Das Oktoberfest!
This past weekend we had a ton of fun over on the west side with the Das Oktoberfest Celebration. The event was held in the La Venue space and they really did a great job of getting a lot of people inside without it feeling like a total madhouse. Those who opted for the VIP ticket had their own separate room off to the side with some special beers and an outdoor cigar smoking section. Each ticket included four hours of as much beer, wine and spirits you could sample and a plate of classic German fare.
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This was our platter loaded up with a wurst, frankfurt, brat, ham and bacon. The meats were pretty good. The wurst and frankfurt were my favorites but all of the options were quite tasty.
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Thank goodness because the sides were awful. The spatzle noodles were dry and hard with nothing resembling a creamy cheesy sauce.
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The side of schnitzel wasn’t very good either. My piece was just really bland but my friend’s piece was so undercooked that the center was raw! Yuk!!
Luckily this event was more about the beer and festivities. They had a couple fun Oompahs bands playing up front and everyone was in a great mood.
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Once I had my pretzel necklace laced up for me it was time to get down to some serious beer tasting. I think I tried almost every beer that night but in the end it came down to two of my old standby breweries that ended up being my favorites. Ommegang was pouring a new Belgian Pale Ale this was really refreshing and incredibly drinkable. They get second place overall in my book.
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First place goes to Goose Island because once again there is just nothing as good as their Matilda. I don’t know what it is about that beer but I absolutely love it. They were pouring their new Harvest Ale as well which I had just tried last week in Buffalo!
Overall I thought it was a great event with some areas for improvement in food. The VIP section seemed to be out of many of their special beers as well and it was only the second session! The ones they were pouring paled in comparison to the ones outside so that wasn’t really a plus for me. However the calm open space and empty bathrooms were worth the price of the VIP ticket. Plus there was a ton of wine and spirit options so even if you didn't like beer you could find something to enjoy. So there you have- Das Oktoberfest! Prosit!
.JPG)
This was our platter loaded up with a wurst, frankfurt, brat, ham and bacon. The meats were pretty good. The wurst and frankfurt were my favorites but all of the options were quite tasty.
.JPG)
Thank goodness because the sides were awful. The spatzle noodles were dry and hard with nothing resembling a creamy cheesy sauce.
.JPG)
The side of schnitzel wasn’t very good either. My piece was just really bland but my friend’s piece was so undercooked that the center was raw! Yuk!!
Luckily this event was more about the beer and festivities. They had a couple fun Oompahs bands playing up front and everyone was in a great mood.
.JPG)
Once I had my pretzel necklace laced up for me it was time to get down to some serious beer tasting. I think I tried almost every beer that night but in the end it came down to two of my old standby breweries that ended up being my favorites. Ommegang was pouring a new Belgian Pale Ale this was really refreshing and incredibly drinkable. They get second place overall in my book.
.JPG)
First place goes to Goose Island because once again there is just nothing as good as their Matilda. I don’t know what it is about that beer but I absolutely love it. They were pouring their new Harvest Ale as well which I had just tried last week in Buffalo!
Overall I thought it was a great event with some areas for improvement in food. The VIP section seemed to be out of many of their special beers as well and it was only the second session! The ones they were pouring paled in comparison to the ones outside so that wasn’t really a plus for me. However the calm open space and empty bathrooms were worth the price of the VIP ticket. Plus there was a ton of wine and spirit options so even if you didn't like beer you could find something to enjoy. So there you have- Das Oktoberfest! Prosit!
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