home away from home week after week since  they opened. great service,great food, friendly owners. love supporting people i actually like! the brats are always cooked right, get the pretzel bun, it is superior. my go to is the chicken shnitzle with mushroom gravy and a garden salad or cabbage salad. so good. hits the mark every time. even have me drinking Reisling, which i dont really like. they have a not so sweet version. wish they would open an outpost on Broadway! OBAZDA!  if you have never had it, get it.
Review Source:Hofbrau on tap and plenty of brats? Say no more, my kind of place. It reminds me of a trip to Bavaria. It's a little small but not cramped, has a homey feel to it. The beers on tap are pretty fresh, the sausages are good and the service was spot on. Has indoor and outdoor seating. The check in special was a nice treat. Totally going back.
Review Source:Two words: sausages and beer.
I really enjoy traditional German beer. I sometimes like to enjoy a lot of it in one sitting. I also enjoy mashed potatoes and sausage with my beer. Hence, I enjoy Max Bratwurst and Bier.
Its a great, clean little shop. The food is solid and the beer selection is great. I've really enjoyed everything I've tried.
Looking for a German food fix in Astoria?  Well, there aren't too many Germans in this hood but thankfully it seems sie Germans have come to 30th ave....way off  the main drag but here they are serving up liter biers.  And when you serve liter biers, you are certainly going to get my thumbs up! Â
So what is German food anyways? Â Well, typically it's a lot of meat, meat, meat, and potatoes thrown in for good measure. Â This is certainly what you're going to be getting here. Â They have your standard German sausages with a few "exotics" such as alligator. Â For all of those people complaining about the "meat loaf" the German name for it is Leberkase, or literally liver cheese. Â Just think of it as a highly processed meat product that gets ground up super fine and cooked up for you.....yes much like bologna. Â So if you're thinking you're hankering for meatloaf like you would think of as ground beef and bread crumbs you're going to be disappointed. Â
We had the Max Combo Platter (8 sausages, pork schnitzel, and 1 leberkase), potato pancakes, and potato salad (the one with vinegar). Â Anyways, it was an incredible amount of food, so much so that we had used the left overs the next morning, and I had 2 dinners after that. Â We had the knockwurst, scharfebauernbratwurst, bierbratwurst mit kase, andouille sausage. Â The scharfebauernbratwurst was awesome since we had it curried up, perfectly delicious with the curry powder on top and the spiciness of the sausage worked perfectly. Â The knockwurst tasted like it was a boars head, and the bier and cheese brat was great. Â The andouille sausage was meh. Â I thought the potato pancakes were awesome and the potato salad wasn't my thing since I usually jump on the mayo version. Â Although I did enjoy the fresh dill in the potato salad. Â The schnitzel.....well, it was a major disappointment. Â I didn't feel the meat was pounded thin enough, the breading flaked right off and wasn't properly adhered to the meat, and it was a bit dry. Â The flavor of the schnitzel however was spot on.
Although the restaurant is fairly small, the outdoor seating was nice and it's good for a small group of people. Â if you're a fan of German beer and love sitting around drinking 1 liter steins followed up with hearty meals, this IS the place.
Came here about a month ago with my parents on a Saturday early afternoon. Â The restaurant was empty but the decor and waitress were warm and the food was very good. Â
Great German (only German) beer choices in large sizes. Â Excellent, authentic German Potato Salad. Â We had the jalapeno Brat (very good) and Bavarian meatloaf. Â The latter was actually a giant piece of bologna, which was somewhat disappointing but getting it on a pretzel bun with caramelized onions and their awesome choices of mustard and it was still solid. Â
I'm excited to try the other dishes and will definitely be going back
This isn't a place that serves beer in mason jars, it isn't decorated with reclaimed wood from an 1890s twine factory and it isn't staffed by mustachioed waiters in suspenders and fedoras.
What it is is a great relaxed neighborhood spot serving good beer and good food at reasonable prices. The menu can be a bit hard to read at first glance, but I would suggest looking for the option to combine two sausages and two sides if you're looking to try a few things.
I have tried a large portion of the menu and have enjoyed everything I've had so far. This isn't a fancy place and the food is not "artisanal". It's just all solid German food at very reasonable prices. Â
This is one of my go-to spots on a Sunday afternoon when I'm looking for a casual, chill meal.
