Head on over to at 2615 Broadway St., and it’s like stepping into a mini Germany, smack dab in the middle of Redwood City.
This booming business has been owned and operated by the Staudt family for more than 30 years. Lucie Staudt, the store’s matriarch, helped found the business after the family moved to the area from Bergneustadt, Germany, decades ago.
Around three years ago, her son Volker Staudt and his wife Maryann took over the business, but you can still see Lucie behind the counter most Saturdays, in her traditional German dress, helping the store’s loyal base of customers. Other Staudt family members are often seen throughout the store helping out as well, like Volker and Maryann’s two sons, Grant and Carson, and Volker’s niece.
Gourmet Haus Staudt is a truly unique business, offering a hodge-podge of anything and everything German one can imagine, to the delight of many German-born locals, as well as those who have just fallen in love with many of the store’s hard-to-find German treats.
“We do very well,” said Volker. “We have a strong, local, German clientele.”
The front of the store is a German grocery and gift store, offering everything from tables full of German chocolates and candies, to shelves full of food items, traditional pilsner glasses and beer steins for sale, and kegs and shelves full of imported German beers. There is also a wealth of authentic German knick-knacks and collectibles like nutcrackers, gnomes and other figurines. Family photos dot many of the shelves throughout the store, adding to the business’ warm, family feel.
In the back is Gourmet Haus Staudt’s famous beer garden and bar.
People come from all over to and enjoy a glass of imported German beer or wine, or to sit in the small restaurant and enjoy authentic German cuisine such as pickle plates, many different flavors of bratwurst, liverwurst and bologna sandwiches, sauerkraut, German potato salad and more.
The restaurant offers a different hot plate special every night. Volker says, “you never know what you’re going to get.”
One of the restaurant’s other specialties are its jumbo hot pretzels. Volker says, it is one of the most profitable areas of their business.
“We go through about 200 pretzels every week,” he said. “It’s sort of our claim to fame.”
Speaking of “famous,” that’s exactly what the store’s beer garden is becoming—Volker says the San Francisco Examiner recently named it “the Bay Area’s best beer garden.”
The store’s annual Oktoberfest celebration is another way they are known throughout the area. They block off the entire back parking lot from cars to make room for a big, festive party, with traditional German bands like this year’s headliner, The Internationals.
“Last year we had over 1,200 people. I’m actually sort of worried to see how many show up this year,” Volker said with a laugh.
This year’s Oktoberfest celebration takes place on Saturday, Sept. 10, with the live band and beer specials from 4-8 p.m.
For the latest news from Gourmet Haus Staudt, including what new imported beers the store and bar are stocking and the most current menu specials being offered in the restaurant, the Staudt family invites everyone to visit their website – www.gourmethausstaudt.com – or to find them on Facebook. You can also call the store anytime at 650-364-9232. Gourmet Haus Staudt is open every week from Monday through Saturday.
