Having never been to Germany I do not know what German food is supposed to be like. Â I do however know what I like and I like this place very much, it looked authentic to me and the meal was simply outstanding , service, price everything. Â Not to mention some of the best beer that I had never heard of before.
Review Source:Very good food (jaeger schnitzel, Semmel knodel, sausages and the combination salad!), great beers, welcoming bar, fun servers, local music, dogs allowed in the outdoor area.  Bundesliga Soccer. The Mai fests and Oktoberfests! Thank you Cindy & Peter for bringing gemütlichkeit to Alameda!
Review Source:The Bread Basket comes with some truly magical Herb Infused Butter. If their menu wasn't filled with delicious items, I'd be tempted to just keep ordering basket after basket of bread!
Our party shared an order of Reibekuchen (Potato Pancakes with Apple Compote). The pancakes were crispy on the outside, soft inside, and the apple compote was sweet with a subtle honey mustard kick to it.
The Bratwurst Sandwich (Grilled Bratwurst, Sauerkraut, German Mustard on a Toasted Baguette) was excellent. The spicy German Mustard was a bit overpowering at times, making my sinuses flair, but it was so good, I didn't even mind! I devoured the sandwich and the side of Roasted Potatoes with Bacon.
The worst part about Speisekammer was picking the one entree I wanted to eat! Fortunately, things like this can be remedied with future visits, which I definitely plan on making.
Spiesekammer is a Bavarian jewel of a restaurant, wiengarten and beer bar just off the main drag of Alameda, Park Street.
It has a quaint front facade, with picnic benches outside in the front, perfect for those Oktoberfest days coming up, which here in NorCal, combine with the Indian summer warmth.
Inside it is larger than it appears, with a good size bar with at least 15 German beers on tap! And plenty of tables where you can eat or drink. Then there is another open room on the left of the entry, and farther back yet another good sized room.
The bar has a shelf in front of it near the ceiling, where a long line of various Bier Steins are proudly presented.
They have live music regularly. We came on a Wednesday night, which is the night all the local Germans come to drink and talk story. I saw someone even in their Lederhosen, too.
The restaurant serves German food, but also some surprising nightly specials. The owners, Peter and Cindy, owned a German restaurant in San Francisco and also the Cafe du Nord. So 11 years ago they combined forces and opened up this place.
We came too late for food (about 10 pm is when we arrived) but we enjoyed our drinks. I had a wonderful unpasteurized, unfiltered beer they had on tap, call Zwick'l KellerBier. It was light, fluffy, flavorful, with a hint of nuts. It was served in a very tall porcelain stein. Really tasty and refreshing at the same time.
If you are German or middle European, you will feel very at home here with its warm ambiance, great service, and German decor. And of course there is the great Bier!
WONDERFUL German cuisine in Alameda. Â I've been coming here since I moved to the Island back in 2006. Â LOVE IT. Their food is great, Their beer is excellent. Â Nice place for dinner and also features and very pleasant beer garden. Â They hold an Octoberfest celebration in the fall which is a must. Â Also, don't be afraid if you are vegan. Â Believe it or not, they actually have meals that are not only vegetarian but vegan! Â Check em out!
Review Source:We came here on a huge staff gathering for the office and needed accommodations for about 15-20 people. Speisekammer was extremely welcoming to our large group and the service was GREAT considering all the chatter and distractions going on at the table.
The food was delicious... delicious mashed potatoes, saurkraut, bratwurst, bread, butter, cheese... we truly had a FEAST to feed all our hungry mouths. Having never had authentic German food in my days- this was a place that truly hit it on the spot and left you feeling like you truly experienced some solid German cuisine. Not to mention the BEER MENU is just amazingly extensive, so hard to make up your mind... not complaining ;)
I was listening to some great live music there tonight and some immature yuppie with no manners and no clue was yammering on with his friend while sitting RIGHT IN FRONT of this acoustic band that was playing a super-beautiful, soulful quiet song.
Thankfully the guitarist got up afterwards and stuck his face right in the offenders' face and must have shamed him into leaving because the doofus turned white and left.
