TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — A new German restaurant on Tucson's westside gave Germany fans a place to gather Sunday morning as their team took on Curacao in the World Cup.
Biergarten, which opened just over a week ago near Silverbell and Grant, opened early — ahead of its normal 11:00 a.m. start — to accommodate the 10:00 a.m. kickoff. Even after 11:00 a.m., people were still waiting for a spot to open up.
Joshua Martinez said it was the place to be.
"I found out that they were going to open up a Biergarten here in Tucson and I got super excited because my mom's family is German and so I wanted to come and support and you know, make sure that they succeed," Martinez said.
Martinez said it's cool to see how the World Cup brings people together.
"It's the world's game, you know, just gathering multiple people from multiple backgrounds to celebrate something that's truly beautiful. So it's a great experience every four years and the fact that it's here in the United States and in Mexico and in Canada, I think that's great," Martinez said.
He said he was wearing a Portugal jersey because he's a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo, but is rooting for Germany, U.S., and Mexico.
For Jo Flores, the environment felt just like home.
"I was born in Germany. I was raised speaking German. I was raised watching the games all the time, and I heard this place opened up and I figured why not come here to watch the first German game for FIFA," Flores said.
Germany beat Curacao 7-1. After each goal Germany scored, the fans went wild. From the game to authentic German brews to traditional dishes, fans said a great time was had.
"So far all of the servers have been speaking German to each other and I'm like, oh, I know exactly what you're saying. It's so fun. It's really nice and there is surprisingly a small German community here and I've met so many people who speak the language and are either from Germany or learn the language on their own and it's so much fun," Flores said.
When asked if she would return to Biergarten for future Germany games, Flores did not hesitate.
"Oh, absolutely, without a doubt, 100%," Flores said. "So far the drinks are amazing. The beer is amazing. It's all you can really ask for."
Germany's next game is June 20 at 1:00 p.m. against Ivory Coast.
Check out Biergarten German Kitchen online here.
Biergarten Tucson
2320 N Silverbell Rd.
Tucson, AZ
85745
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Dan's Discoveries: Biergarten German Kitchen
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Vanessa Gongora is KGUN 9's Westside reporter.. Vanessa fell in love with storytelling by growing up in sports. She was fascinated by how sports reporters go beyond the x's & o's to tell players' stories, and how sports bring people together, inspiring Vanessa to provide the same impact as a journalist. Share your story ideas and important issues with Vanessa by emailing vanessa.gongora@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
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