On a drizzly Saturday in Coraopolis, the weather does not matter. Outside Cobblehaus Brewing, the line curls past the beer garden as people cradle frosty pints of Märzen and debate brat versus schnitzel.
From inside the Holzinger’s Imbiss trailer, the smell of pork frying drifts into the damp evening. When the first schnitzels are lifted from the oil, they arrive shatter-crisp, golden and far too big for their buns. A man takes a bite, shuts his eyes, and murmurs, “This is exactly what I ate in Munich.”
That kind of reaction never fails to make Ivonne Holsinger beam. “People tell us, ‘I haven’t had schnitzel like this since I was in Germany.’ That makes it so worth it,” she says.
“Where I come from, an imbiss is just part of daily life,” Ivonne explains. She grew up in the small town of Fulda, Germany, northeast of Frankfurt, before moving to Pittsburgh. “Every town has a little stand where you grab a bratwurst or schnitzel. I missed that here.”
In Germany, imbisskultur is everyday and everywhere, the counterpart to an American corner deli or late-night pizza slice. These snack stands took root in the rubble of postwar cities, spreading quickly through the 1950s and ’60s as cheap, accessible street food. Currywurst, one of Germany’s emblematic imbiss dishes, essentially emerged in postwar Berlin in 1949, when Herta Heuwer reportedly mixed ketchup and curry powder and served it over sausage at a stand.
“Growing up, that was normal. It was not special food. It was just there. But when I make it now, it feels special because it connects me back to that time,” Ivonne says.
Bratwurst from Holzinger’s Imbiss. Photo courtesy of the Holsingers.That everyday ritual never fully translated to Pittsburgh, despite the city’s deep German-American roots. Oktoberfest festivals appear every fall. But the casual, everyday imbiss stand never made the leap. So this summer, Ivonne and her husband Greg Holsinger launched Holzinger’s Imbiss, Pittsburgh’s first dedicated German food truck. “It is like the German version of having a Primanti’s by the parking garage downtown,” Ivonne says.
Ivonne’s family history made the idea feel inevitable. “I wanted people to taste what I grew up eating. My mother had a huge garden and taught me at an early age to make traditional meals using quality ingredients,” she says. Her paternal grandparents ran a bed and breakfast, so she grew up steeped in hospitality.
What she remembers most vividly is not only schnitzel and bratwurst but the sides that made them complete. Warm German potato salad made with bacon, onions and vinegar; and spätzle, small hand-pressed egg noodles pressed through a grater into boiling water and scooped out steaming. “That was the only potato salad I knew until I came here,” Ivonne says. “I didn’t know about mayonnaise-based cold potato salad. German potato salad is warm, savory and earthy.”
Greg’s roots, too, circle back to Germany. His family name, Holsinger, had drifted from its original spelling. When they launched the truck, they restored it to Holzinger. “It makes me proud,” Greg says. “Even generations apart, I grew up with the same traditions Ivonne did. Our family traditions are very similar. The food, the wine glasses, so many things. Half a world apart, but very connected.”
Ivonne and Greg Holsinger. Photo courtesy of the Holsingers.From Fulda to Hopewell Township
Ivonne arrived in Pittsburgh in 1992 after marrying an American soldier stationed in Germany. She carried a green card for more than three decades before becoming a U.S. citizen last year. Nursing became her career — today she still works in the operating room at Heritage Valley Sewickley five days a week, shaping her shifts so she can prep schnitzels and spätzle before weekend events.
Greg grew up in Pittsburgh, studied business at Pitt and worked in banking. The two met online in 2017 and married in June 2024. Their idea for a food truck began as a half-serious conversation, a dream tossed back and forth. “Funnily enough, it was not German at first,” Ivonne says.
One late summer night at Hofbräuhaus, the talk turned serious. “We asked each other if there were any German food trucks in Pittsburgh,” Ivonne recalls. “After researching, we noticed there weren’t any. So we made a pinky-swear that we would start Pittsburgh’s first German food truck.”
Their custom trailer, built by Heenan Concessions in the South Hills, was complete by December 2024.
The couple preps at Pizer’s Sweet Co-op in Hopewell, loading trays of schnitzels and tubs of kraut before hauling everything to an event or brewery.
Their first event came at Big Sewickley Creek Brewery in February, where the two-burner hot plate they were using kept blowing the breaker. “We could only fry one schnitzel at a time,” Ivonne recalls with a laugh.
Greg and Ivonne Holsinger at a pop-up event for their authentic German food in February. Photo courtesy of the Holsingers.
Running a food truck has not been without mishaps. Parking the trailer in their narrow driveway left two dents in the gutter before they figured out a system. Greg has knocked his head on the fridge door. Ivonne has burned her finger on hot oil.
But slowly, a routine emerged. Greg handles logistics and customer service. “I am the face, she is the cook,” he says. Ivonne runs the grill and fryer. Together they have turned prep into a ritual. “We go to the commissary, turn on music and make it fun,” Greg says.
“Being a husband and wife team is an awesome environment because we love being together,” Ivonne adds. “Running a food truck is tough, but having your best friend with you makes it not just a job but a journey.”
Oktoberfest, here and there
Their first Oktoberfest season was a whirlwind. At a three-day celebration in Seven Fields, they sold out every night. “We were swamped,” Ivonne says. “The people who came out just to try our food, it was amazing.” More events followed, including Oktoberfest at Altered Genius in Imperial, fall festivals and brewery after-parties with German bands.
The Holsingers did not initially plan to tether themselves to the brewery circuit, but the pairing proved irresistible. German food and beer have centuries of shared history. The Reinheitsgebot beer purity law dates to 1516, and Bavarian beer halls have always doubled as community gathering places. So the truck has made brewery lots its natural habitat: Big Sewickley Creek, Bullseye Brewing and Cobblehaus, where the Holzingers can barely keep up with demand. A crisp pilsner practically begs for schnitzel. A malty Oktoberfest lager has likely never met a brat it did not love.
Greg Holsinger waits to take orders inside the Holzinger’s Imbiss food truck. Photo courtesy of the Holsingers.
Schnitzel at Holzinger’s Imbiss. Photo courtesy of the Holsingers.
“We did not plan it this way, but it just fits,” Ivonne admits. “German food is hearty and flavorful, and a cold beer just washes it down perfectly. ”
Still, many Pittsburghers need context. “There is no happy medium,” Ivonne says. “Either people know what an imbiss is right away because they lived in Germany or were stationed there, or they have no idea. We are constantly explaining it.” For those who know, the truck has been a revelation. “We hear, ‘I haven’t had currywurst in 20 years.’ People get so excited. And we make our own curry ketchup, so it is the real thing.”
Regular customers are already asking about a potential restaurant. Greg calls their plan “controlled growth.” Another truck, maybe a brick-and-mortar, perhaps online ordering. For now, they want to prove consistency without losing quality. “Germans are known for quality and efficiency,” Greg says. “That’s what we want to reflect.”
Ivonne agrees. “Everything is new for us, the trailer, the business side, the Pittsburgh weather. But it feels good to bring a little piece of home here.”
Judging from the lines outside their trailer, Pittsburgh is more than ready to make that piece of home its own.
For when and where to find Holzinger’s Imbiss, follow it on Instagram. This weekend, they’ll be at Bullseye Brewing Co. in New Brighton on Saturday, Oct. 18, and at Stick City Brewing Co. in Mars on Sunday, Oct. 19.