Came here with my in-laws at 4PM on a Saturday. There were about 12 of us. It wasn't crowded at all; instead, the restaurant had more of a relaxed atmosphere.
I wasn't blown away by the food, and I felt like the service was kind of slow. But I didn't really care at that point since I was in good company. I was really excited because they served Hofbrauhaus beer on draft in 0.5 - 1.0 L increments, which made me feel like i was in Munich all over again. (PS Hofbrauhaus beer is the beer that made me start to like beer and actually realize that beer could actually be good). They also served soft pretzels, like genuine German pretzels, which I LOVED. They served it with various cheeses which was kind of odd to me, but that too was pretty yummy.
Considering it has Bratwurst in the name of the restaurant, I thought the wursts were just okay. I wish I could say I liked my Weisswurst (veal sausage), but I felt like it was just a big Nathan's hotdog. I got the Farmer's sausage, which seemed more authentic to me, but it was mad spicy!
For a 3.5 star restaurant in my book, I'd definitely come back here to hang out with good company again to catch a beer and their yummy pretzels.
I got the Bavarian Meatloaf and it was a slice of bologna on steroids. I felt I was eating a salted ab of Schwarzenegger's.
I can see how this place can offer a better experience than the take-out meal I got, but I'm going to go off of what I got. I did not like the food. It MIGHT be that I don't like German Food though.
I don't know.
Just go.
I honestly don't care what a bunch of strangers do. I don't write these reviews for you; I write them to categorize my experiences in an orderly fashion.
I really enjoyed this place! I had the wurst plate with the veal bratwurst and the knockwurst with red cabbage and the cucumber salad. Both sausages were great, authentic, and the red cabbage was the perfect balance of sweet and sour. My favorite was the cucumber salad. I have been craving this since I left Germany and it was soooo good. Huge meal, I ate half for lunch and finished the rest for dinner all for $13! If you are seeking some authentic German food this is a great place to try! I look forward to coming back and trying more of the menu and defiantly some beer. The mustards are fantastic too!
Review Source:Before heading on over to the beer garden at Bohemian Hall I had a chance to check out this newest addition to German dining in Astoria. The Astoria / L.I.C. area of Queens has not had much in the way of German food for a number of years. The German restaurant "Wunderbar" in L.I.C. opened in 2009 but for reasons unknown closed in early 2012. "Max Bratwurst" opened in April of last year (2012) and seems to be off to a good start.
"There is nothing like this in the neighborhood," said Renny Fusha, one of the owners. "Most of the beer garden type places are very Americanized. We have a lot of ethnic flavor." From: "Rattlesnake Sausage on Menu at Astoria Beer Hall" 5/12
Hold on there! Rattlesnake sausage?? Hmmm... Yes, here they call it "Klapperschlangenbratwurst" (that means... rattlesnake sausage!) .
They also have "Krokodilbratwurst" (Alligator Bratwurst!!) and "Hasenbratwurst" (Rabbit Bratwurst). Didn't quite have the nerve to try these, but would venture to say no other German restaurant in NYC offers this sort of fare.
More traditional German sausages include a half pounder "Riesenbockwurst" and "Knockwurst" as well as traditional pork "Bratwurst" and a "Kalbsbratwurst".
My partner in crime had a beef smoked  "Rindswurst". There was also a chicken sausage called "Gefluegelbratwurst" on the menu and many many others... You can tell this place is all about sausage and beer, but also has some other things you will like.
For an extra $2.00 you can make any of their sausages into a Berlin style "Currywurst".
Good Schnitzel here! The lightly breaded pork or chicken cutlet is pan fried in butter and served with two sides of your choice. Most people have it with Bratkartoffel (fried potatoes), fries or cucumber salad.
It was nice to see "Bouletten" (aka "Frikadellen") on the menu. Large 10 oz. German style meat balls that they call a "Giant German Hamburger" here. Four different varieties offered.
They also offer a number of different German style sandwiches...
Lots of good sides including; Â Krautsalat (Homemade Cabbage Salad), Muenchner Kartoffelsalat (Homemade Munich Style Potato Salad), Gurkensalat (Homemade Cucumber Salad), Berliner Kartoffelsalat (Homemade Berlin Style Potato Salad with mayonnaise) and more...
