Mark your calendars, Oktoberfest is on the horizon, which means three days of brews, dancing and lots of lederhosen.
The celebration is going down at Tampa’s downtown Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park which will basically become a waterfront beer garden.
Beer will be flowing, specifically, the signature brew, the Oktoberfest Tampa Dunkel. Of course, there will be other drafts on tap including traditional German Pilsner, Oktoberfest märzens and Hefeweizen. Daily firkin tapping is also on the agenda.
Not into beer but want to hang for the live music? Drinkers can sip on red and white wine, and the kids can grab fresh-squeezed lemonade.
Bavarian games will be hosted throughout Oktoberfest and are free to play — like keg stacking, tug-o-war, and a Brat Toss (which surprisingly enough doesn’t involve a child).
Winners will also be crowned for a beard and mustache competition. There will also be a vote for the winner of Mr. & Mrs. Oktoberfest.
Just a heads up, active and retired members of the armed forces and first responders of the City of Tampa get free admission along with their spouse if they show their ID at the entry gate the day of the event.
Oktoberfest will run October 11, 12 and 13 and pre-sale tickets are officially on sale for either $8 a day, or $20 for all three. The celebration kicks off Friday, October 11 from 4-11 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., and Sunday 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Pre-sale tickets end September 30. For tickets, visit eventbrite.com.
Want to know everything going on with Tampa Bay’s food and drink scene? Sign up for our Bites newsletter.
This article appears in Jul 11-18, 2019.
