Glendale Heights celebrates Oktoberfest
Beer-drinkers, raise your steins and toast for the 11 days of Oktoberfest, Glendale Heights-style, which begins Thursday, Sept. 13.
An air of German authenticity, from the cuisine to the oompah bands to the imported brews, will set the scene for the seventh annual party in Camera Park, 101 E. Fullerton Ave.
The festival will run 5 to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 5 p.m. to midnight Fridays, noon to midnight Saturdays and noon to 10 p.m. Sundays and is presented by the village and the Glendale Heights Chamber of Commerce, along with several area businesses.
Tickets are $5 for adults after 4 p.m.; children 16 and younger are admitted free.
Food and drink will be provided by the Schnitzel Platz restaurant, a local German eatery operated by Chef Wolfgang Beyer, his wife, Elfriede, and their son, Diethard.
“We have a full menu of traditional German food,” Diethard said, “and all the beers we serve are imported from Germany.”
The Oktoberfest food menu will feature roasted chicken, schnitzel sandwiches, burgers, bratwurst and frankfurters, along with side dishes of German potato salad, dumplings, cabbage and sauerkraut.
“For the kids, we have a nice variety that's more Americanized,” Diethard said. The children's menu includes burgers, hot dogs and chicken nuggets.
Vendors will offer nuts, sweets, tortes and strudels.
Beers include the Hofbrau Oktoberfest beer, imported from Munich.
“It's brewed each year for Oktoberfest,” Diethard said.
Oktoberfest revelers also may choose from several other German beers, one of which is a grapefruit-inspired beer, bourbon, cider and red and white wine.
Born in Germany, Diethard said he grew up in Australia and moved with his well-traveled parents, also German natives, to the Chicago area in 1974.
“I'm a big history buff and I'm a big fan of the castles and King Ludwig and all that stuff,” he said.
King Ludwig I is credited with initiating the first Oktoberfest in Germany in 1810.
“When King Ludwig was getting married, he basically had a big party. That's how Oktoberfest got started,” he said.
The celebration in Camera Park will be similar to those going on in Bavaria at this time of year.
Along with ethnic foods, drinks and music, it will feature long, beer hall tables sheltered under a tent.
The festival will mirror its German counterparts by presenting attendees with the option of selecting a VIP package, which entitles the bearer to prime parking spots, premium seating and a more elegant meal service, Diethard said.
One difference, he said, is that the Glendale Heights version will not include carnival rides and games, a traditional part of the celebration in Germany. Instead, there will be children's activities, including bounce houses, slides, a climbing wall and ring toss.
The entertainment lineup includes German-themed bands such as the Johnny Wagner Band and Alpine Thunder.
There also will be two performances by the Elmhurst College Jazz Band, described by Diethard as an Oktoberfest favorite. One is at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14, and the other is at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21.
For details, visit www.glendaleheightsoktoberfest.com.