Beer selection is excellent, both on tap and bottled. Tap beers include Radeberger Pilsner, HB original lager, Spaten Oktoberfest, HB Dunkel, Schneider Weisse and Gaffel Koelsch from Cologne.
You can order the Gaffel Koelsch in a traditional way here that is usually only seen in Cologne. For $25.00 you can get a "Kranz" or "Wheel" of 11 glasses of this excellent "Koelsch style" beer (a  total of 2.2 Liters) for you and your friends (or just for you if you like!).
All beers are served in 0.3 ltr, 0.5 ltr or 1 full Liter sizes.
The three owners of "Max Bratwurst" are two Albanian immigrants, Renny Fusha and Fjori Ndreu and their friend Thomas Klein originally from Germany. After their first place "Currywurst Bros." on Bleecker St. in Manhattan closed, they decided to open a new German restaurant in Astoria.
Although Max Bratwurst does not have an actual outdoor beer garden (go to Bohemian Hall for that), it does have nice floor to ceiling windows that open wide, allowing customers to feel a little breath of fresh air. There are also some outside tables available during the warmer months.
The Schnitzel was good, the Gaffel Koelsch made me homesick, and the service was friendly. On top of this the prices are great for what you get. Try it...
PS - if you are into German soccer they show all the Bundesliga matches here on their big screen TV... a nice little extra here...
WTF Max? You have awesome $12 litres of beer! You have a menu that boasts bratwurst made with RATTLESNAKE! I want to love you.  The problem is...you blast early 90's American rock for no apparent reason. Not only inside, but in true Vegas Strip fashion, out onto the innocent street as well.  Also, your bratwurst seems like a Vienna Sausage that was left in Miracle Grow overnight.  Also, my "sausage salad" was really  bologna salad. Also, please, please turn off this terrible music. I will return for glorious, reasonably priced beers. But I will wear earplugs and eat elsewhere.
Review Source:We have been waiting for an hour for our food, at least 40 minutes before we even ordered. The place is half full and there is only one waitress working. At this point, I could care less what the food actually tastes like. Really bad service - beware...
Got the food and couldn't even finish any of it. Not good. Don't waste your time.
I am one that loves knock, brat and any other wurst food, so I cam here based on some photos in Boro magazine. I didn't even know this place existed... I haven't seen or heard anything on Yelp about it.
The menu is quite vast with all sorts of German fare, I went for something on their gourmet line: Scharfe Bauernbratwurst/ Farmers Bratwurst 5.o oz hot with hot peppers and red cabbage. They also have a slew of German mustards.
If you check in you get a free beer!! a Gaffel Koelsch 0.2 ltr. but I also got a 0.5 ltr. HB Dunkel.
The brat itself was good nothing outstanding and honestly not much flavor, I even tried some without all the condiments. The roll that is comes with is big crispy on the outside and soft in.
The prices are very responsible and place itself could be more homey so overall it was just OK.
Two stars because they are new and I like the German bierhalle concept. First off, stupid tiny. Â Not really a German beer hall since there is no bar to sit at and there is seating for maybe 30 people. Second problem is that they have only 1 server for the entire place. No busboys, bartenders or anything, but 3 cooks in the kitchen. Â The music was blaring loud, and since I was sitting close to the open kitchen and couldn't get the server's attention for the life of me, I asked one of the cooks if he could have the speakers turned down. He told me he only cooks. Â I did see that very same cook plate up a dish and some fries fell off the plate. He bent down, scooped them up and threw them away. Â Now, he was wearing no gloves, and I got sick to the stomach when I saw him touching the hamburger and fries on the next plate with the same hands he most probably touched the floor with a moment before. Â Anyway, we left because we got tired of waiting and went to another nearby restaurant to eat.
Review Source:Had an absolutely satisfying feast here. Liters and boots available! Brats are quarter pounders - no skimping here! The chicken bratwurst (gefleugel) was excellent, esp paired with Handlmaier's sweet Bavarian mustard.
The Bayern burger was also ginormous, served on perfectly toasted bread. Sauerkraut and caramelized onions on the side.
And the nicest, most attentive waitresses! New girl from LA is actually German. What a great authentic little gem in Astoria.
