Restaurant Review: Suppenkuche, San Francisco, California

San Francisco food is widely renowned for its superior quality and variety; this makes it an incredibly fun city to try new restaurants in.  Yesterday, I took to Yelp in search of a new and fun place to lunch.  My boyfriend and I immediately honed in on Suppenkuche, a German restaurant in Hayes Valley.  I was disappointed to see that it was  only open from 5-10 PM, but upon visiting their website I noted that we are in the middle of Oktoberfest, and Suppenkuche is open during special hours (11 AM-2 PM).  Delighted, we set out for Hayes Valley.

Modernly subtle on the outside, it was difficult to find (it is right on the corner of Hayes and Laguna) and very small inside.  I was disappointed to see that every table was full, but a burly host wearing old-school German overalls directed us to join a table next to an already dining couple.  The atmosphere was light and airy but cozy at the same time, as tables crowded the small room.  Sculptures decorated the ceiling, and the air buzzed with chatter.

Suppenkuche offers a wide variety of German beer, served in anything from an oversized mug to a ridiculously gigantic boot.  James and I opted for Spatenmarzen, a medium-brown beer that was surprisingly refreshing (I'm much more partial to lighter beers) and discounted for Oktoberfest.  We spent an oddly long time debating what to order from the very short menu, but finally settled on four things.  For an appetizer, we requested the brezel-a small organic pretzel, and the obatzter-a traditional Bavarian cheese mix consisting of brie and camembert with paprika, organic butter, and onions (which I ignored).  The two went incredibly together, but James and I were sad to see how small our pretzel was.  We observed several other tables receive what seemed to be a two-foot long giant salted pretzel, but apparently this was not even on the menu (so, future Suppenkuche patrons, be aware that there are glorious creations in addition to those already on the menu).  We vowed to order the giant pretzel next time, even if it costs five times what our miniature pretzel cost.

Next, I asked for the Schweinebratensemmel (I had to make a note of that in my phone so I would remember what it was called), a pork and sea salt sandwich, while James ordered Bratwurstsemmel, a simple sausage and sauerkraut sandwich.  We were delighted with what we received: two small sandwiches each, with pork (me) and sausage (James) stuffed between the buns and sauerkraut (James) on the side.  As an ever-growing fan of pork, I was glad to see that there was nothing but pork and some thick chunks of sea salt on my sandwich.  It would have been rather bland, however, without the sweet Bavarian mustard they served me as well--a full jar, with a spoon for spreading.  I have never, ever, ever liked mustard; this mustard, however, was incredible, especially with the pork.  I am not a fan of sauerkraut, but I can say that James's sausage was equally delicious.

Overall, I was very impressed by food at Suppenkuche.  The service and decor were also notable, but the buzz I left with (from the food or the alcohol?) was very satisfying.  Next time, I would like to try the spatzle, which a waiter described to me as a cheese and noodle dish (AKA Madeline Heaven) along with the supergiant pretzel (an update will certainly accompany).  I am fairly sure that the menu we were presented with is a temporary one set out only during the days of Oktoberfest, but I cannot imagine that the quality varies from the dinner menu.  I will not fully endorse the dinner options, however, until I try them.  For now, I can recommend the Oktoberfest lunch to anyone who will be in San Francisco soon; absolutely a noteworthy eatery.  Very high marks.