The vacationers, L.A. weekenders, and locals alike will trade in their wet t-shirts and itty-bitty bikinis for lederhosen and dirndls. It’s Oktoberfest, baby! And you don’t want to miss out on these great places to lift your stein:
Hofbräuhaus, September 16th-October 31st, 2016
Sin City’s flagship joint for getting your Oktoberfest on is the Hofbräuhaus Las Vegas beer hall and restaurant, located near the Hard Rock Hotel at the corner of Paradise Rd. and Harmon Ave. The Las Vegas venue is modeled after the original 400-year-old Bavarian beer hall in Munich, Germany.
Along with yet-to-be-announced celebrity keg tapping ceremonies, some of the bar’s year-round weekend activities and contests will be featured during the 6 weeks of Oktoberfest celebrations. It’s a well known fact among Germans (and a little known fact among the rest of the world) that Oktoberfest traditionally begins in mid-September and lasts through the first Sunday in October. This year is September 17th through October 3rd. While Munich’s Oktoberfest lasts a mere 17 days, Hofbräuhaus stretches their celebration out for 6 weeks. (That’s Vegas for ya–always one upping other cities!)
If you are into feats of strength, the Stein Holding Challenge is just for you! The brave participants compete to see who can hold their three-pound stein of beer up in the air the longest. (The winner receives their very own three-pound glass stein emblazoned with the HB logo.) While the outdoor beer garden can be fun, you’ll want to stay inside the beer hall if you want to enjoy the Oom-Pah band. It is a regular sight to see whole tables of slightly (or more so) drunken guests climb up on their benches, wave their steins, and sing traditional German folk tunes, pop hits like “Sweet Caroline,” and top it off with a raucous version of “The Chicken Dance.”
Hofbräu’s special brew of Oktoberfest beer will be available along with their regular menu of Munich-imported drafts. Each of Hofbrau’s beer recipes have been passed down for more than 400 years and follow the strict Reinheitsgebot (beer purity) law of Germany. At 6.2% ABV and served by the liter, it would be a good to plan to soak up the suds with the restaurant’s menu of rich and hearty, authentically German food such as schnitzel, bratwurst, Vienna sausage, and giant, salty soft pretzels.
The Hofbräuhaus does not have an additional charge for Oktoberfest beyond the cost of food, drinks, and souvenirs, but reservations are highly recommended (especially on the weekends.) Contact Lavish Vegas to help you plan your night at HB!
Golden Nugget Fall Beer Festival, September 17th-18th
This is the perfect Oktoberfest event for the beer connoisseur. The first night of the festival (Saturday) is going to be held in the Grand Events Center at the Golden Nugget downtown, which is just off the casino floor. More than 100 beers from 30+ different small craft breweries across the USA will be represented. Knowledgeable brewers will be on hand to discuss and make recommendations from everything from lagers to stouts and beyond. For $64, you can get early admission to Saturday’s Grand Tasting (more time=more samples to taste!) as well as Sunday’s pool party outside at the Shark Tank. You can still come enjoy the Oktoberfest-themed pool party even if you don’t want to plunk down the money for Saturday’s tasting. Sunday’s Oktoberfest party is open to the public. The Shark Tank pool will have all of your favorite beers from the previous night on hand to give them another try, local food vendors with small bites to complement your brew(s) of choice, and live music. Contact Lavish Vegas to coordinate tickets and transportation.
The Beer Garden – Plaza Las Vegas
Whether you are pre-gaming for the Golden Nugget event (above), or just find yourself downtown searching for some German culture, look no further than the Beer Garden at the Plaza Las Vegas. While there’s no word yet whether the Beer Garden will have an official Oktoberfest event, this is one bar that will definitely transport you to Munich. The musty old downtown mainstay (situated directly across from the awning of the Fremont Street Experience) went through some major renovations in 2014, and in their quest to bring in a younger crowd, they added an adorable little German brewpub with sausages, soft pretzels, and imported beers in great big steins. You can enjoy the German cuisine either inside the restaurant or outside in the Beer Garden–which is an actual garden–with hundred of plants, real grass and a 400 sq ft. vertical garden intertwined into a trellis canopy to provide a natural barrier between your cold beer and the hot Nevada sun. The Beer Garden is conducive to socializing–long beer hall-style tables entice customers to cozy up and share the picnic tables, play a friendly game of ping-pong, and enjoy live entertainment all while clinking steins and shouting, “Prost!” for no other reason than it’s Oktoberfest in Vegas, baby.
More Las Vegas Oktoberfest events coming soon. Bookmark this page for updates.
