Jim D.
Yelp
Here is another instance where I gotta be a bit negative about a place I've had a couple of decent experiences with in the past. I've been going to Stuttgarden Tavern every now and then since it was FuddRucker's becuause my daughter loves their pork schnitzel and they do a pretty good reuben sandwich.
On my last visit my daughter ordered her usual, which we typically share, but I wanted to try something else. Since Stuttgarden Tavern pretends to be an authentic German restaurant, I thought I'd try their bratwurst. I saw they had a few different types and I almost decided on one until I noticed that the menu indicated that they were served on hawaiian rolls.....seriously.....
When the server came by, I asked if the brats were only served on hawaiian rolls or was there an alternative and he said that was the only choice. I ordered the french dip instead.
As I waited for my french dip sandwich to arrive, I saw other people start recieving their food and most of them had ordered brats and what I saw was madness......
The brats were served on literal hawaiian dinner rolls, taken from the package but not separated with their tops slit to make a bun. This is the laziest, most unappetizing idiocy I have seen in quite some time. Having spent a couple of years in Germany, I ate a bratwurst or two and you know what they weren't served on? You guessed it; hawaiian dinner rolls. Also, the brats themselves lookes like they were blackened on a grill or something which also isn't correct. All this can be yours for something like $13+ each.....EACH! Seriously, if you are going to present your food as German and charge a premium, maybe don't let your seven year-old make the food.....
So I there I sat, waiting for my french dip sandwhich thinking about how angry I would have been had I spent 13 or fourteen dollars on a piece of burnt looking sausage on three cheap hawaiian dinner rolls. Imagine my surprise when my french dip finally arrived.........served on three still connected hawaiian dinner rolls sliced along the top to make a bun.....for $13.........
The sheer stupidity of this is staggering. Whomever decided that this was the way to make food, frankly, has no business around food and should be embarassed to serve literal garbage such as this. Of course I sent it back and told the manager that I would not eat that sandwhich nor anything else and sat and waited for my daughter to eat her schnitzel.
Stuttgarden Tavern is yet another of the businesses on Galveston Island who cater primarily to tourists. They all know that quality is of no concern as those visiting are unlikely to be repeat business in any case so they sell nonsense at a premium, completely forgetting about those of us who are in the area year round and could help them get through the off-season if they just put a little effort in.
Oh yeah, the part that annoys me the most about Stuttgarden Tavern in addition to my visit today and some issues on past visits I haven't mentioned is that it's a three floor establishment and the 1st floor is NEVER OPEN. You have to climb stairs 100% of the time. The 1st floor seemed to work just fine when it was Fuddrucker's, but not now apparently. I never thought I'd say that I miss Fuddrucker's, but here we are......
In summary, Stuttgarden Tavern is a place that serves German food for people who have never had German food. They have a wide selection of beers that they always seem to be out of when I try to order something other than domestic even though their menu shows some actual German beers. There are better options, though few as most other places share the approach of serving garbage to tourists rather than taking pride in their food. I wonder what the next owners will put in there when Stuttgarden closes down......