Gluek's Restaurant & Bar

My father was in the army. We moved often. I lived in Germany as a child, and therefore Gluek’s always felt familiar like family – where food is always a safe savory bet. Over the years, the staff provided a welcoming and festive atmosphere whenever we would visit. During our most recent meal, we were surprised and thrilled with the added homey aspect to the bar food. The coleslaw felt lighter than before, and the corn beef was well roasted and served in substantial slices. I love a well-executed French fry – and ones at Gluek’s were dusted in a seasoning salt that added flair. Our dining experience felt like a solid Bavarian homecoming.

Great chill spot for sharing snacks- or a full meal! Enjoyed the pretzel sticks but I saw the giant pretzel walk by and I am getting that next time!! Of course, good beer.

We really enjoyed this place. They had live music and local beers. It is a great historic location. Prices are reasonable. The shot sled was cool to watch. I would definitely recommend this place.

What a fantastic place—almost German Fusion. I’d call it a near dive bar but with restaurant quality food and friendly enough service to make you feel like it’s your local. I rather enjoyed the entire evening and suspect you will as well. The regular live music is yet another bonus.

Pros: Lots of seating, lots of room with good choices. Nice beer selection with some imports. Really friendly staff and the place has a nice atmosphere. Cons: More of a fun bar with food in the German style but not a German restaurant. Giant pretzel was a warm bread, not chewy on the outside/soft on the inside like a Bavarian. No parking lot.

Had an excellent experience here before a TWolves playoff game. Food was WAY better than we expected. Walleye Fingers were super good. But so we're the wings (Dry Run) and the cheeseballs and Large Pretzel.

Cool place, food outstanding. The service needed help. Ordered a glass of Kim Crawford but the bottle surely was opened a while ago. Undeniable couldn't complain no one to resolve issue. Just let it sit. $11 down the drain. Check the wine prior to serving it. Will probably go back but just water next time because I don't drink beer. My partner's beer was amazing!

Gluek's is such a cool place. The history of the brewery, restaurant, and building is alone worth the trip. But of course, there are all the beers and the tasty food that must be tried as well! The sausage party was excellent (brat and andouille) on top of traditional sauerkraut and a side of the best German potato salad I've ever had! The spatzle mac and cheese was a beautiful dish and was a delicious twist on a traditional mac and cheese. (I'll be getting the mac and cheese next time - yes, it was that good!) The third dish our group tried was the pulled bbq beef sandwich with a generous topping of coleslaw - also noteworthy and something we'd reorder!

An institution. They have been here for generations, in a big old building that looks like a mysterious castle. A castle with a beer garden. The main draw for me was live music. The Saturday we visited a cover band was rocking. They lit the place up with Somebody Told Me by The Killers. For drinks, the beers are pretty generic and forgettable. The gluek's cream ale for instance is basically miller lite quality. But the cocktails are decent. If you like sweet drinks, the jitterbug is very tasty. It's a baileys based drink that hit the spot. They have a wode selection of food, too, and are known for their fish. The walleye fingers are nice. Bonus tip - the place is pronounced "glicks."

Beer, sausage, and a Playlist heavy on 90s/early 00s pop punk. What more does one need? Also, the giant pretzel isn't giant...it's ENORMOUS!

Stopped in here for lunch on a Friday and the place was dead. No idea why as the Rueben and Gluek's Pilsner were both excellent, as was the bartender. The building inside and out is super cool and decorated like a bar should be. Get in here folks!

Beef Stroganoff - prepared to perfection I don't know what else to say. It's *chef's kiss* The noodles aren't rubbery or over done. They give you enough stroganoff to cover each, and every, noodle. The sauce itself is light with a "clean" beefy taste. The beef tips are perfect with no gristle or fatty chunks to be found, and they don't skimp on the amount of beef either. I'm not a mushroom fan but I'm learning to like them, they are sized and cooked so they melted into the dish. And they don't try to hide anything under a giant dollop of sour cream, like some places do. Service is great and friendly. Hours and parking are tricky - these are the only drawbacks. - Paid parking lot next door - PRO, which can have $25 "event parking" on weekends - CON - Hours are NOT regular, at all*. You need check the HOURS tab on their website to see when, and if, they are open. And if they haven't updated their website, you'll need to call to find out their hours. Neither of these drawbacks are enough to keep me away from their Beef Stroganoff though. I will be a regular now, for life. *I give them a lot of credit for managing their business in a way where they are able to manage payroll and financial matters. I just wish it was a little more dependable than having to go to the website to find out if they're open today and what time.

