Bavaria-on-Thames

Years ago, Londoners patiently endured endless queues and hour-long waits at the city's hippest Asian noodle restaurant for sharing a bench and a table with a dozen other people.

The benches are back, but it remains to be seen whether London's spoiled eaters will flock to the "Bavarian Beerhouse."

Located between the city's financial district and the trendy Islington neighborhood, the new restaurant is run by Rene von Reth, a former diving instructor, who is not from Bavaria, but apparently enjoys wearing lederhosen.

Weird sizes

Together with his partner Sabine Schlodder, he is hoping to introduce Brits to the finer aspects of German cuisine. Waitresses dressed in traditional dirndls serve up everything from Bavarian Leberkäs, or meat loaf, to Schweinshaxe (roasted pork leg) to Obazda -- a cheese melange with about 20,000 calories per bite that's a favorite at Munich's beer gardens.

The beer's German, too, but comes in weird sizes, because British authorities require drinks to be served in pints and not liters, meaning that glasses contain a bit more than they would back in Bavaria.

Should the Beerhouse turn out to be a success, DW-WORLD has two explanations on offer: Either, London's recent fame as the best place to eat on earth is about to fade as the city's residents get ready to devour Bavaria's obscene delicacies.

An alternative explanation is the one we'd prefer, though: Having discovered the beauty of Sauerkraut, maybe the Brits have just decided to give the Krauts a break.