A new chapter in the deep and decades-long relationship between Columbus and Germany is written annually each September when Oktoberfest-related celebrations sweep the city. The connection is well-earned, the result of 1850s-era German immigration largely focused on what was at the time referred to as “the Old South End,” now German Village. By 1900, German descendants accounted for a third of Columbus’ population.
The Brewery District, once known as the ‘Old German Brewing District,’ is another byproduct of this immigrant influx as German brewers set up shop along the Scioto River. Columbus institutions Germania and the Maennerchor date to this mid-to-late-19th-century period. Though the Brewery District lost its breweries during Prohibition and German Village struggled in the face of zoning restrictions and World War I-related German wariness (to the point of renaming German-sounding Columbus streets), the area and Columbus’ connection to Germany have more than rebounded.
September’s Oktoberfest time period offers a perfect opportunity to reconnect with the city’s German heritage as the month is filled with festivals, events, seasonal beer and special food menus tailored to celebrate both the season and Columbus’ deep German roots.
Oktoberfest Festivals & Events
Ranging in size from massive to more intimate, a number of Oktoberfest festivals sweep through the city during the month of September, all with unique twists on the Oktoberfest theme.
Courtesy of Schmidt's Columbus Oktoberfest
Schmidt’s Columbus Oktoberfest 2026
- Where: Ohio Expo Center
- When: September 11-13, 2026
After cycling through Schiller Park, German Village and a handful of other sites, Schmidt’s Columbus Oktoberfest has settled into the Ohio Expo Center, a perfect location offering weather-proof, covered space arranged to fit countless vendors, food options and a pair of fully-programmed live music stages.
The kid-focused Kinderplatz provides an excellent family-focused diversion from the core festival, a multi-purpose zone that includes craft stations, inflatable games and face painting. Also not to be overlooked are the Gemütlichkeit Games, a series of unique physical feats of strength and endurance including the Steinstossen stone throw, a keg toss competition and a grand finale that involves lifting a 508-pound stone as high as possible.
Admission to the festival is free and ample parking is available for $15 on Ohio Expo Center grounds.
Columbus Oktoberfest Kickoff Party
- Where: Hofbräuhaus Columbus
- When: Thursday, September 10, 2026
One of two pre-festival events to kick off the festivities, an official kickoff party will be hosted at Hofbräuhaus Columbus this year, featuring the official tapping of Oktoberfest beer as the marquee attraction. Additional Oktoberfest-related events will be held at Hofbräuhaus Columbus throughout the month. More details to come.
Courtesy of M3S Sports
Oktoberfest Meiler Vier
- Where: Ohio Expo Center
- When: Friday, September 11, 2026
After tapping the Oktoberfest keg at Hofbräuhaus Columbus the night before, the Oktoberfest Meiler Vier provides an opportunity to burn off any calories consumed over the course of a 4-mile run that serves as a perfect lead-in to the opening of the festival. The 4-mile path includes two laps of a designated circuit through festival grounds. All participants receive a shirt, finishing medal, celebratory brat, free parking at Columbus Oktoberfest and, most importantly, a free beer at the finish line.
Germania Oktoberfest
- Where: 543 S Front Street
- When: September 18-20, 2026
Though other celebrations make a similar claim, Germania cites itself as the oldest Oktoberfest celebration in America. Germania’s 69th Oktoberfest celebration will take place in 2026 within the picturesque confines of the beer garden attached to the grounds of Germania Singing & Sport Society in the Brewery District.
Though Germania is a membership club, Oktoberfest is, of course, open to the public and includes traditional Oktoberfest favorites like dancing, live music, a deep German beer selection, a steinholding contest and activities tailored just for kids. The steinholding competition is actually a regional qualifier for the U.S. Steinholding Association and winners gain the ability to compete for increasingly prestigious levels of steinholding glory.
Pickerington Oktoberfest
- Where: Combustion Brewery & Taproom
- When: September 18-19, 2026
Pickerington Oktoberfest takes place at Combustion Brewery & Taproom each year, steps away from the train tracks that create a unique setting for the celebration. Beer stations are available both in the Combustion Brewery parking lot and at the brewery bar itself. Lines of food trucks will offer food for each day of the two-day festival, including Schmidt’s Sausage Haus, Maugers Mini Donuts and others. The event agenda features usual Oktoberfest staples including all-day live music, special Combustion beer releases, a water balloon toss and, of course, a steinholding contest. Admission is free.
Maybe less expected is the Pickerington Oktoberfest Beer Mile held on Saturday, September 19. Individuals and 4-person relay teams have the chance to participate in a special beer mile competition that involves drinking a beer, running a quarter mile, drinking a beer, running another quarter mile, etc., over the course of a full mile. Top overall male and female winners take home custom trophies and an accompanying gift card.
German Village Tap The Keg Oktoberfest
- Where: German Village Society Meeting Haus Platz
- When: September 19, 2026
Supported by Wolf’s Ridge Brewing Company, the courtyard surrounding the German Village Society office is converted into a beer garden that is a bit more intimate than some of the other sprawling Columbus Oktoberfest festivals. Vendors will be on hand to offer small business shopping opportunities and a unique beer produced by Wolf’s Ridge will be tapped specifically for and during the event. Proceeds support the German Village Society operating budget for the year. Admission is $10 and entry into the event’s steinholding competition is $30. Get tickets.
