Millstream Brewing buys Colony Inn in Amana

Late evening dining will be coming to the Amana Colonies in the fall.

Millstream Brewing Co. has purchased the Colony Inn Restaurant in Amana with plans to open Millstream Brau Haus.

The Colony Inn building, originally a frame structure, was constructed in 1860 and was known as the Amana Hotel. The building contained a kitchen and dining room that served meals to travelers.

After the 'Great Change” in 1932, the hotel was sold and the name was changed to the Colony Inn. It was the first restaurant after 1932 under private ownership that was open to the general public.

The Colony Inn has served family style meals for the past 81 years.

Chris Priebe and Tom and Teresa Albert, the owners of Millstream Brewing, for years had envisioned creating a true German Bierhalle for the Amana Colonies. When they had the opportunity to purchase the Colony Inn, the entrepreneurs took the leap.

In a news release, Teresa Albert said customers and visitors had often expressed a desire for a restaurant that was open later in the evening. The restaurant will be staying open until at least 10 p.m. each night.

'Now that might not seem late to most, but in our little village of Amana that's pretty exciting!” said owner Teresa Albert in a news release. 'A need for a larger variety of food choices also led to our decision to open the Brau Haus.”

Millstream Brau Haus will feature German style 'Bierhalle” foods. The owners are partnering with the Amana Meat Shop & Smokehouse to provide brats.

Chef Lord Nathan Kula of Williamsburg, who brings 22 years of restaurant experience to The Brau Haus, will create the menu.

'When you go to the Amana Colonies you want to enjoy the German heritage in as many ways as you can,” Albert said. 'Millstream Brewery is Iowa's oldest brewery, one of the oldest operational breweries in the Midwest, and brews many traditional German style beers.”