Killmeyer’s Old Bavaria Inn: Celebrating 25 Years with the Chamber

Photo by Amesse Photography

By Michael Anderson, the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce

Years before Staten Island’s southwestern community was named Charleston, it was known by a different name: Kreischerville. The name was coined when Balthasar Kreischer, an immigrant from the Bavarian region of Germany, founded Kreischer Brick Manufactory in 1854. Years later, the neighborhood would become known as Charleston, after Kreischer’s son, Charles.

Nearly 150 years after the opening of Kreischer’s Brick Manufactory, it was only fitting that Ken Tirado and his partners Jim Stayoch and Ray Chrampanis would open Killmeyer’s Old Bavaria Inn, a renowned German restaurant, in Charleston.

Following the success of their southwestern restaurant Adobe Blues, Tirado and Stayoch were looking for a new venture with a different theme. Stayoch, who grew up in a German area in upstate New York, had always thought about opening a German restaurant.

“We did the research and found out the building had German roots, and that whole neighborhood was a German factory town in the early 19th century,” said Tirado. “That was all coincidental, though, because we thought it would be fun to open a German restaurant since there wasn’t one on Staten Island since Demyan's Hofbrau burned down (in 1980). There were no German restaurants left on Staten Island, which is a community that has a very large and deep German history.”

Tirado – who boasts a lengthy resume in the service industry dating back from working at the former Al’s Pizzeria in Meiers Corners, several Manhattan bistros,  to becoming one of the first bartenders at the former Millard Fillmore’s in Travis – found the location for Killmeyer’s by accident.

“I was trying to get into the idea of learning to play golf, and the best place to practice was the Staten Island Golf Practice Center, which was then next to the (twin liquefied natural gas [LNG]) tanks in Rossville. I’m driving around the area getting ready to practice golf one afternoon, and I noticed that the Century Inn had a ‘For Sale’ sign in front of it. I’m a North Shore guy and not familiar with the area,” recalled Tirado. “But, I had heard of the Century Inn and that it had this magnificent, carved, mahogany backbar - one of the most beautiful in New York City.”

That building also possessed a deep history. Kreischer sold the property to Nicolas Killmeyer in 1859, and it became a bar/inn for several generations. The Killmeyer family sold the building to the Reuben Simonson family in 1945 and it became Rube’s. His son, Cyrenius (Cap), changed the name to the Century Inn in 1959, to celebrate the 100th anniversary. Thirty-five years later, Cap retired and sold the building to Tirado and his partners after he was assured it would reopen as a family restaurant.

“I went to Munich back in 1995 with my partners for a week to take pictures of the classic beer halls, soak up the atmosphere, and buy stuff to decorate the walls with,” said Tirado. “We noticed with even the older restaurants, they all have ceramic tiles on the floors. So, if you notice in our dining room and bathroom floors, it’s all ceramic tile. It cleans better.”

With a building that dated, renovations took time. Killmeyer’s opened in January 1996 with just a bar before the restaurant area opened a year later. The outdoor beer garden took about three years for its debut. 

“Built before modern building codes, the foundation of the building on one side was sinking into the soft clay. So, we had to jack up the whole side of the building and pour concrete footings and reinforce the building,” said Tirado. “And, of course, we had to bring the building up to 21st-century codes along with handicap-accessible bathrooms.

“For the beer garden area, we had to tear down all these old garages (where there was once old outhouses and septic systems). We had built for us a cinderblock building with a chalet look. We also got pavers for the entire beer garden, for that real European look.” he added.

The German concept has undoubtedly worked. Killmeyer’s has turned into an esteemed destination for Staten Islanders looking for unique food, drinks, and live music.

“The menu has constantly evolved. For example, when craft beer really exploded, we added a whole new draft beer system about 10 years ago and expanded the number of draft lines. And, out in the beer garden, we have 12 separate draft lines,” said Tirado.

Tirado admits many locals are still unaware of Killmeyer’s. However, the world's largest Hummel, “The Merry Wanderer,” serves as a perfect marker. The 8-foot concrete statue arrived in 2014 and looms over the front entrance along Arthur Kill Road to serve as an easily recognizable landmark and photo op.

“It was offered to me out of the blue. The North American Hummel Distributor went bankrupt. They had the statue and needed to get rid of it. I thought about it and remembered when I was a little boy the big hot dog on top of Al Deppe's restaurant on the corner of Arthur Kill Road and Richmond Avenue,” said Tirado. “I was thinking that if I accepted this big Hummel that was being offered, it could be a landmark on the South Shore of Staten Island – like that hot dog was for me. They’ll always know Killmeyer’s as the place with the big Hummel outside.” 

While people know Killmeyer’s as “the place with the big Hummel,” Tirado knows the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce as the place to help forge connections for his new business 25 years ago. 

“You’re only going to get out of the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce whatever you’re willing to put in. You can just pay your dues and do nothing, and that’s fine, and you’ll still get the benefits of being a member of the Chamber. But if you really want to get something more out of it, you have to get involved,” said Tirado as he reflects on his silver anniversary with the Chamber in 2021.

“Evelyn (Rogers, former owner of A Taste of Honey Caterers) got me involved in Business Guild 1 about 20 years ago, and I’ve been involved with them for 20 years. I was even President for a while 10 years ago,” he added. “That was probably the best thing I ever did with the Chamber because I developed a core group of friends from all different businesses on Staten Island, and we have a support system, we get each other work, and we get each other leads. So, it’s a trickle-down effect that may not be immediately apparent, but it’s worked for me.”