Johann Schäfer in Köln

Mega good food, super friendly staff

The food is okay, but far from good! Prices, on the other hand, are too high. Stick to your rules. The salad was really made from leftovers. Obatto was awful! The beer (homebrewed) was good.

Unfortunately, we can't recommend Brauhaus Schäfer because we weren't satisfied with the food. We had steak (ordered medium) and the roast onions. Both were much too well done, and the roast was very tough. It was really expensive, and you have to pay extra for the side dishes. As an "apology," they did offer a shot of schnapps on the house, but we would have preferred good food!

Very friendly staff and delicious food. The concept of creating your own main course and side dishes is good. The prices are a bit too high in my opinion. Parking is available nearby.

I highly recommend this restaurant. It's a great change from the standard breweries. Brewery food reimagined! Beautifully presented, a changing daily special with seasonal influences, and friendly and fast service. The pork belly and chops were very juicy and tender. The mashed potatoes had a good texture and were well seasoned. They started with bread and leek cream, both of which impressed me and made me eager for the rest of the meal. I drank the homemade ginger lemon soda with it, which is also highly recommended. I even gravitated to the vegan chocolate cream with salted caramel.

Very overrated. The menu isn't bad, but there's not much on the plate. They serve Gaffel Kölsch, so it's really nothing special.

A nice experience overall. The service was very, very friendly, and the atmosphere outside was lovely. However, my meal was very, very bad. I had roast beef; unfortunately, it was extremely thickly sliced ​​and tough, with some parts being very sinewy. Almost inedible. A shame. Maybe it was just the wrong dish, since I'd heard so many positive things about it.

A brewery with a great alternative to the classic Kölsch beer. The food uses regional products, and the service is excellent. I'd be happy to come back.

The menu is very limited, the taste isn't great, and the service made a few errors with the billing and, despite repeated reminders, didn't bring the sweet potatoes until the end of the meal. The ambiance is fine.

Since the menu change, it's unfortunately not as delicious as usual. The vegetarian appetizer platter was particularly disappointing – a real letdown for the price. The pickled vegetables were so watery that the liquid even ran down the side of the table. The service seemed attentive, but rather faked. It felt as if someone from management had recently attended an upselling seminar or started a small team challenge. However, being asked the same question three times is rather annoying – some adjustments should be made here. On the positive side, the team was very friendly, as always.

Simply a great brewery! We love this restaurant and keep coming back.

We sat outside; three of the main courses were good, the side salads and side dishes (potato gratin) were very well prepared, and the service was friendly and good. I do have a complaint about the prices. For example, pork chops for €21.50 plus a good €8 for the cucumber salad plus a good €6 for a side dish (potato gratin) are expensive in my opinion, and you can get better value for money in Cologne. The menu layout doesn't reflect this clearly. Kölsch beer is €2.50.

I don't understand the negative feedback about the food. The food was very well prepared and tasty. The portions were generous. Prices are certainly higher, but in my opinion, they're also reasonable, as they use regional products and are really well prepared. The service was excellent! Polite, courteous... That alone is a reason to come back. We sat outside (sidewalk/street seating). It was okay. The later the evening, the quieter it became on Elsaßstrasse. It was my first time there, but certainly not my last!

Very nice brewery. Friendly service. Good food. Always happy to come back.

Very tasty German cuisine, huge portions. You can sit outside.

Food was very good and nice size portions. Started with the obatzda then had the beef tri tip and cutlet along with saucekraut, sweet potatoes and cucumber salad. All was very good and well priced. We sat outside and it’s a nice quiet setting.

The best regional food, top service, and the drinks are also great. Absolutely worth recommending.

Everyone is on the ball and very attentive. We'd be happy to come back...

Very poor value for money. I paid €28.30 for a pork chop with fries. By comparison, the best pork chop at Lommis costs €18-19. In my opinion, this price difference is unjustifiable. The food itself was okay, but the fries were very greasy and some of the meat was dry. The benches were very uncomfortable. I wouldn't go back. In my opinion, this is a brewery that pretends to be alternative and charges handsomely for its (alleged) sustainability.

