Brauhaus Schmitz

As the owner of Philadelphia’s best authentic German restaurant and beer hall, Brauhaus Schmitz (718 South Street, 267-909-8814) and Wursthaus Schmitz, a German delicatessen and sandwich shop in Reading Terminal Market, Douglas Hager has transformed the way that Philadelphians look at German food and drink. Drawing on his own heritage (born in Aschaffenburg, Germany to native mother and his father, there on duty in the U.S. Army), Hager works closely with his wife, Kelly (nee Schmitz), and their Executive Chef, Jeremy Nolen, to modernize classic Teutonic fare for a contemporary audience as well as give Philadelphians a taste of some of the best brews Germany has to offer. Philadelphia magazine has honored Brauhaus Schmitz with three “Best of” titles in their annual “Best of Philly” issues, and The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Craig LaBan wrote that “[Brauhaus Schmitz delivers] the satisfaction of Philly’s German tradition come alive again.” Open since 2009, the restaurant has revived the city’s love affair with its ethnic heritage and reintroduced a whole generation of Philadelphians to the foods of their forefathers. In addition, Hager is the owner of Wursthaus Schmitz in historic Reading Terminal Market, a sandwich and cured meats shop that specializes in made-to-order dishes and German-style products for sale by the pound. Wursthaus debuted in late 2012 and is already a staple among the market’s popular food stalls. To complement the much-lauded food at Brauhaus