The über popular restaurant Wurstküche has made its way to the Westside. The “purveyor of exotic grilled sausages,” which has enjoyed great success at its Downtown L.A. location has opened its doors at a second stop on Lincoln Boulevard in Venice. With no shortage of hype, long lines, or savory delectables, Wurstküche has taken the Venice encased meat scene by storm.
With Octoberfest in full swing and the initial grand opening buzz starting to dissipate, now more than ever is a good time take a stroll down Lincoln to see what Wurstküche is churning out.
The long lines resemble something outside L.A.’s hottest nightclub scene more than anything else, so avoiding peak hours is advised. From the entrance, you enter into a small room containing a showcase of Wurstküche’s gourmet sausages, and a long line of tapped beers. Sausages range everywhere from your classic brat and bockwurst, to the higher end mango jalapeño, to more exotic flavors like rattlesnake and rabbit, or alligator and pork andouille.
The beer selection is eclectic and exclusively Belgian and German, with the exception an Old Rasputin and the hipstertastic Pabst Blue Ribbon.
After you select your sausage, toppings, and beverage, you pay at the register, are given a number, and proceed down a long corridor to the dining area. The dining room is a large open space that seems like a cross between a German beer hall and a hipsters loft. Long rows of tables and benches meet an industrial chic design. Filtered light softly fills the dining space. A DJ booth and an additional bar area hint that this place indeed gets a bit raucous during the later hours.
Not leaning on the side of caution, I bypassed the more traditional bratwurst and went with the highly recommended and exotic duck and bacon with jalapeño topped with caramelized onions and sweet peppers. Admittedly, my palette is not quite astute enough to discern each ingredient. I can say after a couple big bites, it was determined that my selection was delicious.
Another plus were the Belgian double dipped fries. Double dipped is a nicer way to say that they were deep fried twice. The second bath in the fryer rendered a crispier outside but maintained a smooth rich interior. Big points on chipotle aioli for not being too overpowering or mere mayonnaise, but a great accompaniment to the twice fried fries. Washed down by a Spaten Oktoberfest made the meal a full-bodied experience.
By ordering more exclusive beers, exotic sausages, and all sorts of other add-ons, it is easy to run up a big bill at Wurstküche as I found myself doing. For the high end beer connoisseur and sausage sommelier, it is a dining experience that is certainly worth it. Wurstküche today is like David Hasselhoff in his prime — German meat with L.A. attitude.
Michael can be seen riding around town on his bike. To reach him visit his Twitter at twitter.com/greaseweek or his website at tourdefeast.net
If You Go
Wurstküche
623 Lincoln Blvd.
Venice, Calif.
90291
www.wurstkuche.com
