Broadway Biergarten provides an ideal beer-drinking experience

Editor's note: The following story has been edited to correct the hours of operation, which were changed after the interview was conducted.

Rob Foeste, owner of Broadway Biergarten in Cape Girardeau, rose from his bar stool to tell potential customers who came through the door that the establishment wouldn't open for another hour. He laughed as he returned to his seat.

"We have more demand than we have hours to fill at the moment. Which is a good thing -- a very good thing."

Broadway Biergarten opened July 12, and business has been excellent, Foeste said.

Although it sits on the perimeter of Southeast Missouri State University, the Biergarten appeals to a 25- to 45-year-old demographic by design, he said. The Biergarten serves only beer and cider, and wine is soon to come. Hard liquor is not served. Foeste said he did not want his establishment to have the same atmosphere as other bars in Cape Girardeau, and said the Broadway Biergarten provides a "metropolitan experience."

He describes the Biergarten as a blend between a German Biergarten and an American craft beer bar, saying it is "very German-centric" in its draft selection and has a larger American craft bottled-beer selection. Foeste said he wanted to have craft beer brands, that are sold only at certain local places available so people could try them in the proper glassware and also learn about the beer they are trying. Foeste said his business offers "50 percent beer education, 50 percent beer exploration."

A glass of craft beer sits on the bar at Broadway Biergarten in Cape Girardeau. (Laura Simon)

"You have the advantage of trying something out with maybe not necessarily buying a four-pack or a six-pack, so it's easier to get into some of these brands," he said.

Broadway Biergarten's counters are lined with glassware of various shapes and sizes to accommodate the 23 draft beers and 175 bottled beers available. The glassware all serve a purpose in bringing out the taste of craft beer, he said.

Foeste explained that there are three different tastes in one bottle of beer: The first few sips are over-carbonated with a bright taste. The middle of the bottle is the "sweet spot," or the part of the beer that everybody likes because the carbonation is just right. Each time a drink is taken out of the bottle, carbonation is released, Foeste said. The last few sips of a bottle of beer are under-carbonated, which is why many don't finish their beer, he said. By pouring a beer into proper glassware, that process is eliminated, and there is a larger sweet spot in the overall product, Foeste said.

"So there is beer science to it," he said. "It's not all B.S."

Another large part of tasting craft beer is the sensation of taste humans get through their nose, he said, which is why Broadway Biergarten is non-smoking.

"If you can't smell the beer, you lose a lot of it," Foeste said. "It's difficult to get those aromatic flavors out of it if you're surrounded by smoke."

Foeste would be one to know about the science behind beer. Beverage service, in particular beer, has always been his specialty, he said.

Foeste previously owned two bars in Cape Girardeau and worked at River Eagle Distributing. He also attended Anheuser-Busch's draft academy and the Goose Island's beer academy, both in St. Louis.

Beer is his passion, he said.

When beer halls are done right, "they give you the proper atmosphere to achieve what you want, which is conversation and memories and good times but you cannot do that without proper clientele," Foeste said. "The people actually make the beer hall, we're just a facilitator for good conversation."

Plans for the future of Broadway Biergarten include adding entrees to the menu of heavy appetizers, opening the biergarten, or outdoor seating, in the spring, along with featuring acoustic music Saturday and Sunday afternoons and expanding hours to show college football and English Premier League games.

Broadway Biergarten is open from 4 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Wednesday through Friday, noon to 1:30 a.m. Saturday, and noon to midnight Sunday.

adowning@semissourian.com

388-3632

Pertinent address:

818 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, MO