I like the looks of the interior, but it ends up quite rowdy and the beer selection is not that good. The "Haus" beers aren't, anyway. It was hot outside, otherwise I would have sat outdoors in the back and looked across a parking lot to the Light Rail. Maybe I was just there at the wrong time -- there were two different corporate parties happening at the same time.

Love German food, but didn't enjoy my lunch here. I was super pumped to try the Schweineschnitzel Spaetzle, but was disappointed w what I was brought. The pork breading was saturated in oil, meat was very greasy, the sauce was flavorless, and the Spaetzle was denser than what I've had before. I wound up eating part of my sister's Mediterranean platter instead. Best way to describe our waitress is w the word, "snarky." She didn't really answer our questions about the food, and was sassy when we asked her questions about Minneapolis. Don't need to go back next time we're in townZ

Fun German bar that has live music several nights a week including the weekends. It was my first visit to Minneapolis and something about this place looked interesting and inviting. There was a band playing but it wasn't packed so I found a spot at the bar to take in the music and grab some food and drinks. I was quickly brought a menu and my drink order taken. I found out from the bartender that Gluek's is the oldest bar in downtown Minneapolis. The menu has your standard German food: schnitzels, Bavarian pretzels and cheese, Spätzle. I got an order of the pretzel sticks which came with a side of spicy German mustard and bar cheese soup to dip it in. I also ordered the Berliner sandwich which had tender chunks of pot roast perched on top of sourdough bread and topped with sautéed mushrooms and melted Swiss cheese. It was served open face. It was tasty but felt it could use a gravy or sauce over it to pull all the flavors together. Food and drinks were reasonable for a downtown area. Glueck's is worth checking out if you're looking for a upbeat environment with live music and authentic German food.

As a vegetarian, I'm kind of over burgers. Generally my options are vegan meat which is meh or a burnt morning star frozen black bean burger. But this place had a walnut burger that I had to try. Food: the walnut burger was SO GOOD!! It was crunchy, super filling, well seasoned. I'd come back just for this it was truly so good. My friend got the Mac n cheese and you could tell it was made from scratch with the different cheeses. Parking: parking in this area is always difficult Eva use it's across the street from target center. Service/vibes: very German vibe! There's lots of dark wood accents, a real fire place, and they even have a Biergarten that you can enjoy in the nice weather. They also have tvs around the restaurant to watch different sports games. Service was great, they were courteous and respectful.

Perfectly cooked Walleye fish and chips, Also had some wings that were to die for! Friendly staff attentive to all your needs!

Known for their "beer boots", Gluek's been an establishment in the downtown area for a number of years. Friendly place for people to gather before or after games and enjoy a few drinks. They serve you typical bar food. There is plenty of space to sit and a back room that can accommodate larger groups. Stopped by their the last time was after a concert / play at the nearby Cowles Center. We were a big group and had reservations. Ordered a bunch of food including fish and chips, burgers, pretzel, cheese curds and fish sadnwich. The food was decent and the drinks were good. Overall, there are better food options in downtown but this place has a unique vibe and you can only get the book at Gluek's

We decided to come here for dinner because it's right across the street from the Timberwolves stadium. We had an outstanding experience. We brought a large group, and they took great care of us. The food was excellent. Great service!

Had a small experience here. Bar staff was cool we had shots ... lots of seating .... A must visit I wanted to Try the craft beer ...

Staff is energetic and well educated on the downtown scene. Food was mixed bag. Pub food but fish and chips were very fishy, made me question freshness. Always stop when in town, will continue to do so. Hours are not a match on Yelp or Online format.

My go to place before and after Twins and Timberwolves games, Great beer and excellent food not to mention very friendly bartenders and wait staff.

Service was terrible, food just okay. Many other choices downtown by target center to go to.

