Communal tables are a beer garden staple. Atlanta’s Der Biergarten can cover the long wooden tables with traditional blue-and-white checked tablecloths or leave bare; planners can arrange to bring in their own linens.
At the Frieze Art Fair New York in 2012, the Standard High Line hotel recreated its Biergarten on a patio. Staff wore T-shirts printed with lederhosen or dirndls and served pretzels and beer.
Cookshop served bite-size Hampshire pork bratwursts with a hearty relish and brown ale mustard at the 2008 New York City Wine & Food Festival’s Grand Tasting.
Traditional Oktoberfest fare typically is off-limits for people observing a gluten-free diet. But Berghoff serves a few items for guests with specific needs such as a gluten-free pork stew, Deutsch schweine gulasch.
At its 2014 Oktoberfest, Berghoff served 1,000 apple strudels to guests. Other eye-popping catering facts: Guests consumed 35,000 beers,12,000 brats, and 7,000 pretzels.
In a nod to the host venue, the Residence of the German Ambassador, desserts at this year’s Opera Ball in Washington included nearly 20 different German sweets in a spread from Susan Gage Caterers. Offerings included traditional German treats such as Black Forest cake and obsttorte as well as miniature opera cakes. The menu of passed desserts featured items like one-bite ice cream sandwiches made with German spice cookies and lemon sorbet.
Offering a pretzel bar with several varieties puts a spin on the classic snack. Paramount Events Chicago has a pretzel station with plain, sea salt, cheese, and pepperoni pretzels that hang from a stand. Accompanying sauces include whole-grain mustard and tomato-bacon jam.
Serving sausages doesn't have to be a messy affair. Loreley Restaurant & Biergarten on New York’s Lower East Side arranges sliced sausages with the cuts going in opposite directions to create a chevron pattern and plates the items on a bed of sauerkraut.
A feature of the Oktoberfest celebration at Loreley Restaurant & Biergarten is a whole pig roast. The restaurant will host its 12th annual celebration on September 19 as well as an Oktoberfest closing party on October 4.
To get into the Halloween spirit, Party City has introduced original cocktail recipes that encourage mixologists to use Party City products including skeleton straws, eyeball ping-pong balls, and skeleton hand rings. Cocktails include the Grave Digger, which contains citrus vodka, sour apple schnapps, lime juice, bitter, and ginger beer.
The blue Boneyard contains gin, rum, silver tequila, vodka, blue Curaçao, and sours mix, complete with a Party City skeleton straw.
GT Fish & Oyster in Chicago unveiled its fried pumpkin dessert for the month of October. Created by pastry chef Andrea Coté, the decadent dish presents a deep-fried pumpkin filled with sweet potato and cinnamon ice cream, apple sorbet, gingerbread cake, and meringue.
Willa Jean, a Southern cafe in New Orleans, has introduced a boozy cider slushy for the fall. Created by executive pastry chef Kelly Fields, the festive treat is made with apple cider, bourbon, Gingeroo, chai tea, and lemon juice.
For Halloween this year, Chicago steakhouse and seafood eatery Maple & Ash is "dressing up" up as the Frontback Steakhouse by offering Australia-inspired menu items created in the restaurant's whimsical style by chef Danny Grant. Aussie-style offerings include white sturgeon caviar with an onion blossom and steak add-ons such as barbecue and coconut shrimp, and onion rings.
New York's Bounce Sporting Club has partnered with Jägermeister to serve Wicked Black Forest Punch throughout the month of October. The Halloween-inspired punch combines the German digestif and kirschwasser brandy with passionfruit, pineapple, and orange juice, and other ingredients including hibiscus and ginger beer.
Brooklyn-based specialty food and gift company Mouth has released a collection of Halloween-theme treats, including Tumbador peanut butter and jelly chocolate eyeballs.
Mouth, which ships products throughout the U.S. and Canada, also offers Veruca brand spiderweb milk chocolate bars.
Elegant Affairs, which offers off-premise catering and event design in the New York area, has Halloween-theme food options including mac & cheese muffins topped with mini spiders.
Elegant Affairs also offers butternut squash served over savory pumpkin and curry flan in pumpkin bowls.