What is it with yuppie scum that think they need to go to a bar with GREAT live music and then f*ck it up for those of us who are enjoying it with their brainless, endless prattling on about their sad-assed lives? That AND their texting and emailing on their cellphones when there's life to be lived right in front of them?
What is WRONG with people?
this place has quality music, better than most SF bars. If you like live music, Speisekammer is an OASIS in the east bay!
Came here at 4 with coworkers (2 of them spoke or studied german.. which helped increase the festivities. Â You should definitely try it). Â before 5pm they only serve appetizers!
Anyway, I was late and so from far away I thought we ordered a few pitchers.
Up close, I realized those were all mugs. Â Huge ginormous mugs of german beer.
The bartender is really chill and informative.. and our server was amazing! Â We had this extended conversation about copper and electrolysis.. or whatever, (I wasn't really part of that conversation). Â This is all to say, she was great AND well-informed.
The boots are respectably sized but not that large (according to the boot-lovers) ... and.. there's also just a wide variety of cocktails and such.
ANYWAY: MY MAIN GUSH is the food. Â The food really IS worth it all. Â I ended up getting a half order of the shweinbraten plate and the pork was so soft and delicious, falling apart at the touch of my fork. Â The sauerkraut was amazing.. and it just felt so warm and delicious.
Coworkers loved the bratwurst and the 2 kind of mustard there are pretty great too.
Anyway, I'd definitely come again (especially now that it's summer). Â A fun place to sit in the sun, get rowdily german with large mugs of frothy beer. I really really do recommend that you bring some germans to this place. Â It makes it *that* much better. Â I felt like I was in oldtown europe - large men drinking out of boots while kids with bibs run around and scream. Â nice.
PS: Parking is a bit weird and yeah, the prices for food are steep.
This place is always great. Great food, great service, and great beers! Make sure to have the beet salad, the potato pancakes, and the dumplings. Some of the best appetizers ever! My wife's salmon dish was excellent and my Wiener Schnitzel Von Schwein (breaded pork cutlet) was amazing.
Review Source:Our excitement of dinner at Speisekammer was interrupted by the two hostesses. As the two of us entered the restaurant, they stared at us with emotionless faces as if we don't belong. Even when we told them we have a reservation, not a crack of smile or hint of politeness.
Thank goodness for our server (forgot his name)! His friendliness saved the day! Since it was our first time having German cuisine, he recommended sharing the meat platter and 1/2 order of creamy spatzle as an introductory meal.
The meat platter (<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/speisekammer-alameda#6OtUESwuqD4-47vpQvXGXQ">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>) had a varietal of sausages and a pork chop over a bed of sauerkraut. It was a lot of meat for two people. But I did appreciate being able to sample different flavors and textures. And thank goodness for the sauerkraut! There was some sort of vegetable...kinda! As for the creamy spatzle (<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/speisekammer-alameda#3x1PKFADNBsLQZk6CpEwLA">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>), it was pretty much mac and cheese with a lighter and softer pasta.
The spatzle was somewhat plain by itself. But with the meats and sauerkraut, it was well balanced and hearty. Along with 1/2 liter of German beer each, we had a delicious meal! Excellent recommendation, server! Next time, we'll move onto their dinner entrees.
Yup, we plan to dine here again despite the hostesses.
As a german, I was super excited to find another piece of home in the bay area. I have been to Suppenkueche in the city many times, and figured Speisekammer wil be my east bay fix. Alas, not so.
We sat outside, which was pretty nice. Well, except that we felt like we were at Chucky cheese most of the evening due to parents letting their children run laps for most of the night. Not the restaurants fault, really, but still.
After an average appetizer (Aufschnitt Platte), we waited 45 minutes for our entrees. That's just too long. I was getting antsy and the poor waitress kept apologizing that the kitchen was "backed up", even though the restaurant didn't even look near capacity...
When the entrees finally came out, I was expecting the food to be as good as its SF equivalent, and it just wasn't. My half chicken was dry... my father in laws Rot Kohl was so tangy and jammy, I kept assuring him that it usually compliments the meal much nicer. So sad.
Overall, I swore to myself that if I am craving a piece of the homeland, I will surely make a trip to SF where Suppenkueche wil serve me the freshest, most authentic and consistently delicious german food round. Sorry, Speisekammer!
