, places to have parties and games, etc. It's just a wonderful place to be! If you are ever in Leonardtown (or a local reading this) PLEASE GO! You will NOT be disappointed! Thank you to the crew at BRU for making last Saturday so much fun for us! :)
Awesome place to hand out, great service, awesome food!! Loved the atmosphere!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Zach MK
If you are a DD or just looking to have good food with a great atmosphere, look elsewhere after the market closes and the bouncer comes out. We had no issues getting in (aside from the TSA style scrutiny of our well over 21 IDs), but leaving we had problems. The bouncer physically blocked us from leaving and directed us to leave our soda purchased from Smash House (who do not sell liquor) at the bar. His reasoning was we could’ve dumped liquor in there from the bar and tried to leave. Considering we never visited the bar and had a bag of food in our hand I found it difficult to believe anyone would buy that. Unfortunately, the only way you can get food from Smash House after the market closes is to enter and exit through Bru, so you are at the mercy of their bouncer. So if you are picking up great local food for yourself or the family, do not get any drinks, or you’ll be out your drink and money like I was. It’s a shame Bru apparently supports this posture and discourages sober patrons from returning to two otherwise great businesses because of a lousy choice of staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Tanya Redding
Great, family fun establishment. It has all sorts of fun activities for young and young at heart. From a mini soccer field, to axe throwing. Enjoy relaxing by the fire and enjoying a specialty beer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rob
The security guy at the door really needs to check his attitude. While my party of 6 was standing in line he had a huge attitude and was giving people a hard time. I told him he needed to lighten up a little and he started giving me an attitude as well. We all turned around and left. The security guy really needs to learn how to conduct ID checks and security at the door. I guess he watched "Roadhouse" one too many times. This is our first and last time I'm going while "Dalton" is working the door.I've worked the door many times as a former police officer and private security. This guy did everything you don't do.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
Ron M.
The security guy at the door really needs to check his attitude. While my party of 6 was standing in line he had a huge attitude and was giving people a hard time. I told him he needed to lighten up a little and he started giving me an attitude as well. We all turned around and left. The security guy really needs to learn how to conduct ID checks and security at the door. I guess he watched "Roadhouse" one too many times. This is our first and last time I'm going while "Dalton" is working the door. I've worked the door many times as a former police officer and private security. This guy did everything you don't do.
I can't believe I'm writing this review. We've gone to the Brudergarten for about two/three years now. Every single time, the experience had been phenomenal. Unfortunately, we won't be going back following the experience we had last Saturday (16 Mar 24). We went with our whole family and children. We were informed that we couldn't sit in the middle partition of the outside dining area because "that is an adult only area." When we asked where we could go, we were informed that we could sit in the left most area with children, and the reasoning we were provided by the manager was "because people smoke in the middle, and our waitstaff might trip over children." Okay - that's a generally reasonable response. I get having a portion of your restaurant sectioned off to adult patrons only. The real problem lies a little deeper...The kids area is an actual danger to children. It's has no grass or astroturf but rather has rocks and stones as a walking area. There is rusted furnaces, an almost broken swing, a giant can of GASOLINE, and shares the area with the AXE THROWING venue. Furthermore, there is exposed electric wires, AC piping, a fire pit, and two loose 20ft ladders propped up on the building. To top it off? We were informed by the wait staff that people are also allowed to smoke in the kids area as well. I'm actually astounded. When I asked if the staff were able to provide a more logical reason as to why this is the childrens area, the manager simply said "this is the way the owners preferred the outdoor seating to be arranged."Look - we've been going here for a long time, we have two mugs purchased, and have even purchased a hat (picture attached), but I'm not kidding - the tone deaf response to this dangerous excuse of a childrens area has resulted in us never going here again. I strongly discourage any family looking for an outing going to Bru, and encourage you look elsewhere.Please see the attached pictures. The pictures with astro turf is the ADULT AREA. The rocky area is the CHILDREN area. Astoundingly tone deaf and anti-family.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
This was a great place for families, now very limited. Family, specifically children, have been relegated to unsafe areas. The owner has stated it’s a pub, and has put that principle first, unconcerned about the family atmosphere. We’ve been going there for years, won’t be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 3
It was a good night, until... What is a 3% restaurant fee? When you put it on my tab without asking or notifying me, I call it "unscrupulous" and a "deal breaker".Following is a long winded explanation about how hard covid was on them (as though it wasn't hard on the rest of us) and how the best solution was to charge everyone a surprise fee. It would actually be better to raise menu prices because then you would at least know what you're paying when you order. This is a sneaky way to charge more without appearing to have raised prices. As I said, "unscrupulous".
