Olde Towne East spot wins with location, German-style food, beers
It’s no small feat for a beer-producing business to stand out in a region with 50-some breweries, which central Ohio has been reported to offer. Cheers, then, to Gemut Biergarten, a new Olde Towne East operation that clearly isn’t just another drop in the sudsy bucket.
Among Gemut’s distinguishing attributes are a small beer-hall-style, 1890s-vintage, refurbished firehouse setting with new, dramatic stained-glass windows and custom-built communal tables; a convivial beer garden and a party-time patio; a focus on Germanstyle lagers rather than hop-heavy ales; and bold, delicious dishes.
Given all this — and its website tying its title to gemutlichkeit, a German word that loosely refers to a pleased, “right place at the right time” feeling — Gemut’s name seems well chosen.
Gemut has some wellchosen experts on board, too: Rob Camstra and Nick Guyton, previously of Four String Brewing Co., and Adam Yoho, the former executive chef at the Downtown branch of Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse.
About a half-dozen crisp house beers are available, ranging from the refreshingly light pilsner, helles and kolsch to the maltier dunkel and the seasonal, and highly recommended, marzenbier. Most are $6 per half-liter, or $9 to $11 for a liter-sized, Oktoberfest-worthy stein. Gemut’s fast-casual setup means that beers and food must be ordered at the bar. In my case, this meant leaving the scenic beer garden midmeal to get back in line inside the attractive, but echoey, interior barroom for another hefeweizen. (The beer-garden bar wasn’t open during my visits.)
Gemut’s Germanic- leaning food is at least as good as its beers. If peppery, chile-spiked kefta kebabs The trout with roasted vegetables at Gemut Biergarten