Land-Grant Brewing Co. Oktoberfest
- Where: Gravity Park
- When: September 19, 2026
Just behind Land-Grant’s Franklinton campus, Gravity Park will be transformed into an open-air beer garden hosting a number of local and regional breweries offering beer samples. Live polka music will set the mood for the duration of the festival and naturally the event schedule includes a steinholding competition. Food trucks will be available, as will a full cash bar.
Each ticket includes samples from participating breweries and a souvenir branded tasting glass. VIP tickets that include early access to the festival are available for $60 and standard tickets are available for $50. Designated driver tickets are also offered for $10. Get tickets.
Courtesy of Gemut Biergarten
German Restaurants & Beer Gardens
Though Columbus’ excellent German restaurants can be enjoyed throughout the year, Oktoberfest is a particularly potent time to visit as many restaurants offer unique specials and themed events to take advantage of the season. Some of the city’s favorite German food options can be found below.
Schmidt’s Sausage Haus
240 E Kossuth Street
Opened as the J. Fred Schmidt Meat Packing House in 1886, Schmidt’s Sausage Haus has long been the city’s best-known destination for German food. Having operated exclusively as a meatpacking business since its founding, Schmidt’s expanded into food service in 1914 with a stand at the Ohio State Fair, the oldest such concession stand still in operation.
The original Schmidt’s building was shuttered as a meatpacking plant in 1965 and has since been demolished. The dedicated restaurant that today anchors Kossuth Street in German Village was opened in 1967 and has been a beloved Columbus institution ever since. A series of food trucks associated with the restaurant can be found at events throughout Ohio, including Oktoberfest celebrations in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton and Minster.
Valter’s at the Maennerchor
976 S High Street
Valter's at the Maennerchor is an extension of the Columbus Maennerchor, a German singing society founded in 1848, making it the oldest such continuously operating organization in the country. The restaurant opened in 2016 under the leadership of owner and head chef Valter Veliu, an Albanian immigrant inspired by the location to create a German menu infused with Mediterranean spices.
The menu features classic German favorites such as Bavarian pretzels and multiple sausage varieties. Less common but well-regarded are the Jagermeister Wings and Berlin Breakfast Sandwich, a German bologna take on a classic breakfast sandwich that notably uses eggs produced by chickens that Veliu tends to personally.
Courtesy of Hofbrauhaus Columbus
Hofbräuhaus Columbus
800 Goodale Boulevard
Opened in 2014, Hofbräuhaus Columbus is one of a small number of franchised Hofbräuhaus locations in the United States directly tied to the Munich original. That original location in central Munich opened in 1589 as the private brewery of the German royal family. Hofbräuhaus Columbus features three flagship lager, dunkel and hefeweizen beer varieties in addition to a seasonal variety that rotates monthly (September’s beer is, of course, Oktoberfest).
In addition to the Columbus Oktoberfest Kickoff Party on Thursday, September 10, Hofbräuhaus Columbus will continue to celebrate Oktoberfest each weekend in September with extended live music hours and themed activities for both adults and children. These special events make use of both the massive indoor space and associated stage at Hofbräuhaus Columbus as well as the relaxed beer garden attached to the property.
Gemüt Biergarten
734 Oak St
Gemüt Biergarten opened its doors in 2019, the latest incarnation of a building first constructed in the late 1890s and used as Engine House No. 12, a Columbus Fire Department station. After the structure underwent a series of renovations and served a two-decade stint as the Columbus Music Hall, four co-founders channeled inspiration from attending Germania’s Sommerfest celebration into opening the brewery under the term ‘Gemüt,’ a shortening of the longer German phrase Gemütlichkeit describing a sense of warmth, comfort and community.
The brewery’s interior creates that sense of warmth with a set of towering stained-glass windows, each bearing a character from Germanic mythology. That same mythological link extends to some of Gemüt’s flagship beers including the brewery’s first two beers served, Alfheim Hefeweizen and Woden’s Hunt Dunkel. Burgers and sandwiches complement classic German staples on the Gemüt food menu like schnitzels and sausages.
Gemüt Biergarten will celebrate Oktoberfest on Saturday, September 26, with a handful of special events and unique food & drink specials.
HillGarten Beer & Wine
4131 Main St
Located in Downtown Hilliard, HillGarten opened in 2022 after founders Sandra & Martin Nowak landed on a beer garden concept to make use of a previously residential plot owned by the couple since 2018. HillGarten is more garden than building, most of the space devoted to tables, chairs, custom wooden benches and even geodesic domes during cold-weather months.
HillGarten’s 16 beer taps are devoted entirely to beers brewed in Ohio, many of them German varieties. Wine, spirits and custom cocktails are also available. HillGarten’s sausage menu is robust, including currywurst, bratwurst and even jalapeño & cheddar pork sausage options. Both dogs and families are welcome here, though hours and conditions can vary based on Ohio’s sometimes unpredictable weather patterns.
