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Sarajevo Brewery Beer Hall

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captain oddsocks
captain oddsocks
First Reviewer
4 out of 5
Avg. Member Rating
1
Review
4
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Editor Pick

Sarajevo Brewery Beerhall

Sarajevo Brewery Beerhall

The Sarajevo Brewery is across the river from the central Baščaršija neighbourhood of the old town. It takes up almost an entire city block and sits just below St Anthony’s church (the big red and white one, with the Venetian style bell tower), so it’s very easy to find.

The Brewery played an important role in Sarajevo life during the war. When the Serb forces cut electricity, gas, and water supplies to the city, people were suspicious about taking the water from the river, and would come to fill drums and buckets from the deep spring on the brewery grounds, which was the only other source of fresh water in the besieged city. The brewery buildings were damaged during the siege, but have undergone a thorough revamp and now look very smart in their freshly painted burgundy and cream livery.

The grand entrance doors of the restaurant/beer hall bring you to a huge room, the size of a theatre, with the overhanging balconies to match. Instead of a stage though, there’s a ten-metre long bar and instead of numbered rows of seats there are numbered tables sporting red and white checked tablecloths. Upon entry you’ll be greeted by the maitre’d, and ushered upstairs if you’re planning to dine or to one of the tables on the wooden floorboards of the ground floor if it’s the amber nectar you’re interested in.

Said amber nectar is available for 3.50KM/1.75 euros per half-litre, and comes in several variations, which you should try according to your taste, bearing in mind though, that the stronger dark beer is considered the house specialty.

Sipping a drink or two gives plenty to time to take in the interior of the beer hall, and it’s really been very well put together. The old-school wooden panelling up to dado-height set the stage for the understated decorative paintwork above. Old-fashioned stencil work and cloth-inlaid wall panels were the backdrop for framed prints and black and white photographs of Sarajevo’s colourful past.

The main stage in this show is the long wooden bar. The four or five black-and-white attired waiters regularly glide by the bar to pick up new drinks poured by the busy bartender. If it’s a quiet time and the head waiter is not around they’ll prop themselves up and no doubt share the same jokes as the many patrons.

Both times we went; the downstairs area was nearly full. It's spacious however, so doesn’t feel crowded, and the high ceilings help the cigarette smoke to dissipate. Similarly there’s a constant buzz of noise from the full tables of diners and drinkers, but in such a large space, it’s not overwhelming.

The only blemish was that not quite all our change came back after paying the bill. The amount wasn’t large enough to quibble about, but if this kind of thing irks you, or you’re on a really tight budget, you might want to keep an eye on it.

Overall, a stirling performance. Bravo!

From journal Snowflake's Chance in Hell

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