A brewery with a difference. Besides the food, the cheerful staff is particularly impressive.

Great brewery, good service, delicious Kölsch beer, and good food. Reasonable prices.

€11.80 for a mediocre bratwurst and €6.80 for a dry potato gratin were unfortunately disappointing and far too expensive. The service was friendly, but the atmosphere was rather mediocre.

There are only 5 stars for this restaurant, far too few! We haven't eaten this well in a long time! We'd love to come back!

Very good restaurant, good food, and the staff is always friendly. Highly recommended!

Very tasty food, very friendly and attentive staff.

We ate very well, the servers were friendly and welcoming, I recommend it.

Great place with some vegetarian/vegan options

Junges Brauhaus im rustikalen Ziegelsteinambiente. Umfangreiche Speisekarte, nicht nur Brauhaus, aber leeecker. Tolles Südstadtbier, lockerer Service, einige Tische vor der Tür - es kann später werden.....

Typical brewery with a great menu. Highly recommended ⁷

Always great, the team is very friendly, on the ball, and radiates good humor and joy.... The cuisine is simply wonderful, and the creations are always creative and incredibly delicious.... Not to be forgotten is the delicious beer/Kölsch....

Very tasty food, attentive service. Cool place, I can definitely recommend it.

I generally enjoyed the food. However, for the relatively high price, I expected some cheese, Obazda (traditional German sausage), or something similar on the snack platter. The service is friendly, but the speed isn't as fast as traditional breweries. Overall, I recommend it if you want to experience a different kind of brewery and are willing to spend a little more.

Friendly staff and good food. Good size portions as well, we were almost full after the starters and the bread. The side dishes were also tasty. Thank you for a good time!

Really delicious food, friendly and hardworking staff in a cool atmosphere.

I love the Johann Schäfer! A cool brewery with a young crowd. I especially love the food, though, and I always recommend it to all my friends. Typical Cologne dishes, prepared in a modern way using good, seasonal ingredients. Even just a portion of fries is AMAZING!

Modern traditional German food, super tasty, very nice service, different local beers on tap, a good moment for sure.

I highly recommend Johann Schäfer. Delicious, unfussy food! A Johann Schäfer Hell beer to go with it 😜 and to finish, a beer brandy, which I also highly recommend 😜😎 Great! We'd love to come back!

A wonderful place with German cuisine, in a new way, I recommend visiting. Large portions, good products. Very tasty

We ate at Johann Schäfer yesterday. The atmosphere was different. The service was friendly and attentive. The food was delicious. I had the liver, and the meat on the liver was dry and rubbery. Nobody needs that. The house pilsner was delicious.

Compared to the old-fashioned beer house, the food here is more novel and interesting! The ribs taste very good👍

Top shop, very good quality food.

We were looking for a German restaurant in Cologne and decided on this one. We had made a reservation in advance, but it wasn't necessary. We were able to sit outside, where it was very quiet and easy to chat. The meat was truly tender, and the sauce had a very good flavor. I've rarely eaten such a good steak. It's highly recommended!

A brewery with high-quality, more modern food, unlike traditional Cologne breweries. Attentive, fast service, and a great atmosphere – both inside and out. My only criticism: After a few years, the menu could use some fresh ideas. Most of the dishes there have been on the menu for a good five years – when you go there as often as I do, you sometimes miss the variety ;-)

We love Johann Schäfer! Cozy atmosphere, great service, and absolutely fantastic food. The kitchen is constantly creating new dishes, and by combining the individual components, everyone can decide for themselves how much and what they want to eat. The selection of vegetarian dishes, in particular, is always a reason for us to eat there. The value for money is absolutely spot on, and we're always happy to come back!

