Believe it or not, I have never been to Oktoberfest before! As a non-drinker, I never saw the point. Thanks to Vancouver Alpen Club I got to go over the weekend.
What You Need To Know
FYI, if you plan on going to Oktoberfest at Vancouver Alpen Club at 4875 Victoria Drive you will be carded so bring I.D. If WE got carded, YOU will get carded. Thankfully I had photo ID on me, LOL.
The Venue
Wow!!! Although I have not been to Oktoberfest before I had been to Deutsches Haus German Restaurant on the lower level, but not to their ballroom. So impressive and people came early enough to get a table well ahead of us, darn it! If you want a table, be there at 7:30 when the doors open.
The Food & Drink
We got the schnitzel with potato salad and pickle and everything was delicious. That potato salad in particular blew my mind. They make it with vinegar so there is a hefty zing!!! The pickle was a touch sweet and look, Reg got THREE chicken schnitzels with his meal. He also got to enjoy the “beer flight…” Twice! I hate beer but have to say, they were quite excellent, but I stuck with gingerale for the rest of the night.
The Party
The band The Continentals stole the show with their incredible performance, humour and supernatural ability to turn every song, including Tequila, into a polka.
The floor would only remain bare for a second and then as soon as something else came on, people were up dancing and having a blast.
They even made us count in German so my high school German class finally paid off and I could legitimately say, “Ich habe eine Kartoffel” which is the only thing I remember from that class: I have a potato! OK, potato salad but you get the picture.
The Alpen Platters introduced us to their Schuhplattler dance and everyone loved every second of it. They were highly entertaining!
Taking A Break
If you have health issues like me and are desperate for a place to sit, make sure to go upstairs where there are more tables and chairs. You can watch the fun happening below over the balcony and there was also a Photo Booth for fun pictures.
More Food
We were still a little hungry so we also enjoyed a fantastic pretzel which I am going to attempt to make myself soon. So delicious.
In Closing
What a night! Even if you are a non-drinker like me Oktoberfest at Vancouver Alpen Club is a total blast! Fun, delicious and a huge party.
A night I will never forget.
Although memory of the night might be a little hazier for others…
This foodie event gets five out of five wooden stars. The night was perfection.
When I lived in Winnipeg, there was a big Oktoberfest celebration too, but it always seemed to end in a huge brawl and the cops being called. I believe it’s more sedate these days. Glad everyone behaved themselves in Vancouver!
Same here in Toronto Debra, it was just about getting totally wasted and causing trouble which is why I always stayed away. This had a lovely innocence to in. In fact, we knew it was time to leave with the cloggers came out, LOL. Something so charming about that.