Hans im Glück: History, Key Facts and Reviews

2010-2014: a fairy-tale burger grill in Munich

Hans im Glück started in 2010 as a single burger grill and bar on Nymphenburger Straße in Munich, opened by Thomas Hirschberger (Handelsblatt). The name comes from the Grimm tale of Hans, who trades a lump of gold for ever smaller things and still feels lucky. The dining rooms, packed with birch trunks and dark furniture, made the brand easy to recognise. Hirschberger grew it through franchising: by 2014 there were 30 restaurants in Germany and about 1,200 employees, with net revenue of around €43.6 million (German Wikipedia).

2015-2019: Singapore, Switzerland and 81 restaurants

Hans im Glück grew fast in the second half of the 2010s and began opening abroad. In 2015, with 40 restaurants, it ranked among the three fastest-growing restaurant systems in Germany. Its 50th restaurant opened in Singapore at the end of 2017, a year with €102 million in revenue. The first Swiss branch followed in Bern in 2018, the year group net turnover reached €120 million (Tageskarte). Revenue then rose to €147 million in 2019.

2020-2024: new owners and the Limmer affair

On January 17, 2020, Hirschberger sold his 90% stake to Dirk Schneider and Hans-Christian Limmer, the founders of the bakery chain BackWerk, alongside the existing minority shareholder GAB. The chain then had 81 restaurants in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Singapore (HOGAPAGE). In January 2024 the company separated from Limmer after reports that he had attended a meeting of right-wing extremists, and the other shareholders took over his shares (Hans im Glück). The Singapore restaurants have since closed. In 2024 the group counted 98 restaurants, €65.08 million in revenue and 810 employees.

2025-2026: the Netherlands and the 100th restaurant

Hans im Glück is expanding again outside Germany. Its first Dutch restaurant opened on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam on April 17, 2025, when the chain counted 83 restaurants in Germany, 10 in Switzerland and 2 in Austria (Horecatrends). In April 2026 it tried a new format at the Rheintal West motorway services on the Swiss A13, and on April 15 it opened its 100th location on Paradeplatz in Mannheim (HOGAPAGE). Its online locator now lists 99 restaurants. For a visit to one branch, read our guide to Hans im Glück in Leipzig.

Key dates

• 2010: Thomas Hirschberger opens the first Hans im Glück in Munich.
• 2014: 30 restaurants in Germany and about 1,200 employees.
• 2017: the 50th restaurant opens in Singapore.
• 2018: first Swiss restaurant, in Bern.
• 2020: the BackWerk founders and GAB buy Hirschberger’s 90% stake.
• 2025: first restaurant in the Netherlands, in Amsterdam, on April 17.
• 2026: 100th location opens in Mannheim on April 15.