Note: Beer and liquor list is amazing... Only upside apart from our really nice server.
We had a really good family meal here.
The salads - carrot, cabbage, etc.were delicious and lite - so if anyone ever says German food is all heavy they are wrong.
The potatoe pancake was a hit. Crisp, soft in the middle. Better than most Jewish deli versions of Latkes.
The roasted potatoes that came with the entres were great -onion, bacon, etc.
Both kids and adults had shnitzel which was great.
Do you like beer? Â Do you REALLY like beer???? Â Do you like drinking fine German beer out of a glass boot, then eating some delicious German sausages, and then washing that down with more beer???? Â If yes, then this is the place for you! Â If not... then what the heck is wrong with you????
I have been to this place multiple times. Â The beer selection is great and very wide (in terms of German beers) and I think the food is actually a lot better than some better-known SF German restaurants. Â I especially like the potato pancakes, the sausages, and the pork chops.
I would suggest checking this place out during Oktoberfest, as they tend to have events on multiple weekends involving dancing, oompah bands, and yes... lots of beer!
Super fun place for a German experience...the food was good and service was friendly and helpful. Took a friend her for dinner to celebrate her birthday (she's 1/2 German) and she super enjoyed herself! Would go again!! .... Made reservations and was glad as it got pretty busy and there would have been a wait.
Review Source:One of our go-to places for large groups of people with varying tastes and appetites. They were unruffled at coping with five people arriving from various points and stuck in traffic. Menu reflects a variety of German cuisine, well prepared. Live music on many evenings, and a lovely outdoor patio.
Review Source:I am happy to report the wait time between order and the food improved dramatically and the food continued to be outstanding.
Had the Spaetzle and Cheese with bacon which was the bomb. Â The pommes with 3 dipping sauces were fantastic as well. Â This will be a standard when we return. The pork cutlet dinner was a monster. Â THe cutlets were crunchy and tender. My brother ordered that and I'm going to have that the next time I eat here.
We all had to take a portion of our entrees home. Â
This is a fantastic find.
The food was delicious, although hard to pronounce. This place is a great and tasty way to be introduced to German cuisine. The hefeweizen they have on tap tasted great and paired well with the food. Although we sat in the backroom, we had no issue with the service. She was there when we needed her and wasn't around when we didn't.
Review Source:Talk about comfort. Â On this last visit we got to sit right in front of the fire. Â Great conversation, fantastic beer, delicious and hearty food, friendly service. . . Maybe it just makes me nostalgic for traveling through Europe, but nah, I loved this place before I ever went to Germany.
There was live music, and the joint was hoppin. Â This is seriously one of my favorite places to be. Â Next time: on a warm day in the biergarten!
Not nearly as crowded as the German restaurants in SF, you don't feel crowded and bumped as you enjoy your schnitzel and beer. Nice interior and there's usually a table of musicians who play music while you dine. You can't lose. It's amazing.
But you have to like beer. And that super full feeling you get after gorging.
Looking for delicious German Food? This is the place. To celebrate my 21st birthday, which was a while ago, my family and I went here to enjoy beer, good company, excellent food, and celebrate. While parking can be difficult, the food is worth it.
As a 21 year old, I didn't hesitate to ask what I should enjoy with my meal and, while I don't remember the beer, I remember it was delicious! The servers here are amazing, nice, and really know their stuff so don't hesitate to ask them what beverage you should enjoy with your meal.
Now for the important part, the food. My family came here and ordered some specials that I can't remember but the one thing I do remember is their Gegrillte fleischplatte, or family style grilled meat platter. The best thing about going here with a group is that you have the pleasure of trying a bit of everything and this platter really does have a bit of everything. Of all the meats, my favorite was definitely the grilled smoked pork chop. Two of my favorite preparations in one dish? Clearly, it was love at first bite.
If you live in Alameda, there's no reason to not try this place (unless you've tried it already and don't like it--even then, give it another chance?). Try it, and maybe you'll love it as much as I do!
First time having German food and it definitely did not disappoint. Â We started with a half order of the the potato pancakes with apple sauce. These were delish. It sounds weird with the apple sauce, but it works.
