Ventura’s Oktoberfest Is a Lot More Than Sauerkraut and Sausage

It wasn’t quite Munich, what with all those sailboat masts bobbing in the background.

And with vendors hawking everything from cellular phones to patio awnings and diet plans, it was a stretch to imagine oneself in a Bavarian beer hall.

But if this weekend’s Oktoberfest at Ventura Harbor is a little different from the German original--it’s in September, for one thing--Saturday’s participants didn’t seem to mind.

“Oktoberfest doesn’t have to be just sauerkraut and sausage,” said Hans Muhlinghaus, owner of the Old Vienna Restaurant in Ventura, as he dished out bratwurst and red cabbage at a festival booth. “There are so many different ethnic groups in Southern California, you can’t go just one way.”

So for those who lack a taste for the Teutonic, the festival--which continues until 7 p.m. today--offers burritos, burgers and barbecue. Hate strudel? Try a churro. Burned out on beer? How about iced tea?

And if you wince at polkas and oompah music, not to worry.

Under the festival’s main tent Saturday, a country music duo was crooning she-done-me-wrong songs.

Last night and today, the Drifters of 1960s soul fame were scheduled to perform their hits.

As members of the Fred Ott trio--the only German band in the festival’s entertainment lineup--took a break Saturday afternoon, bass player Freddy Ott surveyed the steady stream of visitors.

“It’s pretty neat how they put this together,” said Ott, son of the band’s namesake and a veteran of countless Oktoberfests around Southern California. “This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest,” Ott said.

The trio’s lederhosen-clad drummer, Robert Fischer, a native of Germany, said it hardly competes with the Munich original, however.

“They have bigger bands,” he said.

“And a lot more beer,” Ott said.

One of the biggest crowd-pleasers Saturday seemed to be the Ventura-based Der Ritterlich Fechtschule, a band of performers who dress up in 16th-Century German costumes and give fencing exhibitions.

After clanging swords, three costumed performers roused the audience with a slip-and-slide dance, twisting like pretzels while gulping from a three-handled beer stein.

They spilled more than they managed to drink.

At several booths selling cups or mugs of beer, sales were surprisingly flat, vendors said.

“It’s slow,” said Nancy Vernand of Ojai, who was pouring lite beer from a tap. “I think tonight will be busy, though.”

That’s what Ginger Johnson was counting on at her cowboy hat stand.

“People buy more hats in the evening, after they’ve had a few drinks” she said. “They feel good and want to entertain themselves.”

But do people come to an Oktoberfest to buy cowboy hats?

“That’s a good question,” said Johnson, a Ventura resident who takes her hat booth to events from Arizona to Oregon. “I was between rodeos.”

She said she was enjoying the Oktoberfest--which continues today from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.--but was not sure her sales will warrant a return visit next year.

“They’ve got a nice little festival here,” Johnson said. “But it’s too early to say if I’ll be back.”

Mike Brock, organizer of the Oktoberfest, said the festival will definitely be back next year.

He said he was pleased with the turnout but he acknowledged that there were parking problems.

And organizers may have underplayed the German theme this go-round, he said. “We’ll have more German entertainment next year.”