The sausage is fantastic Friendly service A little loud Back room is great for a large group

First time caller last time listener. Came here after a basketball game and ordered the schnitzel...beer was fine but when the schnitzel arrived I cut into it and it was raw in the center basically pork tartar. I told the guy and he was nice about it but when I asked him to just cancel the order all together he said the kitchen was fixing the issue and tried to make me feel bad for cancelling the order all together. So I caved and they brought me another but will never eat here again or come here again which they probably won't care about since I don't live here but be careful ordering her the center of the pork schnitzel was legit RAW like pink like pork tartar be careful..

Kaylie was our server, and she was friendly, attentive, and ran her butt off meeting all the needs of her patrons. She answered any and all questions. Service was fast...food came out quickly. The atmosphere was relaxed and music was eclectic!

Das boot! Great spot for beers and dinner after work. Great prices too. Live music every once in awhile too is a great addition.

Had a craving for some hearty food and good beers, this was just the fix. Had the spatzle and a schnitzel, the food was excellent. Nice place for a beer and good food.

We decided to eat here before a Timberwolves game. It was a great experience. I had the classic brat with home made kettle chips. The brat was tasty, especially with the raw onions I had them pile on top. I had their house red beer which was also good. Everyone liked their meal. While Friday is all you can eat fish fry, no one chose that option this time. We saw another table drinking this HUGE beer boot. Maybe some things to try in the future. Wolves went on to win. Musta been the mojo at Glueks before the game.

I attended the 93x pre show for 5fdp going to concerts alone has some advantages I sat at the bar and had excellent service. I enjoyed a couple of Gluek's Pilsner beers and my incredible meal was the Currywerst which was outstanding, The bar was hopping but service was great

I strolled in here after a very long day and a long week of training at my new job. I sat down flipped a couple pages of the drink menu and tried to gather my scattered thoughts before the pink haired bartender approached me. I asked her if they had any speciality cocktails or shot programs going on and she said "it's literally right there in front of you" on the book that I had wedged open. I understand as I'm a bartender too, but it was my first time there and I was wondering if she had any recommendations or anything of that sort which would have been helpful for a first time guest. I saw her mention and laugh with her coworker about it in front of me like I was some sort of Neanderthal. I actually had a horrible day and was trying to drown my sorrows and she made it that much worse. I started crying at the bar and ate my pizza and left after tipping a decent amount (because I still can't bare to leave a bad tip just in the off chance that it effects the other workers there) and then I left into the night. This could have been my new favorite bar if she wouldn't have ruined my experience. I also asked if they had to go containers or any sort and she told me "no." I asked another bartender and he told me they do and got me a container. I would never go back and I will be telling all of my new coworkers as this could have been a great spot for us as it's very close to our new workplace. I read other reviews and saw that they also had negative experiences with Kailey or Kaitey whatever her name is. She had pink hair and a horrible attitude. I'm wondering if she's a family friend or the owners daughter or something of that sort because why would they keep someone who negatively impacts their business that much. Seriously get rid of her for your own sake.

I came here for dinner with my daughter's dance team, and we were all so excited to get something in our hungry bellies. Unfortunately, the service was terrible and we had to wait almost 3 hours just to receive our appetizers. Keep in mind, we run a tight ship and we had places to be after dinner. We had to wait an additional 10 minutes to get our main course. I was appalled. The food was very mediocre- I definitely was not impressed. The salad tasted awfully similar to a pre-packaged costco salad, the chips and bread were stale, and don't even get me started on the mac n cheese. It was a chunky soup texture, it had a bad aftertaste, and it smelled expired. It's the mac n cheese equivalent to mystery meat loaf at your local run-down gas station. There were people who arrived after us, and left before we even got our meal. The bathrooms were extremely dirty and didn't have a trash can, so my daughter's friend didn't know how to responsibly dispose her hygiene products. Additionally, the staff were not very accommodating to our needs. I am an angry Mama right now.

Very pretty building. Cheap beer options super close to First Ave. Kudos to the staff for putting up with a lot of late night ridiculous customers. Pretty good live music option if First Ave is working for you at that moment.

The food and service was average. Music was bad 80's. The hidden service charge took it to 1*.

This was our first time to this historic establishment. The food was very good, and Jeremy, our server, was wonderful. The lemonade beer also hit the spot. We will definitely come here again. I gave one star less because of the fly situation.