The hubby had the tri-tip and I had the pork cutlet with mushroom sauce. Both dishes were very flavorful.
Although yelp does indicate this as a bar, it is actually a restaurant with a side bar. So it is absolutely okay to bring your kids. The place is good for families and group gathering, especially with the long list of beers.
This is my first review in 3 years. Â That's what happens when you lose your profile name and password!
After living on the Island of Alameda for over 3 decades, and seeing this spot transform from a French cafe into a German restaurant, I finally brought my family to Speisekammer. We were pleasantly surprised.
Since I don't remember the German names for what we ordered, I will refer to them in English:
Appetizers: Â The potato fritters were delicious. They were hot, crispy, golden brown and lightly salted. Â The sauce, which was flavored with apples, spices (including a hint of clove), was very subtle and understated. Â The meatballs, dressed with a brown gravy and mushrooms, were savory and flavorful; not dense at all, but light and "fluffy."
Entrees: Â Two of us ordered the classic Weinerschnitzel (half order), which was presented over potatoes and sauerkraut. The fillets were light and crisp. Â However, the pork was not seasoned well and detectably dry. Â That did not stop us from finishing our dishes.
The baked trout, finished with an almond sauce, over spinach and mashed potatoes, was accented with dill. Â It was fresh, moist and served whole.
The schweinbratten (pork stew), was deliciously savory. The sauce was not overpowering and the serving size was generous.
The stuffed cabbage was my favorite dish. Unlike the traditional Jewish version, the sauce was lightly seasoned, not overly sweet and complemented the meat filling. Â
It felt like a little piece of Bavaria in the East Bay. Â Definitely worth a repeat visit!
'Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated'
I couldn't get that out of my head as I read through the menu...
I also couldn't pronounce anything I was about to eat, but I assure you, it was all good.
We started off with the Semmelknödel mit Pilzrahmsoße, which comprised of 2 big, tasty dumpling balls drenched in a delightful mushroom sauce. Â
I had the Wiener Schnitzel vom Schwein and it was crispy and delicious. My man got the Schweinebraten...I liked my schnitzel better, but I liked the sauce they put on the Schwinebraten.
Schnitzel needs a sauce..period. It may be against German culinary rules, but I'm here to break em and I say put some of that mushroom sauce from the big balls on the Schnitzel and you have yourself a winning combo.
Everything was hella German. It felt like we were in the alps or something, in a cool lil cabin.
Very cool place, very carby and comforty foods that will definitely put you in a food coma.
it's a little nice place in Alameda- great beer selection for serious beer lovers and fruity beer lovers. i am the later--- grapefruit and pear cider plus bratwurst -- i am in heaven. The price is much more reasonable than the German food in San Francisco. Speisekammer doesn't have as many authentic German food selections, however the restaurant is not overcrowded, so they don't have waitress wearing fake Germany costume yelling at you. (hinting, the German restaurant on mission st. )
Best of all, it's a doggy friendly place at the patio area - the surroundings isn't the best, but provides super easy parking-- it is Alameda after all.
Short and sweet.
Pros: ok food, live music, atmosphere is pretty cool
Cons: service was terrible, food is nothing special
Overall it came down to terrible service... but to be fair, the tables next to us were getting good service so it could be that we had a bad waitress or she was having a bad day.
Took my friend here for her 32nd birthday! The host was amazing btw. We love him and is personality.
The food, beer, decor was incredible. I have relatives that are German and have been to Germany so the food was right-on and the atmosphere made me feel like I was there.
The bartender was ok. He looked distracted but he was cute. Served us 2 beers then we were seated to our table.
Our waitress could've been more attentive. Â She went to the men sitting next to us and asked them how they were doing and if they liked the food but never came to us. Never even offered us more beer either. At the end of our meal she asked us "need anything else?" Uh... Yah.... Offer us dessert lady and coffee or tea! I said "yes, dessert." She said "Oh!" And grabbed a menu. I ordered the apfelstrudel. It was delicious. She didn't offer us coffee or tea with it so I didn't get it. Figured I'd go somewhere else for that.