**3.5 starts happily rounded up to 4 just for the beers on tap and the niceness of the waitresses.**
The friendly waitresses now know me, as I am the only vegetarian to frequent this place. Â The beers on tap are good - herbivores and carnivores alike would agree - and at $6.50 for 0.5L, will leave you soused. Â
The cucumber salad ($4) is tasty and the lightest thing on the menu. Â Especially since the menu is comprised of: different wursts and schnitzels + pasta (get the "Kaesespaetzle" ($7), a German pasta with Swiss cheese, i.e. basically, a lip-smacking mac & cheese) + potato sides + giant pretzels (for $8??).
Came here for lunch on a weekday. Â We tried the Hot Farmer's Bratwurst with caramelized onions and grilled hot peppers and asked for the pretzel bun for the extra $0.50 - not sure how the pretzel is on its own or what the bread that normally comes with the brat is like but the pretzel bun was extremely dry and dense and made it hard to eat with the brat. Â Was not a fan and would not substitute for a pretzel bun again. We ordered the hot mustard to go with the brat and that was awesome stuff.
We also tried the Hot Bavarian Meat Loaf with caramelized onions and mustard - I thought this was going to be some type of meatloaf like mom used to make except with German add-ins, but instead it looked and tasted more like two 1/4 inch thick slices of bologna. Â It wasn't bad, but just not what I was expecting.
The fries are served in a hearty portion and were seasoned nicely. Â I love the kind of fries that still have some of the potato skin on them.
Wasn't blown away by our first experience, but would be open to trying other things on their menu, especially since they're in walking distance of my apartment :)
I threw a party here for my husband's 30th birthday and it could not have been easier. Fjori the owner was very laid back and easy to work with. I booked their party room for about 20 people, though it could hold more comfortably. Despite being a little odd to get to (you have to enter down some stairs on the side, and there is no bathroom down there so guests have to come back up to the bar area) the room was great, our waitress was great, and the food was great. I dropped off a few decorations the day before and the staff decorated the room for me themselves. I also brought my own ipod so that we could play our own music, which was also a plus. A number of our party guests had giant boots of beer which they seemed to be having fun drinking. Everyone had something different too eat, but I had the chicken shnitzel with cucumber salad and Munich style potato salad. It was all very delicious. I'll definitely be going back here for dinner and drinks, but if you're planning a party I think this would be a great place.
Review Source:New to the Astoria/East Elmhurst hood is Max Bratwurst. It's a cute little place with communal tables and a good selection of German beers on tap serving up brats and schnitzel. I've been waiting and searching long and hard for a brats and beer place to open up in Queens (besides Zum Stammtisch in far away Glendale and the drunken-college-party-themed Bohemian in Astoria) and was excited when I found out about Max.
I was a little underwhelmed. While the service, the beer, and the schnitzel were good and the prices decent, the brats, sides, and sauerkraut left more to be desired. (To be honest, the kraut tasted more like it came from a can than being made in the küche.) The brats (some with the strings still attached) were not served with mustard - although three types (with no descriptions) were provided on request. And, wait, did you just say that you were out of the ENTIRE "exotic" line of brats?? I was really looking forward to the alligator!
Also, as another Yelper pointed out, the place seems to have a little bit of identity crisis. Are you a family restaurant? A sports bar with brats? A really small bier (with no) garden? I can't tell. The choice of music (pop and top-40s) and the TV (playing the subway series...ok, I won't complain about that), and the beautiful wooden communal tables were an interesting bit of confusion for me. It just seemed all-over-the place for me. Call me old fashioned, maybe?
Would I come back? I don't know. At least, not for a while. There are better options out there (right now) and this new kid on the block still needs to figure some things out.
Having patronized many German restaurants in College Point and Middle Village/Glendale years ago, Â I have missed eating good schnitzels, sauerbraten and handmade German sausages.
So when my family asked to dine at a German restaurant Yelp found me this new spot in Astoria!
Our entrees for to night:
1. Nurnberger (four sausages) w/mash & sauerkraut; $12- good meal. Rate 4/5.
2. Wurst-Sausage Platter w/Blue cheese chicken & bratwurst; $13- Delicious. Rate 4/5.
3. Wurst-Sausage platter w/Beef Bratwurst & veal; $13- Veal need more spices, the beef was delicious. Â Rate 5/5.
4. Chicken Schnitzel w/cucumber salad & Fries; $13- fresh chicken breast and cooked just right. Â Rate 5/5.
5. Munich potato salad; $4.50- very good German-style potato salad w/pickles
Notes:
I wish they have sauerbraten on the menu.
