One of the most popular Oktoberfest festivals in DFW also features the beloved wiener dog race. Photo courtesy of Tim Hill Photography.
Submitted by Tracy Southers
One of the area'sbrlargest Oktoberfest celebrations is gearing up for its 12th year during Octoberbr4-6 at Southlake Town Square.brHighlighting this year's German-inspired festival are the wildly popular wiener dogbrraces, live entertainment all weekend, and bratwurst and beer will bebrserved in the Die Festalle tent. Presented by the Southlake Chamber of Commerce and TexasbrNissan of Grapevine, approximately 75,000 people are expected to attend thebrthree-day event. Admission and parking are free. As one of thebrmost popular Oktoberfest celebrations in Dallas-Fort Worth, Southlake Oktoberfest is a funbrfamily event with activities for both adults and children:
- Approximately 100 arts and crafts exhibitors sellingbr handmade products.
- Food vendors serving both German and American fare.
- An active “Sports Zone” featuring a 9x16 footbr television screen airing college and NFL games.
- Children’s area with games, train rides, bounce housesbr and rock climbing wall.
- Street performers including magician, juggler, clown,br flag twirler and stilt walker.
- Die Festalle (festival) tent with German food, beer andbr wine, and live entertainment.
More than 180brdogs participated in the wiener dog races last year, which will take placebrSaturday, October 5, beginning with the costume parade at 9:45 a.m. and racesbrstart at 10:00 a.m. Registration can be done onlineor onsite starting at 8:30 a.m.
Swiss alpinebrhorns will kick-off the festivities Friday at 5:00 p.m. on the steps ofbrSouthlake Town Hall. Livebrentertainment will take place throughout the weekend on two stages,brincluding both local performers and regional bands:
- Friday ̶ Micah Blalock, Big Wheel and A Hard Night's Day
- Saturday ̶ Grammy award-winning Brave Combo,br Southlake Community Band, Julie Elias, Guns 4 Roses, Lone Star Ramblersbr and High Definition
- Sunday ̶ Maylee Thomas, Event Horizon, Robbr Holbert Afro-American Jazz andbr Alpine Village Band
New this year isbr"Battle of the Bands" presented by School of Rock in Southlake. Six bands,brcomprised of School of Rock student musicians, will perform 15 minute setsbrbeginning at 2:00 p.m. Saturday on the Festival Hall Stage (next to Tyler's).brThe audience will vote for its favorite via a Twitter hash tag and the winningbrband will be announced that evening.
Southlake Oktoberfest is free admission to thebrpublic. Hours of operation are Friday 5:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., Saturday 10:00 a.m.brto 11:00 p.m., and Sunday 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. For additional informationbrregarding Oktoberfest, contact the SouthlakebrChamber of Commerce at 817-481-8200 or visit Oktoberfest Southlake.
Photos courtesy of Tim Hill Photography.
1 of 8
2 of 8
3 of 8
4 of 8
5 of 8
6 of 8
7 of 8
8 of 8