Oktoberfest started this past weekend in Germany, and we’re looking forward to the first dinner of the season on October 4 at our Sparta store.
We began serving Oktoberfest dinners years ago and even featured the meals on our blog over the past few years.
This year, we’re offering a DIY Oktoberfest catering menu so you can plan a fun fall party, too! We’ll start by showing you some of our favorite ideas for using the menu and some flavorful seasonal add-ons.
Oktoberfest Menu
We chose traditional German menu items that will work best for your party. Obviously, pretzel rolls needed to be included along with a few signature desserts and cookies.
- Red Cabbage
- Sauerkraut
- Traditional German Potato Salad
- Sauerbraten
- Spätzle
- Pretzel Rolls
- Pork Schnitzel or Chicken Jager Schnitzel
- Bite-Sized Desserts: Platter of Gingerbread Cookies, Linzer Tarts, and German Chocolate Brownies
Click here to view the full menu over at our catering site, and get in touch here to place your order!
Here’s a closeup of those desserts…
Oktoberfest Cake
This add-on custom cake turns any October birthday party into the party of the year. With pretzel details and a giant beer stein on top, your friend or family member will be the center of attention and all your guests will get in the holiday spirit.
Apple Cider + Pretzel Station
No fall event is complete without apple cider! While you’ll probably want a line-up of German beers to go with your pretzels, cider just adds to the festivity.
Practical Tip: You’ll want to use a crock pot to serve apple cider – we know from experience you’ll never get the apple smell cleaned out of your coffee urn even after multiple washes.
Don’t forget to display cinnamon sticks and fresh apples to spice it up!
While you can find wall-size pegboards at Home Depot, you probably don’t need to display that many pretzels for a family party (maybe for an Oktoberfest-themed wedding!). We built a table-top display, instead!
You could offer different mustards for the pretzels or even different toppings — maybe cinnamon sugar instead of salt (what can I say, we love sweets!)…
Pretzel Display DIY
We love this super simple, reusable DIY Display you can easily make at home!
Supplies
- (2) 2’x4′ Pegboard Panels
- Pegboard Hooks (we used 12 hooks with 2 pretzels/hook)
- White Paracord
For some reason, we always go all-white with our crafting projects. In this case, it helps the pretzels really stand out. I think this would look good with brown pegboard and a natural twine rope, or you could use the white pegboard with a natural twine, as well.
If you decide to paint the board, just make sure the dry paint will be food-safe!
On to the instructions…
- Cut the pegboard to the size you want (we cut it down to 2’x3′, but I think 2’x2′ would look good, too!)
- Next comes the paracord! Cut a long length of cord, about 3 times the edge of the pegboard. Tie a knot in one end.
- Thread the paracord from the inside, then loop around the outside along the top edge. Pictures really explain this better than words…
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- Knot the other end of the cord.
- The “legs” of the board: cut 2 lengths of cord, 8-12 inches. Knot one end, thread across and then knot on the other side to maintain the triangle shape and keep from sliding open while on display. Again, the photo helps.
That’s it! You can even use this display board for selling jewelry or anything else. So keep it around in case you need it for another project.
