Oktoberfest

C’est dommage la promesse est sympathique mais en fin de compte le jeu n’en vaut pas la chandelle.
L’ambiance est relativement sympathique mais la bière est excessivement cher surtout que la bière n’était pas d’une qualité folle.
Une bonne soirée finalement mais dû aux personnes qui étaient là, mais cela aurait été le cas n’importe où.
Un lieu bien trop cher et né donne pas envie de retenter l’expérience. Dommage.

Oh no, my first 2 star review!
Don’t get me wrong I love jugs of beer the size of my head and live music but not at the prices Oktoberfest are charging.
We arrived early evening on a Wednesday, this is one of the nights where you don’t have to pay for entry. On a Friday and Saturday you pay £10 entry which I think is a bit cheeky! The set up is very basic, long wooden benches, a bar and a stage. The queue for the bar stretched all the way down the tent so I had to get in there quick!
There was one beer to choose from and it came in stein, mass or pint. The stein costing £14.50! I’m used to Edinburgh prices but that’s a bit ridiculous! The fresh pretzels were pretty damn good but cost £3 each. After making a dent in my purse we headed over to a bench. Everyone just gets involved and shoves up to make more room.
Once sat down with your massive beer and soft pretzel you do get absorbed into the Bavarian atmosphere. The live band were great, getting everyone singing along and banging on the tables. It takes a while to get through your stein, or if you’re like me not that long, but the queue for the bar had grown even larger, snaking around the tent.
We supped up, did the macarena and made our way home. It was a laugh but if they just lowered their prices I would be tempted to stay longer.
Prost, Amy

Excited at the thought of Oktoberfest in Edina & I grabbed a couple of VIP tix for the Friday night. It was busy by the time we arrived & the beer & music had people up dancing on the benches & tables.
The table service was quite chaotic. The waitress forgot our drinks a couple of times & on another occasion gave our order to people at the next table. The queue for the bar was ridiculous.
I was disappointed at the music, like other reviewers it was more late night dodgy disco/​wedding tunes than I had expected.
I’d give it another shot if I returns next year but I’m not sure I’d cough up for VIP tix again.

Munich’s famous beer festival, Oktoberfest, has come to Scotland (Edinburgh and Glasgow) for the first time! Oktoberfest has been an annual celebration of German culture for over 200 years and this week Edinburgh folks were looking forward to a slice of the action, however it failed to provide. I had high hopes for this beer hall but was unimpressed.
We arrived on the opening night, the big tent sited in Princess Street Gardens next to the fountains (west end) boomed with music! I was getting excited, however navigating around the site proved difficult, with poor lighting and no signage to the entrance. Finding the entrance you are met by the one and only bar and a loooooong queue for beer. Beer came in plastic half pints (£3) or a one and half pint glasses (£8.50 — ouch!) They say the high cost is due to the beer being brought all the way from Munich and to keep drinking to a sensible level… Hmm debatable!
The blue and white tent was pretty big and formed a sort of L shape, there was a main stage with mediocre 70/​80s live music. I’m sure we heard the same song twice, making me think they only had a 6 song set on repeat?! There were rows and rows of tables and benches — a nice format to make friends. As the night wore on some people were even standing on the benches singing. Food was on offer too, although I didn’t try it, it appeared to be mainly chips and hot dogs from a tin.
Thankfully it was free on the opening night (Wednesday, 9^th October) I don’t think I would have paid for the experience. I was expecting a real flavour of a German culture, lots of people lederhosens and dirndl dresses, German songs (not wedding songs greatest hits) and dancing! If I haven’t put you off there is still a chance to go Thursday-​Sunday. Entrance is £5 or £10 on Saturday. There is also an option to buy food/​beer packages online too. Personally I thought the event lacked organisation and atmosphere. They hope to return next year and create an annual event, hopefully they improve the entertainment and beer price next time!

Great idea. Badly executed. Queue to get in. Queue to get beer. Queue for a seat. The tent is big, but full with people looking to get a bierhalle Oktoberfest experience, which in my opinion was hard to find. No schlagers, no dancing maidens. Blearing wedding party songs. Food was warm. Beer was cold. That’s it. no atmosphere. shame, I really wanted to enjoy it.

Edinburgh’s first Oktoberfest was held in Princes St Gardens this year. Although it was a bit disorganised with huge beer queues, it certainly helped having an Itison voucher on their first day (Wed) so we had table service for the half pints and German sausages that came on our deal. Otherwise, there was unfortunately no table service and crazy queues. The live band was good although the DJ played mostly ‘70s hits and it was a bit off target for the Oktobefest theme. That said, the ambiance was fun and it was a good night out. Mid-​week there was free entry to the venue although over the weekend it was ticketed.