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Date: 4/27/2018
WEST SPRINGFIELD – Although West Side’s Hofbrauhaus announced it was closing on April 1, loyal customers had the chance to purchase their favorite memorabilia from the restaurant’s two-day tag sale a few weeks later.
The sale took place at the restaurant, located on 1105 Main St., and went from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the weekend of April 14 and 15. Owner Joe Stevens and his wife, Liz Stevens, sold off the American-Bavarian restaurant’s steins, tables, chairs, prints, paintings, Hummel figures and assorted knickknacks – many of which have been collected at the restaurant since its inception in 1935.
Groups of people lined up at the front door to get their shot at bringing home a small piece of Germany. The crowd was a mix of devoted customers and seasoned antique collectors.
Cindi Pliska, of Feeding Hills, had never eaten at the restaurant before, but was attracted to the tag sale for an item she has been collecting for years – Hummel figurines.
“I’ve been collecting them since I was a little girl – I just liked the way they looked. My aunt had a huge cabinet of Hummels that I used to stare at,” she said. “I’d say I have around 80, they’re not worth as much as they used to be. I just collect them now because I like them, not because of the value.”
Pliska said she was pleased with her purchase of several of the porcelain figures, which are based on the drawings of Sister Maria Innocentia Hummel of Germany.
Boston resident Laura Clseel made a two-hour commute on the morning of the 14 in order to arrive at the restaurant at 9:30. She and her family had been dining at the Hofbrauhaus for 30 years.
“We wanted to have some memorabilia from the restaurant. We hate when small businesses close across the state,” said Clseel. “I’m going to miss the owners and the staff. We always had a destination to come here [West Springfield], and now we have to find another one.”
Clseel bought two medium-sized bronze deer that served as part of the décor by the favorite table. They would sit at the same table every time they came to eat.
Any items that weren’t sold at the tag sale are going to be auctioned off, according to Liz Stevens.
On Mar. 14, the Hofbrauhaus Facebook page announced the closing of the restaurant, writing:
“Greetings All! It is official, as of Easter Sunday, April 1st, 2018 (- and no, this isn't an April Fool's joke), The Hofbrauhaus will be closing it's doors for good.We thank everyone for their patronage and support over the years, but we are ready to move on and make some big, wonderful, exciting and maybe a little scary!! changes in our lives. We will be exploring our options in the coming months and will keep you all posted when we have more ‘important news’ to share..... But for now, all we can say is ‘Auf Wiedersehen!’”
The American-Bavarian restaurant had a long-standing tradition in Western Massachusetts. Established in 1935, the Hofbrauhaus brought a “taste of Old Bavaria to New England.” The staff dressed in classy modern attire, the beer was served in steins and the European atmosphere was coupled with traditional Bavarian architecture.
Joe bought the business back in 1995 from the Krach family. He continued the restaurant’s award-winning reputation – with awards ranging from MRA Restaurant Entrepreneur of the Year; Phantom Gourmet Top 100 List and Favorite German Restaurant – by serving classically prepared German and Bavarian Cuisines, as well as more contemporary, international fare.
After many successful years with the restaurant, Liz told Reminder Publications she and her husband came to a mutual decision to close.
“Were getting tired and we’re getting older. The restaurant industry is changing – white tablecloth and fine dining is falling by the wayside,” said Liz. “We just found that, no matter what we did, the Hofbrauhaus has a big stigma where people think it’s really expensive, stuffy and formal – so it became increasingly harder for us to get the younger crowd. Everything has a life cycle, and this type of restaurant has a life cycle. It has reached its end.”
For loyal customers, however, there is still hope.
The Stevens are not planning on selling the building or retiring, rather, just “shifting gears.” Liz said the couple plans to transform the building into something new.
“When we announced the closing, all of the customers who came in said they were so sad,” she commented. “I would say, ‘don’t be sad, it’s a good thing.’ And then they would ask, ‘does that mean you are going to do something else?’ And I told them ‘yes,’ and that made them feel better. We’ve received a lot of comments where they have told us they will go wherever we go, and that is more valuable to me and more encouraging than anything else. These are people who value us, and not just the place – and that’s what this is all about.”
She added that she is looking forward to “sinking [my] teeth” into a new project and designing it from the ground-up.