This place is small so go now before it gets popular.
Decor is modern & clean with wall hanging to let you know it is a German theme.
Personal goal: Their beer selection looks great and I want to go back for beers next time!
This is a fun place in the neighborhood to drink beer, eat sausages, and be merry. Went last night and the waitresses seemed a little overwhelmed, but always friendly. I was happy to see the place busy and boisterous on what's been such a quiet corner in the past, though the noise level got pretty loud. Some people are complaining about weird things: the TV with sports playing does not seem out of place. The overall design of the place is a little cheesy, but who cares? It's fun.
I do think they should ask you if you want your bratwurst on bread or not. We really just wanted the meat, not a meat sandwich, so I felt bad when it came on a nice looking baguette and no one wanted to eat it. Really enjoyed the currywurst, and the beer and cheese bratwurst. To those who complain about the bratwurst being boiled, I think maybe if you order the platter, which doesn't come as a sandwich, they cook those on a griddle so it does end up getting nicely browned on one side. Also, the homefries were really good.
They listed three odd sounding "exotic" sausages on the menu but don't actually have those available yet.
Authentic German food served along side great German Beer. How could I turn that down? And that is what you will find at Max Bratwurst und Bier.
The space is small and not very "homey german" feel you get from the majority of german places, in fact it was sorta Kitsch in a European way and had a TV on the wall, and the music was German pop. But then again it is Astoria.....so it seems kind of normal.
I was hoping for a great german beer selection, but alas as happens most of the time it was the basic same old same old german beers you find at most places.
The have a very large schnitzel and bratwurst selection, as well as lots of other yummy choices on the menu to pick from. Â We settled on 3 different bratwursts and a Knackwurst to share. Like another reviewer mentioned all 4 were boiled. This is not how it should be. Also I hoping they would be served a little differently from each other. Or at least on a plate with some yummy yummy german sides. Â But no they were just all on a roll in a basket. Â Now I'm not complaining cause they were yummy and we ate them all up, but they were missing a little something something. Or maybe I just went in expecting too much.
3.5 stars. Beer and slightly overpriced German food. Crowded when i went. The ambiance of a pizza parlor. You sit cheek to jowl with people -- a clever trick to pack 30 people in a 15' x 15' room. This place inevitably will be a darling amongst beer aficionados. It's pretty decent but could really do with more room and/or an garden space.
Review Source:I'd been waiting for this place to open for months as I live right next door. My boyfriend and I went for lunch to try it out yesterday and were not disappointed!
First of all, prices are super reasonable and portions are huge. We ordered way too much food but we wanted to try a bunch of things and we ended up with leftovers. He had a burger with gorgonzola and caramelized onions, I had the ham sandwich with butter and pickles on a baguette. Both were excellent, HUGE, and well-priced. We also split a pork bratwurst (wish it had been grilled instead of boiled) and an order of hashbrowns (which were really delicious) and each got a Bitburger pilsner. The beer list is excellent, by the way, and full of authentic German imports for, again, really reasonable prices.
Service was really great and friendly and we got to meet the owner and chat for a bit as it was quiet in there on a weekday afternoon. They're open til midnight daily and til 2AM on the weekends, so we're hoping to make this our local Astoria joint among our friends.
My only complaint is the décor. I LOVE the German pop music soundtrack, but restaurant's branding is a bit cheesy and overkill, as is the big "Kuche" decal on the wall. I'd love it if they scaled back and gave the place a little more of a "rustic beerhall" feel - right now, the flimsy menu and the little German dude mascot make it feel like a chain restaurant.
Would definitely recommend!
I went to Max's for a light dinner.  Ambience was terrific.  Upbeat.  Wait staff terrific.  Assortment of beer, mostly bottled, was great!  There is a nice variety on tap.  I ordered a simple Bratwurst with fried onions and red cabbage.  The onions and cabbage were tastey.  The Bratwurst was NOT grilled or fried as it should be.  It was huge and lightly boiled and disappointing in flavor.  Knackwurst is boiled, not bratwurst!  The sausage was lukewarm, served in a basket, on large roll, kind of like a long piece of  a bagette which was  too chewy and had been sitting around.  I expected the sausage to be served on a plate with a piece or two of rye or "black" bread or a roll--- German style. I hope they get a German cookbook soon.
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