Awww Schnitzel!

Even with the recent explosion of biergartens, the only place to find authentic schnitzel in Charleston is Mueller’s Pub in West Ashley. As World Cup fever settles in, owner Alex Mueller would love nothing more to have you bring the family and come check out his new menu. It includes American game day classics, yet allows diners to explore offerings that can’t be found anywhere else: a German hamburger, croquetten (breaded mashed potato sticks), Wienerschnitzel, or a bowl of goulash.
The goulash starts with a beefy broth base. It contains beef, pork, onions, carrots, bell peppers, herbs, and maggi, an herb sauce that resembles Worcestershire. These ingredients are slow-cooked for hours, enabling all the flavors to meld, forming a hearty stew with a peppery finish, but not a lingering burn.
Sandwiches offer three meat options: beef, chicken, or wiener Schnitzel. There are nine specialty varieties, which are customizable. The Mama Mueller’s Fave is topped with Swiss, garlic butter, herbs, and spices; the Berliner is topped with sautéed onions, bacon, and pesto; and the Jäger is wiener schnitzel pounded flat, breaded, sautéed, and served on a hoagie roll with mushroom sauce that is brown like au jus, but much more robust because it’s made with red wine, maggi, herbs, and spices. The French, an Italian, a Swiss, and American are straightforward. Mueller’s German beef burgers are served at 3/4 pound sizes (pictured above is a half-size portion). Their beef is mixed with diced onions, egg, and breadcrumbs for more robust flavor.
Diners can also experience a variety of flavors by topping their schnitzel with fresh-squeezed lemon juice, Hungarian sauce that’s a pepper medley, and mushroom sauce. The Bratwurst is grilled pork sausage topped with sauerkraut (pickled cabbage), and served on a toasted hoagie roll with Dijon mustard and German-potato salad on the side. Unlike its American cousin, German potato salad is served hot, a features vinegar, salt, pepper, and diced bacon. You’ll also find daily specials, because Mueller is always trying new things.
Starters include American standards, such as a basket of fries, chicken fingers, jalapeño poppers, and cheese sticks. But there’s also croquetten with mushroom sauce. There are also jumbo chicken wings in five classic flavors, and a house salad with the option to add meat.
The dining tables and booth seating are at the front of the restaurant. In this same space, there are large televisions for enjoying the game and space for live bands or karaoke on weekends. The nearby entryway is lined with arcade and pinball machines. In the back, there’s the bar with two pool tables.
On weekends out front there’s ping-pong, shuffleboard, and a soccer wall board. Soccer wall players must kick a ball through holes positioned at different heights.
Behind the bar, Mueller hand-picked German brews that are popular on both sides of the Atlantic like Späten, Warsteiner, and Franziskraner. There’s also a Stella Cider and craft selections like Goose Island, and the usual domestics, including PBR. Happy hour is 4-8 p.m. daily, featuring $2.50 off domestic bottles and $2.50 well drinks.
Workers near Citadel Mall or the Savannah Highway Automile seeking a new lunch spot can call ahead and have lunch waiting to go for them. Even dine-in customers enjoy a sandwich made in less than 10 minutes.
In an homage of his first American hometown, Mueller’s Pub is the official Michigan State Spartans bar in Charleston.
Mueller hails from Baden-Württemberg, a city in southwestern Germany that borders France and Switzerland. His family owns a hotel and restaurant there. At just 15, Mueller left Europe to start over with family in Haslett, Michigan though he didn’t speak English. In no time, he became fully fluent, and he was a star tennis and soccer player in high school. He is an alumni of Johnson and Wales’ Hotel and Hospitality Program at the former Charleston campus; he also played soccer there. Being a lifetime athlete, Mueller realized his career off the field needed to contain excitement and lots of people. “Every day is different. In hospitality, you never know what’s gonna happen,” he says.
Mueller worked at Hyman’s Seafood, then Wyndham Hotels in Arizona before realizing his preferred home was the Lowcountry. Along with his friend and former business partner, Mueller opened 10-Seventeen Pub in the same location where Mueller’s Pub is today. After a few years, he bought out his partner and renamed the pub. With help from his uncle, he revamped the bar and reconnected with his German roots. In the last two months, the kitchen has received a full remodel, allowing Mueller’s to serve a full menu.The conceptual centerpiece of this new chapter is the Stammtisch, or a table of honor for family and friends.
On June 26, Mueller’s will open at 9 a.m. for a full day of food, beer, prizes and of course, the U.S.A. vs. Germany game. Prizes include tees, hats, and World Cup glasses, koozies, and soccer balls.
Mueller’s Pub is located at 630 Skylark Dr. in the Quadrangle Shopping Center. For more information, contact 225-6302 or visit www.muellerspub.com or  Facebook at Facebook.com/MuellersPub.Chas.