Ratskeller

The rathskeller in Olten, Switzerland

Ratskeller (German: "council's cellar", pl. Ratskeller, historically Rathskeller) is a name in German-speaking countries for a bar or restaurant located in the basement of a city hall (Rathaus) or nearby. Many taverns, nightclubs, bars, and similar establishments throughout the world use the term.

The word had been used in English since the mid-19th century, with at least one New York restaurant calling itself a rathskeller in the 19th century.

Notable Ratskeller

Germany

The Bremen Ratskeller, c. 1900

The Bremen Ratskeller, erected in 1405, has one of the oldest wine cellars in Germany and was a center of the wine trade in Bremen.

The de in Lübeck is one of the oldest Ratskeller in northern Germany, with parts dating to the Romanesque era. The earliest documented use for wine storage dates to the year 1220.

North America

The former Das Deutsche Haus in Indianapolis, today known as the Athenaeum, has served Bavarian fare since 1894

Das Deutsche Haus Ratskeller restaurant in Indianapolis, Indiana, received historic landmark status. Now called the Athenaeum, it has served Bavarian fare since 1894.

The Dakota Inn Rathskeller was opened in Detroit on August 1, 1933, by Karl Kurz, and is owned and operated by the Kurz family to this day, and is the city's only authentic German beer garden, complete with oompah bands and polka contests.

Campus dining

Many universities and public institutions have pubs or student center dining facilities located in repurposed basements. To market these nontraditional eating locations to students and patrons, many of these are termed "Ratskellers" including:

• Boston College ("The Rat")
• Bowie State University
• Binghamton University
• California Institute of Technology
• Colgate University (in the basement of the Colgate Inn)
• Colorado State University ("The Ramskeller")
• Cornell College
• Florida Institute of Technology (also known as Florida's best)
• Florida International University (also known as Gracie's Grill)
• Fordham University ("The Ramskeller")
• Gallaudet University
• George Mason University
• Hofstra University
• Hollins University
• Kansas State University ("The Catskellar", in the Student Union)
• Kent State University
• Minnesota State Capitol
• Montclair State University
• Oberlin College
• The Open University
• The Pennsylvania State University
• Quinnipiac University
• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• Rochester Institute of Technology (RITskeller)
• Rutgers University-Camden
• St. Bonaventure University
• State University of New York College at Old Westbury
• The College of New Jersey (located in the Brower Student Center, referred to as "The Rat", a late-night dining hall also exists below two residence halls.)
• Transylvania University ("The Rafskellar", a nod to 19th-century professor Constantine Samuel Rafinesque)
• Tulane University
• Union College (Opened on December 2, 1949 as the Dutchmen's Rathskeller)
• University of California, San Diego
• University of Cincinnati ("The Catskeller")
• University of Connecticut
• University of Dallas
• University of Göttingen
• University of Miami
• University of North Carolina
• University of Tampa
• University of West Florida
• University of Wisconsin–Madison
• West Chester University of Pennsylvania
• Wheeling Jesuit University

Popular culture

Child actress Adele De Garde starred in a 1918 silent movie called The Rathskeller and the Rose. The 2009 film, Inglourious Basterds, features a prolonged sequence taking place in a Ratskeller in France.

See also

• Beer garden
• Beer hall
• List of public house topics

External links

• History of the Indianapolis Rathskeller
• Restoration of Minnesota State Rathskeller