The bus girl who brings out the food kept bringing out the wrong food to the tables. Kept mixing up our food with the men sitting next to us. She was somewhat distracted also. A little stressed?
I give 3 stars just for the service. The food deserves 4 or 5 stars.
Not too shabby. Impressed with Alameda. (Just moved here from SF). I'd come back.
Tasty German food and beer.
It was a gorgeous Sunday Morning in the East Bay. Riding my motorcycle down to Alameda to eat some delicious German food made it even better.
They have a good selection of German beer and all the dishes I tried were comforting and satisfying. Service was friendly, but it was quite slow. Beer orders were forgotten on a couple of occasions and there were a couple of times when we had to go out of our way to find a waiter. We were sitting outside (it was gorgeous), so maybe that lowered our visibility.
The potato pancakes with apple sauce were simple, but tasty. The sausage plate with sauerkraut was a little disappointing. I just felt the dish was unnecessary and we could have done without it.
The main dishes were all satisfying. They come in half and full versions, but I am not sure what the exact differences are. I think the full versions include a salad. The stuffed cabbage rolls with mashed potatoes and the  sauerbraten with red cabbage & spratzel were as comforting as they were in my childhood. The snittzhel with roasted potatoes was also good: nicely breaded and delicious. To finish dinner, we shared an apple strudel. It was OK.
I recommend you come here on a weekend for a comforting lunch, beer, and a relaxing time with friends.
This place used to be notorious (to me) for their slow service. It's been a few years since I've been here but they've definitely stepped that part up.
We went there for dinner tonight and the 2 types of bread and herb butter (Mmmmm butter) was awesome as always. We ordered the mushroom and leek soup which was delicious, and the Jagerschnitzel (one with veal and one with pork). Â The veal came out drier and less flavorful than the pork which was disappointing, considering they charge extra for veal, but the mushroom cream sauce and spatzle were tasty. The meal came with salad which was nice but the dressing was a bit on the sour side.
Overall it was a good experience (and they give you two huge pieces of meat- I don't usually eat much meat but there is almost nothing on the menu that doesn't come with meat) however the food was not particularly memorable this time around.
My 500ml beer was delicious and only $5. I don't remember the name of it...
My buddy Jon G.'s 1 Liter beer was delicious and only $7. Â I don't remember that name either...
Sauerbraten was good, but I expect larger portions for $19.50. After finishing it, I filled up on bread afterwards.
In conclusion, just spend the extra $2 FUCing bucks for twice as much good beer!
A surprise birthday dinner at Speisekammer made me love my husband even more :)
The location is very non-descript if you might. There are homes and businesses located around the restaurant, which itself is a home converted into a restaurant. The have seating outdoors, which reminds me of seating at a regonal park, to be honest. I'll prolly check it out on a warmer evening. And well, as a consequence, parking is a bit of a pain.
When you walk in, you do feel like you are transported straight to some beer bar and restaurant in Germany!
My husband had made prior reservations and we were seated almost the moment we walked in. The seating host was very, very polite and sweet. Our waitress was uber sweet too. Unfortunately, I do not remember her name.
For drinks, we ordered an Apple wine for myself and a hefewiezen for the husband. I quite relished the apple wine and do recommend it. It was a first for me.
We then proceeded to order the sausages with house mustard and sauerkraut and an order of Spatzle. The sausages dipped in mustard and eaten with a little bit of sauerkrat is an experience of it's kind. The sourness of the sauerkraut complimented the perfectly grilled sausages. The spatzle is essentially a German mac n cheese. And you can't really go wrong with that. We pretty much inhaled our dinner :) (That should speak volumes)
The waitress surprised me with their speciality - The apple strudel. And she wasn't lying when she said that this is the best dessert I'll ever eat! Crunchy on the outside and the apple sauce just oozes when you take a bite. Yummm~
The food is reasonably priced, IMHO.
They have live bands performing at the restaurant. Unfortunately, there wasn't one on my birthday. And since I've subscribed to them on Facebook, I keep getting updates about when the next performance is going to be. And I do fully intend on heading here when I have the time :)
I recommend Speisekammer - for an evening of good food, good beer and good music too.
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