By DCist contributor Elizabeth Traynor
Update 2: After a series of delays, Wunder Garten will open Friday, August 19 at 4 p.m., according to Kelsey Duke, a spokesperson for the beer garden.
Update 1: While Wunder Garten was originally slated to open in its new location on August 5, permitting woes are causing delays.
“We’ll be hopefully open next weekend, but even that is looking less and less likely,” says Kelsey Duke, a spokesperson for the beer garden, who puts the week of August 15 as a more likely start date.
“We’re at the mercy of the D.C. permitting system right now. It’s nitty-gritty D.C. bureaucracy,” she says. “Pray for us.”
Original: At rush hour in the midst of a summer heatwave, you might pass the corner of First and L Streets NE without a second glance. But doing so would mean you’d miss the new and improved home of Wunder Garten, a green oasis in the midst of a construction-filled cityscape—and that would be a mistake.
On tap? An expanded beer lineup (including local favorites Hellbender and Goose IPA), and the addition of ciders and red and white wine. Food trucks will return, too, giving hungry patrons a range of dining options.
The Bavarian beer garden opened for a sneak preview in its new location earlier this month, and then hosted BYT’s Jerky Fest on July 23. It plans to fully open to the public on August 5th when it gets the necessary permits. Originally hoping for a June opening, co-owner Biva Ranjeet says, “We’re a little bit late in the season because of permitting but we’re going to be there for awhile. We’ll be there for three years, at least.”
Wunder Garten first opened as a mobile beer garden in a gravel lot in 2015 at First and M Streets NE, directly next to the NoMa Metro station, providing train passengers with a birds-eye view of the open-air action: quality beers served out of an Airstream trailer, picnic tables shaded by umbrellas, and cornhole and ladder golf serving as go-to entertainment. After winning the Private Sector Partner Award from the NoMa Business Improvement District, Ranjeet and co-owner Christopher Lynch decided to search for a more permanent location.
Though this year’s opening date is later than anticipated, additions to the garden mean its team expects to remain open late into the fall, with early winter even a possibility. Eventually a permanent Bavarian beer tent, complete with AC and heat, will be introduced to the space.
“We’ll do more beautification. Paint the ground—we’ll have LEED-certified paint,” Ranjeet says. “We’re going to make it more of an oasis in the city, in this urban environment.”
Many of Wunder Garten’s design features remain the same in its new location as well as a continuing collaboration with REI, placing a mock firepit and campground in the center of the beer garden.The retailer in opening at the nearby Uline arena in October.
Notably, Wunder Garten’s new location is more aesthetically appealing than the parking lot. Surrounded by gleaming high-rises and across the street from A Creative DC’s outdoor installation, Wunder Garden’s decorative turf provides the illusion of a green space among the new wave of development in the District.
And though it’s a considerably smaller space than the previous location, the new garden will still seat the same amount of people, approximately 300. The move is a good one for Wunder Garten, Ranjeet says, bringing it into a smaller and more accessible space, although still clocking in at a little over 13,000 square feet.
“It’s different than the last one, obviously. It’s a lot smaller. It’s cozier,” Ranjeet says. “We close it off with some ivy and some greenery.”
Despite the new location and delayed re-opening, Ranjeet also notes that the support from the neighborhood has been tremendous, saying, “I think people know about us, they’re very excited about it. The neighborhood has been great—it’s really been a community space for us and that was the idea behind it: to have a community-friendly environment.”
Wunder Garten (1st and L Streets NE) will adhere to a summer schedule once it opens: Tuesday to Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 4 p.m. to midnight, and Sunday 4 to 10 p.m.