Not an actual review but an ask for Glueks for help - I ordered gift cards online close to 2 weeks ago and haven't received them yet - I live in the suburbs so mail shouldn't take that long. I've tried contacting through email (party@glueks.com and linda@glueks.com) but haven't received a response and did receive a bounceback email to linda@glueks.com, which is where paypal sent payment. I've tried calling but neither voicemail nor a person picked up. Thought I'd try posting on here in case this is monitored by Glueks so they know a gift card order is sitting out there for me and can update me on the status.

Glueks is my new fav place while in the Hennepin Ave area of Minneapolis. Great food, beer & atmosphere. Today I had the Schweineschnitzel. It had a nice crispy crust on it with good flavor. The piece of meat was not large but big enough. The schnitzel was served with spaetzle that was cooked perfectly. Both was served with sour cream & onion sauce which was different for me but it was tasty! On a previous visit, had the sausages, fantastic! And the Best Ever Beef Stroganoff. Life changing. Mmm

Good food, even better service! I had the fish n chips. They were nice and crispy but a little heavy on the grease. The service did more than make it for that, though. Overall, I recommend this place!

Quick service and lots of beer options, including small to large glasses. Reliable German-inspirers food. A pre- game favorite.

We are sampling German restaurants in every town that we can. This restaurant, by far was the absolute worst! Calling it German is quite a stretch. Not one beer from Germany on the list. They claim to be "all about the beer" but were out of a lot of the beers in the menu, Waitress who was the worst ever corrected my German with her incorrect German. The worst part was that we got food, but no water or drinks for over an hour. We didn't bother ordering past appetizers because we had such a bad experience trying to get water. The pretzel was not great. It certainly didn't taste like a pretzel from a good German restaurant. We had the fish fingers which were really good. The music was waaaaaay too loud. We went to a Rammstein concert concert at US Bank stadium directly after and it was a lot easier on the ears than the 80s cover band in the restaurant. I think a lot of people enjoy getting beer towers and jamming to super loud music here, which is fine. But, it really is missing some essential qualities that I've enjoyed at other German restaurants. Pics are from before so we were still happy. Not so happy after our experience at Gluek's

Known as the oldest bar in downtown Minneapolis, we went in after arriving at our hotel. One of the things my BF and I have started doing when traveling, is checking out the oldest bar in whatever city we are in. It's become a cool tradition and often you learn a lot about the city/restaurant by doing so. We sat at the bar, where I checked into Yelp. I got a notification that they offer a free beer for those that check In on yelp! -- super cool, right? We just came in for some drinks. I had a spiked strawberry lemonade cocktail, which was super tasty, made with purées and not artificial flavoring. My BF had the free beer, the cream ale option. We also had a few rounds of Tequila. Both of the wait staff that helped us were attentive and friendly. Atmosphere was chill and lots of things on the wall to look at. They have a lot of German food options, but we didn't have any food on this trip. They have a MASSIVE pretzel that the people next to us got and I feel massive is an understatement. Would highly recommend for the history of the bar and the good options all looked good!

Another stop on the Drinking Walking Tour with Patrick, Susan and Mike and again a few weeks later with Patrick and a different Mike: Dranks only, always sitting at the bar. Turns out we're often there when the place is empty, so we get very attentive service. We've been eating and drinking here for years and are thrilled to bring out-of-town visitors to check it out. Pro Tip: Be sure to check in with the Yelp! app to get a free drink!

Cute German place. Beer by the glass or boot. Hamburger was super dry and over cooked, beef stroganoff was delicious. Would definitely go back.

Great service, great food, and outstanding Happy hour 2fers. Outside bier garden was a nice and cool spot with breeze. The pretzel is a monster.

Incredibly unique, friendly staff. Legit Germanic ambience. We sat on the back patio. So nice. Flowers, games, excellent service, savory sausages and drinking hall.

Great location, great interior with awesome bar. So much potential wasted tho. My daughter used to work in the same building and when I suggested we go there as an affordable downtown option, before a performance at the Brave New Workshop, she tried to dissuade me. Saying food wasn't good and poor customer service. But we went anyway. Our server was good, but a little distracted. Most everyone liked their food. Pretzel apps were good. Burgers were okay, though they thought smallish. My Long Island was not great. My wienerschnitzel was just plain bad. It was not prepared correctly (veal cutlet, pounded, then dredged in flour and fried). They served me instead a boneless pork chop, over dumplings and a super bad cream sauce. So bad. But the place was empty at 6:00 on a Thursday. No one there for happy hour? For dinner? This place is a goldmine with correct management. Better menu, happy hour specials and better food. There is a dearth of affordable eating downtown and their tables would be full every night if they made improvements. Should be the kind of place were everybody knows your name....

