7 Best Oktoberfest Restaurant Specials You Can Score Right Now
Raise your stein! Oktoberfest is here, and that means people are gathering to drink beer, enjoy German foods like bratwurst and pretzels, and listen to German folk music. While this special occasion is central to Munich, Germany, people celebrate it around the world.
Oktoberfest traditionally lasts at least 16 days and ends on the first Sunday in October. This year, Oktoberfest kicked off on Sept. 21 and will conclude on Oct. 6.
However, just because the festival officially ends next Sunday doesn't mean people will immediately stop celebrating. In fact, several restaurant chains are offering special menus for days—and even weeks—after Oktoberfest ends. Read on to discover which popular restaurant chains are serving up Oktoberfest specials that you can enjoy right now.
Yard House
Oktoberfest is 35 days long at Yard House. Through Oct. 27, the popular sports bar chain is offering several different options to celebrate the German festival, including the new Bier Brat Sliders. This dish includes three mini beer bratwurst with caramelized onions on a pretzel roll and is served with beer cheese, horseradish mustard, and malt vinegar aioli fries. Other Oktoberfest menu items include the new Biergarten Brat Pizza, returning Bavarian Pork Chop, and Jumbo Bavarian Pretzel.
Additionally, because Oktoberfest would be incomplete without a glass of beer, the restaurant is offering $15 Yard House steins for customers to take home. These are available while supplies last. If you pay for the stein and a regular 32-ounce "half yard" beer, you'll get $10 refills on any Oktoberfest or select house beer until Oct. 27.
Melting Pot
For an experiential Oktoberfest meal, Melting Pot is serving a three-course Oktober FondueFest through Oct. 31. Dip pretzels and meaty favorites like grilled bratwurst, braised short rib, and summer sausage into Bavarian cheese fondue. The meal comes with your choice of salad and ends on a sweet note with black forest chocolate fondue. You can add premium entrées to make this a four-course meal experience, too.
In addition to food, Melting Pot is pouring German-inspired beverages to pair with your meal, such as the new Black Forest Old Fashioned and Ginger Peach Blitz cocktails. You can also opt for a German wine or the popular Sam Adams Octoberfest beer.
Hard Rock Cafe
This rock-and-roll-themed restaurant chain is helping guests celebrate Oktoberfest with a menu that's available until the last official day of the fest—Oct. 6. The chain's offerings include the Jumbo Soft Pretzel, Bratwurst, and Schnitzel Sandwich. To wash down these German-inspired items, Hard Rock is also serving two seasonal sips: Sam Adams Octoberfest and a Whiskey Apple Mule.
Bad Daddy's Burger Bar
Bad Daddy's Burger Bar isn't offering an entire menu dedicated to Oktoberfest, but is instead serving up a burger created just for the occasion. The chain's new Bratwurst Burger features a pretzel bun loaded with a bratwurst patty that's filled with peppers and onions and topped with melted provolone cheese, tangy apple sauerkraut, and a whole grain Dijonnaise. The burger is served with Samuel Adams Octoberfest beer cheese. Try one for yourself until Nov. 4!
Dog Haus
This California-based chain known for its hot dogs, sausages, and burgers launched its first-ever Oktoberfest menu at the beginning of September. Choose from German-inspired dishes like the Octoberwürst, which is a bier cheese pretzel bratwurst with caramelized onions, grilled sauerkraut, mustard aioli, and scallions on a grilled King's Hawaiian Roll. Or, enjoy the Octoberwürst Burrito, which is filled with a bier cheese pretzel bratwurst, three eggs, caramelized onions, scallions, crispy tots, American cheese, and spicy mayo. The chain is donating $1 to No Kid Hungry for every Octoberwürst and Octoberwürst Burrito purchased.
Customers can also sink their teeth into bite-sized pretzels starting on Oct. 1. This menu item features King's Hawaiian Soft Pretzel Bites, which customers can order in two ways: sweet and savory. The sweet option is dusted with cinnamon sugar and paired with cream cheese frosting, while the savory choice is served with a beer cheese made with Paulaner's Oktoberfestbier.
That's not all, though. Dog Haus is selling Paulaner's Oktoberfest Bier and Jägermeister, with the former only offered at Dog Haus Biergarten locations and the latter only sold at Biergarten locations with full bars.
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Iron Hill launched its Oktoberfest menu on Sept. 20 and these offerings runs until Oct. 6. In the mood for bratwurst? The restaurant is dishing up its Bratwurstbrotchen, a bratwurst egg roll with Vienna Red Lager-bacon sauerkraut, cheddar, green onion, and a beer mustard dipping sauce. There's also the Jaegerschnitzel (crispy pork medallions) and the Huhnerschnitzel (crispy chicken medallions).
Other Oktoberfest options include the Spinatsalat (a spinach salad) and the Schlachtplatte. This includes garlic pork sausage, glazed ham, and pork loin medallion, along with a German-style potato salad, Vienna Red Lager-bacon sauerkraut, and beer mustard sauce. To end your meal with something sweet, there's the Kasekuchen, a German cheesecake made with a brown butter graham cracker crust and an apple-brown sugar compote.
Each dish has a suggested beer pairing, with one option being the Oktoberfest Lager. This brew has notes of dried fruit, yeasty bread, caramel, and spicy hops, as described on the Iron Hill website. The beer is available on draft and in 16-ounce four-packs. Guests can also order a 22-ounce mug of any draft beer, including the Oktoberfest Lager, for $12. As a bonus, they can take the mug home from the restaurant.
Polly's Pies
This Southern California bakery and restaurant chain is celebrating Oktoberfest with multiple German dishes created in partnership with Orange County-based Mattern's Sausage & Deli. One option is the Mattern Sausage Platter, which includes two bratwurst options: Nuerenberg and smoked cheddar. These are served alongside braised red cabbage with apples, pub mustard, and crispy potato pancakes topped with sour cream and green onions.
Customers can also order the German Fritters, which are made with diced bratwurst, sauerkraut, and muenster cheese, covered in panko breadcrumbs, and paired with Bock Beer cheese and pub mustard sauces. For the burger fans, Polly's is offering a Pretzel Burger, which features a beef patty, bacon, grilled onions, pub mustard, and Brock Beer Cheese on a pretzel bun.
The new Oktoberfest menu is only available until Oct. 14, so you'll want to swing by Polly's soon to enjoy these dishes.
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