Local Oktoberfest Events in Southern California!
~ Natalia Radcliffe ~
Happy first day of October!
Do you know what that means?
Oktoberfest! Among other things too.
that’s one way to kick off the spooky month. A celebration of German culture and cuisine with some good food and drink.
Sounds like something up your alley? If you’re in the area or are staying at one of our Airbnbs, check out these places we found near us that are hosting Oktoberfest celebrations this month.
Happening this weekend on October 3-5, this is Ventura County Fairground’s first time doing an Oktoberfest event. It’s a family friendly event that has rides, an artisan market, live entertainment, and of course German food and beer. For those who want to try non-alcoholic drinks, there will be those as well. On Friday, it goes from 6pm-11pm, Saturday from 12pm-11pm, and Sunday from 12pm-6pm. Presale tickets are available on their website, with both single day ticket options ($5 for children and seniors and $9 for adults) and weekend pass options ($14 for children and seniors and $24 for adults). For more information and to get tickets, check out their website.
Happening on October 4, this celebration takes place at Lemon Park, also known as the Rancho Tapo Community Park, from 11am-6pm. Not only are there an assortment of food trucks to get snacks from and a beer tent where you can try a variety of different drinks, there is also live music to enjoy, contests and prizes, vendor booths and carnival-style games. When you want to take a rest from all the walking, there are tables you can sit down at to listen to some music and sip or snack on food. There are three levels of tickets: General Admission, VIP Experience and VIP Reserved Table. General admission is $25, and includes full access to all parts of the event as listed above. The VIP Experience is $125 and includes the extra benefits of beer refills, early entry to the seating area so you can snag a table, an all day free beer pass and a food voucher for the food trucks, premium stage viewing access, exclusive restrooms, 2 tickets for free wine tasting and free snacks and treats. The VIP Reserved table tickets can be for up to 10 guests and is at $2,500, and not only includes the benefits of the other two ticket levels, but also gives guests front stage access at reserved tables, unlimited table service, a front stage dance area access, access to a VIP lounge area, and all day beer passes and food vouchers for up to 10 guests. For more information, you can visit their website.
BJ’s also has their own celebration, called Spooktoberfest. Occurring on Monday October 6 at 6:30pm, guests can enjoy a five course menu with a variety of tasty beers and snacks, including BJ’s Pumpkin Ale that you receive as a welcome drink, Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier paired with broccoli cheddar soup for one course, a Sam Adams Oktoberfest drink with Deep-Dish Ziti as another, and for the fifth and final course BJ’s Hard Root Beer float as a dessert. You can get tickets for the event online, or at the door. If you choose to pre-pay online, they are $45 per person, and if you get them at the door, they are $50 per person. For those of you in the area, there is a Westlake Village location, located off of Thousand Oaks Blvd. For more information on the event, you can check out their website.
The restaurant chain Dog Haus is also doing an Oktober fest celebration now through October 26. Customers can enjoy limited edition drinks to sip and food to snack on. For example, customers can try the Baratzel sliders, made with bratwurst, bacon-onion jam, sauerkraut, mustard aioli & crispy fried onions on grilled King’s Hawaiian pretzel buns or the Bratchos, which are crispy flour tortillas covered in cheese sauce, with sauerkraut, bacon, onion jam, bratwurst, scallions and mustard aioli. There is a location off of Thousand Oaks Blvd, but as it’s not a biergarten location, there are certain specialty Oktoberfest beers and liquors that won’t be available. For more information, you can go visit their website.
