Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Oktoberfest '09: Small tents vs. Big Tents

I am curious about the 20 so-called %26quot;Small Tents%26quot; at Oktoberfest (i.e. Poschner%26#39;s, Heimer%26#39;s, Stiftl, etc.) and could not find much information about these from past posts. I%26#39;m going to the mid-weekend of Wiesn this year and still trying to figure out how to get tables for my group of 11. Are the smaller tents as fun as the larger ones? Is it easier to get a reservation at one of these? Obviously I%26#39;m not having much luck getting reservations at any of the big ones..... Thanks!




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...during the week, during the day you just walk into any tent and have fun... dont worry about this reservation nonsense... if you havent got a reservation then youre way too late anyways...




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I%26#39;m completely ignorant of how Oktoberfest is run-any info or a website would be appreciated-do you pay as you drink or run up a tab and pay as you leave,is there food on a menu etc. and what is the German legal alcohol limit to drive?




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http://www.oktoberfest.de





%26gt; do you pay as you drink



Yes. But you%26#39;ll be only served if you have a seat.



%26gt; or run up a tab and pay as you leave,



No. This won%26#39;t work on this busy event.





%26gt; is there food on a menu etc.



Yes. Albeit a limited selection.



The right combination of (enough) food and (not too much) alcohol is however essential to survive an Oktoberfest visit of a couple of hours.





%26gt; and what is the German legal alcohol limit to drive?



to drive: 0,05%



to have an accident: 0,03%





Driving and Oktoberfest don%26#39;t go together. Alone from the parking situation. And to keep with the size of the Oktoberfest beer glasses (a Mass = 1 liter) below the legal alcohol limits is a nearly impossible task.




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Just to expand on some of the other comments, as last year was my first as well and had a bunch of questions as well...





%26lt;I%26#39;m completely ignorant of how Oktoberfest is run%26gt;





When you get there, pick out a tent (any will do, although each has a slightly different %26quot;personality%26quot; as long as your open to talking with complete strangers who may or may not speak you language well, you%26#39;ll have a great time) and find an open table. Once you%26#39;re seated, flag down the next waitress to come by your table and order yourself a beer. They%26#39;ll bring them by in a couple mintues and you pay cash when they arrive. Pretzel vendors also roam freely, flag one down for a monster pretzel that Oktoberfest is known for.





The only thing that I was surprised by was around 16.30, the waitress came by and pulled out a reserved sign from under the table cloth. The table had a reservation for 17.00 so suddenly we were without a table. I%26#39;ve heard from some people that this is not necessarily the norm at all tents, has anyone else had an experience like this?





Some quick rules for a great time:



1) Be ready to talk to anyone you%26#39;re sitting by, everyone is friendly and even if they don%26#39;t speak your language, you%26#39;ll make some great friends



2) Bring LOTS of cash, everything is paid for in cash



3) The big pretzles are great for soaking up beer in your stomach



4) Arrive early if you don%26#39;t have a reservation. Midweek I%26#39;d say around 13.00 or 14.00 depending on group size.







%26lt;is there food on a menu%26gt;





I don%26#39;t know about all tents, but the Hippodrom had a pretty full menu and the roasted chicken was surprisingly very good. Ask your waitress for a menu and then ask the Germans at your table to translate.







Have fun!




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All tents serve wonderful food, and there are indeed menus. In Deutsch: Speisecarte.




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%26gt;what is the German legal alcohol limit to drive?





Don´t even think about driving after Oktoberfest visit.



That´s what the subway and the trains are for, or taxis.




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Of course small tents are different from big ones - the atmosphere is not so, say, massive, but it still a big fun. Cause tents are smaller, you fill more united - it%26#39;s quite normally when half of the tent dance together (of course, I haven%26#39;t been to all of the small tents, but those visited...)



There is literally no chance to get evening reservation in big tents, especially for 11 people (all tables are 8 or 10 and multiplies) and it should be still possible to reserve table in a small one (for example, Hühnenbraterei).

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