The restaurant is loud and lively, as you'd expect from a brewery, and the decor is harmonious. The service was friendly. But unfortunately, both the service and the kitchen were quite overwhelmed. Some of our ordered appetizers arrived with the main courses, and only after we asked for them. Then everything was loaded onto tables that were far too small for them, with the motto "It'll work out." Of course, it didn't; the plates practically fell off. And you have to be very patient for further orders: it can take a while for a server to arrive. It takes even longer for the drinks to arrive. The dishes were passable, certainly more interesting than the usual brewery standard, but unfortunately not as good as expected based on other restaurant reviews. Everything was quite bland, lacking spices, even salt. You had to wait a long time for that, even after asking for it. The mayonnaise, served in a small bowl, was covered in a dark yellow skin; it doesn't look fresh. The pointed cabbage salad with belly bacon consisted almost entirely of bacon; you had to use a magnifying glass to find the pointed cabbage. The sauerbraten was passably seasoned, but unfortunately very tough. The trout and French fries were very good. On the other hand, it wasn't good at all that one of us received a glass with a cracked top. That can happen, of course, but it shouldn't. Fortunately, the drinker wasn't injured and only drank with a straw. All in all, the service and cuisine here need to be turned up a notch if quality is a priority in this regard, because you can drink good beer elsewhere, and in a nicer way.

Super cool place to eat, big variety of very tasty foods and good beer! A great choice to go to!

Really delicious food, not comparable to classic breweries. Pleasant atmosphere & friendly employees

The food wasn’t to write home about, German with a modern twist I would call it. However, I found that the traditional dishes where not memorable. I do recommend the potato gratin, which was delicious how ever small. The beer of the house wasn’t my taste. Very friendly staff however not a lot of interaction but then again it was of course a big place. To conclude, more of a touristic place then a place I would go to

Nice 'breakfast' at half past one in the afternoon. Very nice brauhaus/cafe with nice terrace, beautiful inside and quick service

I had the pancakes with fruit. They were very tasty. The service was good and the atmosphere too.

Very nice building with a cozy atmosphere. The food was super tasty and top quality!

Very good meal and thank you for your help and kindness Gregoir !

We had a very nice company evening yesterday. Our service was very nice & friendly and really quick. We'd love to come back again to try the other "treasures" on the menu. Please keep it up 👍

Very good address, excellent food, warm welcome!

No Price-performance ratio is absolutely not right! Potato gratin quite cold. Veal breast was so fatty - it looked more like bad spit roast. Absolutely not recommended!

Highly recommended. The food was a positive surprise.

Very nice brewery, Cologne cuisine reinvented and very tasty. Highly recommend your own beer. The service was super friendly. I will definitely come back.

I can only warmly recommend it! The food was really very tasty

We were there on March 24th with a total of 10 people, celebrating a birthday and, of course, enjoying something to eat and drink. Everything was perfect, and the evening was fantastic. A big thank you to our waiter or waitress... it's great to have such staff. 5 stars in all areas

The food , we would say is average. Main course was not freshly made . Ambiance typically beer pub. Poor ventilation… since they have an open kitchen … cloths and hair smell fried food. Service staff very friendly and fast.

Nice atmosphere, friendly service, good beer. However, the selection of vegetarian dishes didn't convince me, the grilled Lion's Mane mushroom was practically unseasoned, the portion was really a “bite”, but the price was clearly too high (€13.50). Why not just a half rooster on the vegetarian plate? In my opinion, this could have been less unusual with the vegetarian alternatives. So unfortunately the mushroom didn't convince me (there was no bread to accompany it either). Finally, I would like to add that the employees did not point out the calculation of the dessert. To us, "walking around" with the tray seemed like a nice little gesture to the house - in this case that should also be communicated correctly.

Price performance is not right. 25 € for 3 small Königsberger meatballs without a side dish and 9.50 € for half a children's portion of cheese spaetzle...

