Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Beers, Brats and Baseball



The first day of spring in Cleveland isn't on the equinox, it's on the day of the Indians home opener. We all know that baseball is better when it's washed down with a few draughts and a dog, so Hofbrauhaus Cleveland is stepping up to the plate.

This Thursday at 6:30 p.m., former Indians player and 1980 Rookie of the Year Joe Charboneau will tap a keg of the German beer hall's monthly brew, a Pilsner that's still made using an original recipe from Munich. The party is free and includes polka music by the Chardon Polka Band.


The next evening, on Friday, April 10, baseball fans can pregame at Hofbrauhaus in the new outdoor beer garden, which seats 1,000 and includes a walk-up pavilion to purchase beer and brats. Twenty bucks buys you a liter of beer, a brat meal with sauerkraut and potato salad, plus shuttle service to and from Progressive Field (shuttles leave every 15 minutes, starting at 2:30 p.m. before the game and resuming again from the eighth inning to 90 minutes after the game).

Tickets are available from HBCLE.eventbrite.com. Hope you bought your tickets early, because Indians tickets not included, and the game is long sold out. But hey, that means more beer for you while you watch the action on the main beer hall's four big-screen TVs.