German Oktoberfest Menu Ideas to Promote in Your Restaurant
Annie Wilhelm / Foodservice Tips, Restaurant Tips / September 19
Oktoberfest is a long-standing beer festival tradition dating back 200 years, beginning when Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria married Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen on October 12th, 1810. Their anniversary sparks a worldwide celebration held every year from mid-September and wraps up on the first Sunday in October, usually lasting 16 days. Revelers enjoy good beer and food, carnival rides and games and the chance to dress up in their lederhosen and dirndls.
Like most holidays, it’s become internationally commercialized, with the potential for businesses to capitalize on beer and food sales. If you’re wondering how to host and promote an Oktoberfest event at your restaurant but don’t know enough about German culture and cuisine to flesh out an entire menu, try out these Oktoberfest food and drink menu ideas. Prost!
Oktoberfest Food Menu Ideas
We’ve included traditional Oktoberfest foods as well as a few Americanized suggestions that may be a pinch more palatable to picky eaters than braised cabbage. But whether you’re looking to make the restaurant Oktoberfest experience as authentic as possible or are willing to put a new spin on a time-old tradition, check out the list below for a little mouth-watery inspiration!
Snacks & Appetizers
- Bavarian pretzels – Traditional Oktoberfest pretzels are usually a little bit more firm than the soft Americanized versions we all know and love. Put an authentic spin on it by serving it with a sweet or spicy brown mustard or Obatzda, a creamy beer cheese dip.
- Sausage and cheese platter – Although this is not a traditional Oktoberfest food, Germans are known for their sausage and will be well received by hungry patrons looking to soak up a little beer.
- Potato pancakes (Kartoffelpuffer) – Another shareable is the classic potato pancakes. Better yet, they utilize cheap, staple ingredients that enjoy a high-profit margin which you can cross-use in other dishes.
- Candied almonds (Lebkuchenherzen) – Candied almonds are a type of snack that’s often eaten at Oktoberfest and double as a popular festival food here, too.
Main Entrees
- Roast pork (Schweinebraten mit Knödeln und Rotkohl) – Roast pork that’s traditionally served at Oktoberfest typically comes with knödel and red cabbage. In case you’re unfamiliar, a knödel is a dumpling, but it’s not one in the American sense of the word. They are often made out of boiled potatoes, bread, flour and to curate a variety of ingredients, flavors and textures.
- Brat (Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut) – It really wouldn’t be Oktoberfest in Germany or America without a good old-fashioned bratwurst with sauerkraut. Because of its notoriety, it’s perhaps one of the safest food options to put on the Oktoberfest menu.
- Wiener schnitzel and french fries and salad – Wiener schnitzel is also another Oktoberfest menu idea that will guarantee sales, as most partygoers will be familiar with the dish. Combine it with french fries or knödel and a salad to make it a meal.
- Rotisserie chicken (Halbes Hendle) – If you’ve ever walked the Oktoberfest festival grounds in Germany, you’ll know that they love their halbes hendle. Why would Americans be any different?
- Cheese Spätzle – A classic German side dish is Spätzle, an egg noodle dish that’s tossed with Emmentaler cheese and fried onions. It’s similar to mac’n’cheese, and it can be served as a main course or a side.
Side Dishes
- Sauerkraut – Of course, it wouldn’t be a German celebration without the Sauerkraut. If you’re already serving brats, you can kill two birds with one stone and cross-use this ingredient as a side.
- German potato salad (Kartoffelsalat) – German potato salad has many faces, but the core ingredients include red potatoes, mustard, bacon and herbs, relying on vinegar to establish the tangy flavor that Germans are so fond of.
- Braised red cabbage (Rotkohl) – If you’re looking for ways to sneak in a vegetable, you’ll want to consider this popular German side dish. Not only is braised red cabbage healthy, but it compliments the rich and savory flavors that dominate German cuisine.
