By Vera GARABEDIAN and Robin GOLDSWORTHY

The Montrose-Verdugo City Chamber of Commerce held its annual Oktoberfest celebration on Honolulu Avenue on Saturday. From noon to 10 p.m. the avenue in the blocks from 2200 to 2400 were shut down to accommodate the estimated 20,000 visitors who came to celebrate all things German.

“We definitely saw higher attendance this year with crowds more evenly spread throughout the day,” said Chamber executive director Molly Burke. “The past two years were so hot that many people, understandably, waited until evening [to attend], which made nighttime extremely busy.”

Burke also credited the fact that local sports teams played earlier in the day. 

“Everyone was in great spirits that evening after the Dodgers had already played and won!” she said.

Community members and those of neighboring areas enjoyed pretzels, carnival games and rides, performances from dance groups and choirs, and live music. The Main Stage at Ocean View Boulevard hosted the Past Action Heroes, Mumbo Jumbo, Bootscoot Bosses, RDC Dance Studio and The Vault Dance Studio. At the Market Stage people enjoyed PowerPlay, the Mary Dyer Band and Chris Blakely. On the Bavarian Stage at Wickham Way were the German Band and DJ Ernie Muraoka. Katrina Saroyan was roaming the day playing her accordion.

In addition there were three contests on the Main Stage: Lil’ Mister & Lil’ Miss Oktoberfest, Mr. & Mrs. Oktoberfest and stein holding. 

“Each contest had both a first and second place male and female winner,” said Burke. “I won’t soon forget the little girl who won Lil’ Miss Oktoberfest with plush pretzels above her braids! It’s always so fun to see how excited the winners get and how they celebrate afterward by visiting one of the booths, whether that’s a pretzel or a beer!”

There were 29 booths at Oktoberfest offering everything from food and drink to face painting. Though there was no admission fee for Oktoberfest, tickets were required to play games, sit on rides and enjoy snacks and refreshments. The streets, though, were bustling at all hours and it wasn’t unusual to see lines outside of local businesses such as Froyo Life and Big Mama’s & Papa’s Pizzeria. 

The 46th Annual Montrose Oktoberfest is officially in the books. 

  “These community events are so special to me and it’s heartwarming to see and hear how much people enjoy them and to know we’re creating something memorable for our town,” said Burke. “The event takes a tremendous amount of effort from the Montrose Chamber staff and board of directors, the Oktoberfest Committee, the volunteers working the booths, the student volunteers from CVHS’ JROTC and Clark Magnet High School, and all of our vendors. Costs continue to rise each year, but this event remains a cherished tradition that our volunteers and community members look forward to year after year, even after all the madness is over! We definitely have some ideas for next year and are already looking forward to making it even better.”

Oktoberfest is held the first Saturday in October.

Photos by Robin GOLDSWORTHY and Charly SHELTON