Paulaner Brauhaus lost its fizz when the giant Bowery beer hall suddenly closed down in April. But lo, the cavernous pint-slinger has reopened as promised, and it's better than ever. Wolfgang Ban (Edi & the Wolf) and Markus Tschuschnig (a veteran of Stephen Starr's places) have taken the helm, and their collective restaurant experience bodes well for the place this time around.

The German beer company Paulaner is still involved but no longer running the show. However, you can still slurp down pints of brews, made on-site: the famous hefeweizen (whose yeast culture is a closely guarded secret), amber-colored lager, a fruity pale ale, and malty dark beer, plus a golden summer bock for the season.

The space is surely one of the biggest downtown — two huge adjoining rooms fitted with several long mess-hall tables and assorted other seating options and booths. (So the next time some guy asks us where to have a birthday party, we finally have somewhere to point him.)

On the Germanic-leaning menu are some usual suspects like bratwurst and wiener schnitzel, along with some surprisingly refined options, including chilled pea soup and house-smoked trout (fans of Ban's cooking at Edi and the now-defunct Seasonal will recognize some touches here). And great news for ladies on the prowl: When we popped in, we found the place to be a real sausage fest.

Paulaner NYC, 265 Bowery, 212-780-0300, www.paulanernyc.com