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After 26 months and one pandemic, Ludwig’s German Table is finally opening its much-anticipated downtown Mountain View beer garden.
Ludwig’s German Table is gearing up to open on Castro Street in Mountain View. Photo by Magali Gauthier.
Ludwig’s will open on Thursday, March 11, at 383 Castro St. The German restaurant and beer garden, the owners’ second location after the original in San Jose, has been under construction in fits and starts since 2019, and faced major delays even before the coronavirus shutdown.
“It’s unbelievable relief to finally get here,” co-owner Ben Bate said. “It’s starting to feel like a beer garden and not a construction site.”
Bate and co-owner Nicole Jacobi took over the prominent corner space after Bierhaus closed several years ago. They first opened Ludwig’s in San Jose’s historic Germania Hall in 2016. Jacobi hails from Hamburg, Germany, and Bate from England.
The Mountain View Ludwig’s has 16 beers on tap, which will focus heavily on German beers to start but rotate in local brews as well. With double the tap capacity of the San Jose location, Bate has more room to play around with the draft offerings. Draft beers are available in 0.2 liter, half liter, liter or 2-liter “das boot” sizes.
Beer glasses inside the soon-to-open Ludwig’s in downtown Mountain View. Photo by Magali Gauthier.
The bar will also serve wine, aperol spritzes and Ludwig’s “house hugo,” prosecco mixed with lime, mint elderflower syrup and sparkling water.
The food menu is a German culinary celebration, including pretzels with obazda (a Bavarian dish made from brie, cream cheese, butter, paprika and onion); wiener schnitzel (diners can choose veal, pork or chicken) served with lingonberry jam, potato salad, and cucumber dill salad; sausages, including a vegan Beyond Meat currywurst. Weekends specials include schweinehaxe, crispy pork knuckle served with sauerkraut, beer sauce and potato salad; and elsässer flammkuchen, crispy flatbread topped with cultured cream, gruyere cheese, bacon and onions. For dessert, there’s apple strudel and berliner pfannkuchen, a German filled donut.
Customers can preorder food and drinks online and dine outdoors or pick it up to go. Ludwig’s has ample outdoor seating, including a few extra tables on Castro Street due to the street closure, and will offer table service. Following county public health guidelines, no more than six people can share a table. They don’t plan to serve people indoors yet, Bate said.
Ludwig’s will serve pretzels with several kinds of dips, including quark dip, beer-cheese sauce and obazda. Photo courtesy Ludwig’s German Table.
Bate and Jacobi temporarily closed Ludwig’s in San Jose in late November to keep the business afloat during the pandemic. They saw business drop during the winter months and were starting to lose money, Bate said.
But they reopened in early February, and are already optimistically planning for major events at both locations this year. They hope to safely host Oktoberfest and an annual Christmas market in Mountain View.
For current hours and to place an order, go to ludwigsmv.com.