Desserts
- Gingerbread hearts (Lebkuchenherzen) – Lebkuchenherzen, as they’re known in German, are heart-shaped gingerbread cookies made from spiced dough and decorated with icing to spell out themed messages. They’re valued higher for their souvenir potential than their taste. Because of this, they’re usually accompanied by a ribbon that can be worn around the neck or hung on a wall.
- Black forest cake (Schwarzwälder) – Although black forest cake is not a traditional Oktoberfest dessert, it is decidedly German and extremely tasty. It will fit in easily with the American pallet.
- Kaiserschmarrn – Not as well known in the US but popular in Germany is the Kaiserschmarrn. It’s a shredded slightly sweetened pancake that’s served with applesauce. Whipped cream and vanilla bean ice cream would also complement the flavors well.
Oktoberfest Drink Menu Ideas & Pairings
At an authentic Oktoberfest, you’d be presented a few alcoholic choices: Oktoberfest (Märzen), Festbier, Wheat beer (Weißbier) and occasionally a Radler or Dunkle, with the festival beers naturally pairing well with traditional food options. Oktoberfest beer is traditionally served in 1-liter steins called Maßkrug – which would be the equivalent of a little over 3 normal-sized US beers, mind you.
Marketing Tip: Offer customers the option to buy their stein that they can bring back and reuse throughout the season to get a discount on future refills.
Oktoberfest Beer
Oktoberfest beer, or Märzen as it’s called in Germany, is specially brewed for Oktoberfest and contains a slightly higher alcohol per volume. These beers are brewed in March and stored until Volksfest in the fall, hence its name. In Munich, they have what is known as the “Big Six,” which are the six breweries allowed to sell their beer at Oktoberfest:
- Hofbräuhaus
- Löwenbräu
- Augustinerbräu
- Paulaner
- Hacker-Pschorr
- Spaten-Franziskaner
Of course, American-style Oktoberfest beers tend to be a little sweeter and more red in color than those served bottoms up in Germany, but customers may enjoy flavors they’re more familiar with.
Other German Beer
Because America may have taken a few liberties with the celebrations, ones that lean hard into the stereotypes which we’ve adapted to our tastes and preferences and beer and food pairings, no one is going to say boo if you decide to stray away from the path of straight and narrow and showcase a couple of different types of imported German beer – because there are many!
Non-Alcoholic German Drinks
For the underaged, pregnant and sober, they can still quench their thirst with a variety of non-alcoholic German beverages.
- Apfelschorle – Apfelschorle is apple juice cut with sparkling water to reduce its concentration. Many people enjoy this light, refreshing drink because it’s not as syrupy sweet or rich as what we’re used to.
- Spezi – Spezi is a German-style soda that mixes cola and orange flavors equally to achieve a sweet balance between citrusy and caramel notes.
- Sparkling water – Germans rarely drink stille wasser or noncarbonated water. Enjoy the bubbly tingle of soda without the sugar and chemicals.
How to Promote Oktoberfest in Your Restaurant
Once you’ve spent all that time, energy and money agonizing over German Oktoberfest menu ideas, investing in decorations and planning activities for your patrons, you’ll want to make sure you get the word out so all your hard work doesn’t go to waste!
There’s no need to slap down even more cash before you see the returns. Check out these free Oktoberfest promotional and advertising ideas to get customers lining up at your beer garden:
Social Media
Utilize this free form of marketing by posting pictures of the festivities, Oktoberfest menu ideas and any deals and discounts you plan on running. Offering a percentage discount on food and drink if customers tag you in a post is an effective way to convince the algorithms to designate your restaurant as the go-to spot every September and October.
Email campaigns
Email is another free yet underutilized marketing tool that can see significant returns with minimal investment and effort. You’ll want to start hitting up your mailing list 4-6 weeks in advance so guests have plenty of time to do a fit check on their lederhosen and dirndls!
In-restaurant promotions
Sometimes, the most effective restaurant Oktoberfest promotion ideas are the simplest. Hanging flyers in the window, setting up table tents and having waiters, waitresses and bartenders spread the news can make repeats out of your customers.