Joe Stevens Supports Valley Suppliers

The Hofbrauhaus restaurant has been in business since 1935 and has been owned by Joe Stevens for the past 12 years. He previously owned the Glass Lily located in the Longmeadow Shops. One of Joe's priorities is for the restaurant to support local small businesses and here's a sampling of how he does it. The Interior Local artist and senior server Louie Germani hand painted the artwork throughout the restaurant. He also creates the seasonal decorations at the restaurant and the Oktoberfest Bier Garden at the Big E. The Bar While the restaurant is noted for serving German draft beer, the bar also stocks bottled beer from Berkshire Brewing Company (South Deerfield). Bottled German beer comes from the Shelton Brother's (Amherst). The bar nut mixture is supplied by Arcades Snack Company (Worchester). Behind the bar, the liquors include V One Vodka (Hadley). Table Settings The flowers and vases on each candle lit white linen table all have been custom designed, hand crafted and hand painted Potterville Pottery (West Springfield) to compliment the dish pattern used at the restaurant. The Menu The Hofbrauhaus has menus and advertisements printed by Priority Press (East Longmeadow). The kitchen and bar staff's uniforms, along with logos, embroidery and ad specialties are custom created by Logo-One (East Longmeadow). Large print and signs come from West Side Signs, and Mansfield Paper Company (West Springfield) produces their paper products and the Hofbrauhaus letterhead. The large signage and the sign on top of the restaurant have been created by Joe Buchholz (Springfield). The Kitchen Instead of ordering from the manufacturer, all kitchen supplies and equipment are ordered from Kittredge Restaurant Supplier (Springfield), including the glass and stemware, Villeroy and Boch dishware, as well as the sterling silver utensils, coffee pots and sugar and creamers. The Food The majority of the food served at the Hofbrauhaus is prepared by their kitchen staff. All the meat served comes from Arnold's Meats (Chicopee) and the seafood from Schermerhorn Seafood (Holyoke) and Boston Seafood (Springfield). The produce comes from Louis Michelson Produce and A.C. Produce (Springfield). Tomatoes are supplied by Mike Boniquestti, a local grower with fields in Agawam and West Springfield. Desserts and baked goods are prepared by our pastry chefs, along with our house made truffle, chocolate mousse, cr me Brule, apple strudel. Specialty cakes come from Sun Rise Bakery (Easthampton) and, for our private parties, from Ceratto's Bakery (West Springfield). We serve croissants, muffins, and Danish for the International Sunday Brunch Buffets from Koffee Kup Bakery (Springfield). Diana's Bakery (Enfield) makes a variety of the simple desserts presented on the buffet, and the variety of breads we use for our lunch sandwiches The Hofbrauhaus serves coffee from Rayos Coffee (Amherst). The coffee is custom ordered and fresh ground at the restaurant and is supplied with its own brewing system. Stevens is looking for a high quality tea to add to the beverage menu. The Business When it comes to the economics of the restaurant, Stevens continues his support of small surrounding businesses. He banks with Chicopee Savings Bank and his accounting is handled by Paul Mancinone (Longmeadow). Joe also hires area contractors for electrical, plumbing and HVAC work. Joe Stevens's support of local businesses creates partnerships to help his suppliers and the local economy flourish. It's a way to show, says Stevens, "You're a business that attempts to make a difference for someone everyday."