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Kid-friendliness: The owner grabbed a child by their hoodie because they walked on the cornhole board. Regardless of the situation you never lay your hand on someone’s child we have never met her before, so no I would never take my family ever again and neither should you.
Good German beer and German music. O'Esh Die Dritten on the Juke box.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beer Brat with Chips
We have been going there since they opened but over the last 6 months something has changed in a bad way. Great food! Great beer selection! Great place to enjoy both. However, the staff is extremely unfriendly towards families with kids during the day time and treated my wife and I very poorly each of the last three visits. The outside seating are is set up so that kids are not allowed to sit in the middle area. The owner approached us as we were sitting down and was extremely ugly to us. The majority of the customers were families with kids. We watched 5 families get run off by the staff for sitting with their kids in this middle area. There wasn't a single person sitting in the middle seating area. Really stupid business plan to attack the majority of your customers and drive them off. My wife and I went in one evening for some drinks and the security guard at the door was an absolute psychopath. Freaked out when I said "hey man how are you" and became extremely aggressive towards me. He was aggressive to other groups at the bar throughout the night. Very unprofessional for someone in the role. After our visit today I don't know that we will go back. It's a shame because it a cool place with great food and drinks. Too bad the owner is rude and has an issues with her staff. Really hope she reads this and takes it seriously and makes some changes. Would hate to see our small town lose this place.
Disappointing the kids section is on the rocks! Confused why the adults section is on the turf and the kids are playing on rocks, kinda dangerous for little ones. Also wouldn’t it make sense to start adults only at a certain time not all day on a saturday. Hoping this isn’t going to become non kid friendly considering this has been a staple for the community
Food: 5
Service: 5
Emma is the best!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Didn’t eat the bar food, had to seat there because smash burger shared seating with them.I will visit and drink at Bru, the outside seating is fun and worth a visit.
Atmosphere: 5
Hubby and I came to Southern MD for a day trip (we live in PG, near college park) and were thinking to try a brewery that is new to us. In an online search, I came across Brudergarten and it looked like exactly what we were looking for! The ambiance was reminiscent of an authentic German Brew Haus and the beers that were offered were amazing! I say this because they offer a great variety - something for everyone! There are GREAT local brews (the St. Mary's Stout and there was a Sour from LAD.. those were my favorites) as well as some other MD breweries in other areas (like EVO, etc.) as well as national brands (Coors, etc.) so, everyone has a choice. I love when places offer VARIETY and Bru REALLY understood the assignment. They also offer live music, places to have parties and games, etc. It's just a wonderful place to be! If you are ever in Leonardtown (or a local reading this) PLEASE GO! You will NOT be disappointed! Thank you to the crew at BRU for making last Saturday so much fun for us! :)
Restaurantji Recommends
Awesome place to hand out, great service, awesome food!! Loved the atmosphere!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
If you are a DD or just looking to have good food with a great atmosphere, look elsewhere after the market closes and the bouncer comes out. We had no issues getting in (aside from the TSA style scrutiny of our well over 21 IDs), but leaving we had problems. The bouncer physically blocked us from leaving and directed us to leave our soda purchased from Smash House (who do not sell liquor) at the bar. His reasoning was we could’ve dumped liquor in there from the bar and tried to leave. Considering we never visited the bar and had a bag of food in our hand I found it difficult to believe anyone would buy that. Unfortunately, the only way you can get food from Smash House after the market closes is to enter and exit through Bru, so you are at the mercy of their bouncer. So if you are picking up great local food for yourself or the family, do not get any drinks, or you’ll be out your drink and money like I was. It’s a shame Bru apparently supports this posture and discourages sober patrons from returning to two otherwise great businesses because of a lousy choice of staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Great, family fun establishment. It has all sorts of fun activities for young and young at heart. From a mini soccer field, to axe throwing. Enjoy relaxing by the fire and enjoying a specialty beer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The security guy at the door really needs to check his attitude. While my party of 6 was standing in line he had a huge attitude and was giving people a hard time. I told him he needed to lighten up a little and he started giving me an attitude as well. We all turned around and left. The security guy really needs to learn how to conduct ID checks and security at the door. I guess he watched "Roadhouse" one too many times. This is our first and last time I'm going while "Dalton" is working the door.I've worked the door many times as a former police officer and private security. This guy did everything you don't do.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
The security guy at the door really needs to check his attitude. While my party of 6 was standing in line he had a huge attitude and was giving people a hard time. I told him he needed to lighten up a little and he started giving me an attitude as well. We all turned around and left. The security guy really needs to learn how to conduct ID checks and security at the door. I guess he watched "Roadhouse" one too many times. This is our first and last time I'm going while "Dalton" is working the door. I've worked the door many times as a former police officer and private security. This guy did everything you don't do.