Today we had dinner there with three children and two adults. Unfortunately, it didn't quite meet our expectations when it came to the quality of the food. Ribs were great and we were able to order more sauce without any problem. The fries (hand-cut) were great and were very well received by the kids. The lamb shoulder was relatively stringy and not as tender as hoped/expected. I wouldn't take it again. Unfortunately, the potato gratin was a bit cold and boring. Sausage was ok, risotto was ok. Service was great and extremely friendly and very fast. Ambience really great.

The vegetarian dishes are delicious. The prices with side dishes and expensive for the size of the portions. A reservation for 8 people was still possible the day before. Our condition that day was a bit inattentive.

Dieses kleine, gemütliche Brauhaus, das sich mitten in der Kölner Südstadt befindet, hat es meisterhaft verstanden, alte Brauhaustraditionen mit zeitgemäßer Moderne zu vereinen. Hier stimmt einfach alles! Köstliches Bier (Pils und Helles), hervorragendes Essen sowie ein äußerst schnelles, kompetentes und vor allem freundliches Personal. Man müsste ihm eigentlich die volle Punktzahl plus Doppelwumms, verleihen. Wir kommen auf jeden Fall wieder!

Everything very tasty! Only the espresso makes me wonder how it was prepared 😉

What kind of fast lover is that? Only the driss charts on the spille. Disaster.

There wasn't much choice, but the chicken was extremely crispy and tasty (dish: tender & fried).

Very tasty and unusual food for a brewery. Friendly service!

We were here on a recommendation. Very cool atmosphere, there are also seats outside. Good service, delicious light food and very good cuisine.

Südstadt Brauhaus mit hochwertiger Küche aus regionalen Produkten. Man sitzt auf Hochstühlen an entsprechenden Tischen, was zumindest bei uns für Gemütlichkeit sorgt. Service immer um uns bemüht. Wir hatten frittiertes Hähnchen auf grüner Soße, Risotto, hausgemachte Pommes und vorab Salate mit Birnen und Erdnüssen. Alles super lecker. Dazu die eigenen Biere wie Südstadt Pils und Helles, Chlodwig Weizen und für die Kölsch Fans auch Gaffel am Fass. Die Preise werden den regionalen Zutaten gerecht.

A very attentive service, a pleasant and calm tone in the kitchen and everything accompanied by soft background music. The rings in the wall can be seen as described in the history and give you an idea of ​​what really happened here in the past and give the room and the building in general a beautiful eye-catcher and charm. See you soon and best regards, Carsten Goms

Great evening, delicious food and great drinks. Mainly thanks to our great service from Gregor!!!

Brussels sprout salad without Brussels sprouts. Marinated goat cheese was cream cheese. The spit roast was cold and the vegetarian sauerbraten was already hard on the edge! Unfortunately, the food was completely disappointing. It's understandable that you're looking for a chef as advertised!

Great schnitzel for lunch on Thursday

Nice atmosphere, although very cold, take a sweater with you 😉. The beer tastes good and the service was very attentive. None of us could warm up to the food, a lot of chichi but overall rather bland. Except the homemade bread!

The restaurant is easily accessible in Cologne's Südstadt. Service was very attentive. The food is tasty and sufficient. However, side dishes must be ordered separately. Small disadvantage, the restaurant has to close at 10 p.m.

Absolutely delicious food & drinks and top service! The rooms are also very pleasantly and beautifully designed.

No, that's nothing. We often waited a long time for a drink, Tafelspitz was veal sliced ​​on ham with a fatty edge, diffuse and unappetizingly prepared, the cutlet was not juicy. But the mashed potatoes are great! The light is ok, but compared to Bayreuther on tap in Lotta 2 hours later, it's more like that. There is room for improvement, considering how hyped the location is.

Oh, I just love locations like this, from the brick buildings to the lively atmosphere inside. The food is a dream (had deer), although you can be a bit surprised by the concept of separate main courses and side dishes (not so much). The reservation didn't work out, but could be clarified.