This was a little gem I found close to my hotel. I walked in and seated myself, my server Mick was the best. He offered to answer any questions or make suggestions if I needed. I started with a Hefeweizen, my favorite of all beers, and this one did not disappoint. It was so crisp and refreshing. For dinner I ordered the 4 sausage sampler platter and it was great. Kind of wish I went with the sausage party cause sauerkraut would have been good with the sausages. The sampler was great though. The jalapeño, the polish, and the apple Gouda were all seasoned just right and very flavorful while the andouille one packed a bit of a punch. Good service, good food, great atmosphere.

I've waited a tad to do this review. I don't like giving out 2 star reviews if I can help it, but this one was unavoidable because of the service basically. The beginning it didn't start out that way. We got greeted and sat, we were here the opening day of the NFL for the 49ers @ Vikings game. We came here for lunch after watching the game live to get some eats. The waitress was friendly but you could tell tired and hungover, and she basically alluded to as much. No big deal to be honest. We got our drinks, then our food, things were fine. Where things took a turn is we were long done, plates and items cleared, drinks finished and it had to have been over 30 minutes before someone brought us our check, server completely disappeared and non one else from the staff had enough sense to see we were ready to leave and bring us our check, like really? The simplest stuff should be the easiest. Anyways, it kind of ruined what was a cool meal next to some cool fans to talk with. I would still go back again, but hopefully not forgotten about the next time.

Great casual place to hang with friends! Burgers or starters, lots of authentic German food and drinks. Highly recommended place for fun and friends...

Great food, music, and staff. If you're looking for a good meal before the game, or a place to post up and enjoy some local music, look no further.

Oh yes! May I have another. Craig, our waiter, was amazing, kind and funny. Five stars because he was so kind when I told him I was on a online date and don't let he dude pay (this is awesome bc most waiters are awkward). The menu was good, Craig was kind to me (and others) as he humored the aching question most servers hate to hear 'what drink / food would you get!?' I had a jitterbug - coffee martini concoction and fried pickles - asked for extra crispy and they delivered! The place is smaller than The Irish Pub across the street, but could still accommodate a group I think! Still have quaint decor. Has six tables outside - meaning you could park your bike or puppy if it's something of interest. I'll be back - I think you should stop too!

Great food, old school bar that still has a happy hour. Very convenient to the stadium. We will be back.

The Beer Garden in the back is the vibe! Food is great, so many drink options and the staff is very friendly. Gotta check out this Minneapolis staple!

One of my favorite U.S. bars/restaurants! Not only an establishment that has been around since the 1930s, not only a place that has their own brand of beers, but a super classy establishment with very friendly people, with great German food and a wonderful beer selection. Thank you Donna for sharing your insights, and making great suggestions for dinner and beers. Will definitely be going back!

Best walleye fingers I have had . Rachel was great ! Go got the fingers Th bar service was weak with management of unreasonable patrons

I wanted to like it. My ancestry is German, so I'm drawn to the story as well as the cuisine. I went to the back of the bar at first, but had to move because there was such a strong smell of urine, I couldn't hardly get a beer down. Moved to the other end of the bar. There were out of many of their food offerings. Had the sausages and the mac and cheese. Yes, I know. It was passable, but overall, I wouldn't go there again.

I came here randomly while in town for business. The building is beautiful and a registered historical site. Inside the tables are well laid out. Great local/German flair throughout the restaurant with lots of historical stuff. Food was excellent had the hot German potato salad and the Reuben. Beers were good and they had a excellent selection. Nice staff and the happy hour was legit. My new favorite when visiting downtown MSP.

This bar was exactly what my brothers and I where looking for. Jeremy the bartended was amazing as was the ambience, electric GERMAN bearhous. Order the pretzel and sausage platter. Amazing! On my next visit to Minneapolis I will definitely be returning.