BROTZEIT Philippines: Starting the German Bar & Resto Craze in Manila? @BrotzeitPH

BROTZEIT is a Singaporean-owned German restaurant that aims to promote quality German Beers and Bavarian cuisine in the Asia Pacific Region. Manila is the 10th branch in the world from the time the restaurant first opened in 1996.

“Brot” means “bread” and “zeit” literally translates to “time” in German, so its name means bread time or small meal or snack time, which usually is accompanied by refreshing, good quality beers.

Although it was a bit expensive and some of the dishes got mixed reviews, I did love the draft beers and the sausages. Could this be the start of a German beer/ resto craze in Manila?

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Brotzeit is located just in front of the East Wing of Shangri-La Mall along the street level.

It is easy to walk to if you are commuting or if you have a driver to drop you off, but it is a bit far if you park in the upper parking levels of the main mall or the basement parking of the East Wing.

The restaurant has a modern look with its clean lines. It’s filled with long wooden benches with leather-covered cushions.

On one side is an infographic showcasing the German Beer Culture.

(Note: We were a bit hesitant to go at first because it’s a bar/resto, so we thought kids would not be welcomed. Surprisingly, the waiters were very accommodating of the kids, and they even had coloring materials ready.)

Brotzeit Menu
Bier & Getranke (Beer & Beverages): Draft Beers 1 | Draft Beers 2 | Bottled Beers | Beer Mixes | Wine 1 | Wine 2 | Schnapps & Liqueur | Coffee 
Suppen & Vorspeisen (Soups & Appetizers): Soups 1 | Soups 2 | Cold Appetizers | Hot Appetizers
Salate & Fladen (Salads & Pizza): Salad 1 | Salad 2 | Pizza 1 | Pizza 2 
Wurstel & Platten (Sausages & Platters): Sausages 1 | Sausages 2 | Platters 1 | Platters 2
Hauptgerichte & Nebengerichte (Main Courses & Side Dishes): Main Courses 1 | Main Courses 2 | Main Courses 3 | Side Dishes 
Nachspeisen (Desserts): Dessert 1 | Dessert 2

The resto has a nice and organized picture menu of what Brotzeit has to offer.

Gulaschsuppe / Goulash Soup (P270 +10% service charge). Spicy beef goulash soup.

We found the beef very soft and the goulash a tad spicy. The soup itself was slightly watered down — I was expecting it to be thicker.

Note: The dish can feel heavy on the stomach if you eat all the potatoes.

★ Nurnberger / Grilled Pork Sausages (P470 +10%s service charge). Pork bratwurst sausages with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut.

We loved these pork sausages — very tasty, smooth, and with a good spice. The sauerkraut was a bit dry, though. If you think about it, each sausage costs about P100.

Wurstelplatte / Sausage Platter (for 2 Pax) (P980 +10% service charge). Authentic sausage platter with spicy chicken sausages, Nurnberger sausages, pork cheese sausages, Weisswurst and garlic pork sausage and sauerkraut.

The sampler platter is good to share for bigger groups.

 
★ Hefe – Weissbier (P165 +10% service charge) Klein 0.3 litre before 6pm. Paulaner, the No.1 Weissbier in Germany. The typical beer from Munich: top fermented, unfiltered, made with wheat malt. Naturally cloudy with vitamins and hints of banana. Alc 5.5%, Original Gravity 12.5

Complete Draft Beer Menu: Draft Beers Menu left | Draft Beers Menu right
(All beers served at Brotzeit are brewed according to the German Purity Law of 1516, 100% natural, made with pure spring water and imported from Germany.)

I loved the fresh taste of the Paulaner Weissbier — it had sweet tones and a slight banana flavor to it. Actually, it tasted a bit like SMB Premium. What I liked about it best was that I could feel the 5.5% alcoholic kick with one glass. 🙂

This is a good watering hole after a hard day’s work in the office.

Kasespatzle / Cheese Spatzle (P580 +10% service charge). Bavarian homemade Spatzle with assorted melted cheeses and crisp onion rings.

Gouda, Parmesan and Emmental Swiss cheese provide the mix of cheesy flavors to the handmade, oddly-shaped pasta topped with onion rings. Thing is, it had a dry aftertaste that the kids did not like.

Schweinshaxe / Pork Knuckle (While Stock Lasts) – (P1,280 +10% service charge). Crispy hind shank of grain fed pork served with potato salad, sauerkraut and homemade sauce on the side.

Think of it as the German Crispy Pata — one of the highlights of the Bavarian Cuisine here. Unfortunately, they had inconsistencies with their Pork Knuckle when we dined — the skin was not crunchy (makunat) and the meat itself was not very tasty. We only liked the cooked edges of the meat. Certainly not worth its price.

Although, this kind of pork meat is a perfect complement to the German beers. 🙂 

Schokokuchen / Chocolate Cake (P270 +10% service charge). Warm chocolate cake served with Stracciatella ice cream.

We tried the chocolate dessert with a moist inner cake, but it’s nothing to rave about. Best to eat dessert in some other place.

Overall, the quality of the draft beers and the sausages is very good, and it’s worth it to brave the traffic going to Shangri-La Mall. I would recommend Brotzeit for a different German dining experience in a modern, friendly setting.

I’m not sure if German food really tastes that way, but I guess they need to improve on some items in the menu. General foodie feedback is that it is expensive and you have to budget P1,000/head to enjoy the drinks and savor their food.

Their location is not that ideal; I do hope they open in more accessible areas.

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Full Disclosure: We paid for our meals. I wrote this blog post myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I have no business relationship with any company mentioned in this post or any organization promoting it. As a policy, I don’t accept advertising from food and travel places we feature in the blog. 

P.S. What do you think about Brotzeit? Any other German restos you would recommend in the metro?