Good brewery with appropriate food in a great ambience (old factory hall)

Small beer restaurant with excellent food (even small things), friendly, only high tables with benches (rather difficult for old people, etc.). How “craft” the beer is remains unclear.

Price performance doesn't match at all. Nice service Yes!! but prices totally wrong Small bowl of lamb's lettuce or small cucumber salad15 EU. There are no side dishes for all dishes. These are totally overpriced!!!!! Taste...no!!!!!!! Drinks are at the top in terms of price. You don't need it

Food and service top. Tight and loud

Incredibly good, seasonal food! What is definitely positive is that there are many creative dishes for vegetarians and vegans. The service was always courteous and very nice!

Vegetarian brewery cuisine at its finest! Creative, diverse, delicious. Absolute recommendation 👍

Although the location is nice and the staff is nice, the prices are ridiculously high! You feel ripped off. It's more of a restaurant.

Tasty food with really huge portions. Nice beer

Good service. Enjoy your meal. Cold Kölsch. The store was packed. Rightly so.

Good food, friendly staff, unfortunately we couldn't all sit at the same table despite reservations and the promised free treat was also charged.

It was my first time with Johann Schäfer. Very good food, nice atmosphere. The ability to combine the side dishes is particularly great. So you don't have anything you don't want. Highly recommended were the red cabbage and the chicken, as well as the Obazda with bread.

Today we were there with a larger group. The ambience is really nice and you feel like you're in a brewery. Unfortunately, the system there has nothing to do with a brewery. There was an attempt to build a brewery on Schikimiki, which didn't quite work out. In order to call up the prices that are called there, the food should be warm, the fries should not consist of approx. 50% of small, over-fried small pieces on the edges, shared red cabbage bowls should have a spoon so that everyone doesn't drool on theirs A fork has to poke around in it and the salad that is to be shared should either be treated to a dressing or at least oil and vinegar should be on the table. Small portions are of course chic, but not for the brewery. The main thing is Fritz Cola on the table, that's important. Unfortunately, the efforts to be stylish didn't work.

We didn't have a reservation and were able to sit at the bar without any problems. The ambience and the staff are great. Very personable and also proactive when it comes to drinks. (The waiting times for drinks and food were relatively short for the fresh ones.👍🏼) The prices are a bit higher, but you're happy to pay them for an extravagant brewery and a good experience.

Unfortunately, that was a total failure! We will definitely never come back. We had reserved a table for two people, but unfortunately it was full. We were then asked to wait, which in itself wasn't a problem as a table became available relatively quickly. The menu was relatively manageable and we were able to order straight away. Unfortunately we had to wait 75 minutes for our food and the wait was absolutely not worth it. The various dishes we ordered were at best mediocre in taste and completely overpriced. Half of them were also cold or dry. Because side dishes have to be ordered separately for each dish, you can't get a main course for less than €20. There is no relationship between price and performance here. There are definitely better breweries in Cologne. The staff was friendly and the atmosphere is fine, as long as you don't get put in the hallway like we were and constantly have something or someone in your back.

Nice ambience, nice service, dog friendly and delicious food.

A fine little brewery with very good cuisine and a nice ambience. First-class meat from the region paired with skillfully seasoned sauces/toppings and side dishes that give the actually rustic-sounding dishes a fine touch and an extra touch. Together with the very friendly and attentive staff, an all-round successful evening!

A really great place. The food tastes really good, the staff is nice and the atmosphere is really nice. A real Cologne brewery.

Absolute insider tip for decent meat dishes such as steak - medium rare is on another level here. The fall/winter menu with saddle of venison and roasted kale is amazing. A warm greeting to the kitchen. I find the atmosphere and service incredibly authentic! Always a good evening with you - even if you're traveling alone.

The vegan sauerbraten made from lentils was incredibly delicious! I was very impressed by it.

One of the best breweries in Cologne! Young, modern, cool ambience, delicious, high-quality brewery food, super nice team! Highly Recommended!