YORKVILLE — Old-school German butcher shop Schaller & Weber has opened a tiny new sidewalk storefront where customers can build their own sandwiches with nine types of homemade sausage.
Patrons of Schaller's Stube Sausage Bar — which opened last week in a former 350-square-foot meat locker next door to the butcher shop — can start by choosing from a selection of wursts, including a spicy cheddar brat, chicken brat, a beef wiener and knackwurst.
Then, customers can add on any of 15 toppings, including sauerkraut, jalapenos or onions. They can finish with a choice of 10 sauces, including mustard, mayo and curry ketchup.
The stube — German for "little room" — offers a twist on the traditional wursts sold at the 1652 Second Ave. butcher shop, according to third-generation owner Jeremy Schaller and his director of operations, Jesse Denes.
"We opened Stube to provide a new way to experience Schaller & Weber, and to create a new outlet for our amazing wursts," Denes said. "Historically, Yorkville was filled with these businesses. So with a nod to our past, we set out to open a more modern incarnation."
The sidewalk eatery, where customers can order from a window and take their wursts to go, is also an ode to the street foods of Berlin, Denes added. Prices range from $7 to $14 per sandwich depending on the combo.
Sandwiches on the menu include "The Berlin Wall," made using a half pound kielbasa, American cheese, bacon, bacon jam and chicharrón. The "Saigon Special" is made with bauernwurst, daikon-carrot slaw, cucumber, jalapeno, cilantro and sriracha aioli.
There's also the "Schaller Double," a bacon cheddar brat with American cheese, bacon, frisee, pickles, tomato, onion and Stube sauce. "Mrs. Schaller's Fried Chicken" is also available by the piece.
Beer will be served once the shop receives its liquor license, Denes added.
"At Stube, we're able to experiment with different flavor profiles and ideas that wouldn't make sense in the context of the more traditional Schaller & Weber retail location," he explained. "That's allowed us to put some really different and unique items on our menu like the Donner KeBrat and the Saigon Special."
Schaller's family opened the butcher shop in 1937 and it remains family-owned.
The new venture, Schaller and Denes said, is meant to be "a fun and exciting place to be with great food, a unique environment, good music and a friendly staff."
The Stube is open Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
