The Chico Bavarian Band BLOG!Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Bavaria in Plano, TX!
I was in the greater Dallas, TX area a couple weeks ago (for the day job), and found myself on my own for dinner on Thursday evening. I'm always on the lookout for a good German restaurant, so I decided to check out a place that I had visited several years ago to see how the place was doing.
The restaurant is Bavarian Grill (click on the name to go to their web site). The food was very good. I would say it is comparable to our German restaurants here in the Bay Area (which is intended as quite a compliment). And of course they have all our favorite German beers on tap -- including Spaten (my personal favorite) -- as well as a number of bottled beers that are not commonly found here in the US. I encourage you to check out their web site -- it's pretty cool. It includes a copy of their menu, a list of upcoming events and live music groups that are playing at the restaurant, as well as a variety of other information about the place. It's worth perusing.
And speaking of live music, the entertainment for this particular evening was Allan Walling and his accordian. Allan is quite an accomplished accordian player, and handled every request that was thrown at him (which wasn't easy once the Dutch visitors started making requests. Personally, I've had enough of "Tuplen fom Amsterdam" for a while...). Allan is also a member of AlpenMusikanten, a 5-piece band that sometimes plays at the restaurant on the weekends. They also play for a number of German festivals all over the central and southern US. Unfortunately, I didn't get to hear them because I left the Dallas area on Friday morning. But I hope to be able to check them out some time in the future.
At one point in the evening, I ended up joining Allan for a little yodeling. (I forgot to mention that Allan is not only an accordian player, but a vocalist and accomplished yodeler!) He had asked me if I had a request, and since I'm always eager to hear more yodeling (pathetic, isn't it?), I asked for Bergvagabunden. As he played the intro, he asked if I could yodel. When I said I could (I'm strictly a novice, but I'm learning), he asked me to join him! I happen to know a counter-yodel to that one, so we did a bit of a yodeling duet. It was a lot of fun for me, and Allan was quite patient with the beginner. ;-)
If you're in the greater Dallas area, I strongly recommend a visit to Bavarian Grill, and if Alan is performing while you're there, tell him "Hallo" for me!
Prost!
Friday, August 22, 2003
Chico Oktoberfest Details
More details have become available about the upcoming Chico Oktoberfest. Pop on over to KCHO Radio's web site and click on the "Special Events" link, then on "Read More".
In a nutshell, here's the skinny: the fest will be held in the Manzanita Place Picnic Pavillion, which is located at 1705 Manzanita Ave. (across from Chico's new fire station #5). The time, as reported earlier, will indeed be 3:00 - 8:00 pm. And of course the fest will feature (insert shameless plug here) The Chico Bavarian Band.
Proceeds will go to KCHO's Moving Up! campaign.
For more details, contact Jack Brown at KCHO -- (530) 898-5246.
See you there!!
Prost!
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Chico Oktoberfest Update
Here's the latest scoop on the long-awaited resurgence of the Chico Oktoberfest...
The location of the fest will be behind the Elk's Lodge, in Manzanita Park. This is located directly across from the 5 Mile Recreation Area of Bidwell Park.
As reported earlier, the fest will be on Sunday, September 28th, and we will play from 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
The organizers report that there will be Spaten Beer (which is good, because our band is fueled exclusively by Spaten), grilled German sausages, as well as other food choices that have yet to be finalized. (The The Nutty Bavarian is rumored to be among the potential food vendors! Yumm...)
Ticket prices will be $10.00 at the door, or $8.00 in advance. No word yet on how or where to get advance tickets, but stay tuned...
Prost!
Wurstfest 2003!!
The Internationals™ have been booked for this year's Wurstfest in New Braunfels, TX! This is a huge event that has been held annually since 1961 (click here for their story). The festival runs a full week, and draws well over 100,000 visitors each year.
(I know what you're thinking... why in the world would anyone schedule a wurstfest in Texas?!? Well, as it turns out, there's a substantial German influence in this part of Texas, including a little town you may have heard about in a song -- Luckenbach Texas. In fact, the name of the host town, New Braunfels, is also a German settlement.)
The Internationals™ will be there for the first four days of the fest -- October 31st through November 3rd. Exact times for their performances aren't available yet, but should be soon. Watch here for updates, and you can also find links on The Internationals™ Schedule Page.
So make your plane and hotel reservations early, and bop on down to New Braunfels (not too far from San Antonio) to check out how our local boys do at a good ol' fashioned country Sausage Festival!
Prost, y'all.
Friday, August 01, 2003
Wir gehen nach Hause, Buam!!
After a hiatus of many years, the Chico Bavarian Band is going home. We will once again play for an Oktoberfest in Chico, CA! (It almost makes you want to cry, doesn't it?) The big event is Sunday, September 28, 2003, from 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
As you probably know (unless you stumbled onto this page entirely by accident), our band started in Chico some 30 years ago (wow... what a bunch of geezers!) when most of us were attending college there (hence the band's name...). Long after we had gradulated (yes, we actually graduated...), the fest remained an annual event. Those of us that had left the Chico area looked forward to visitng each year and playing in the festival that got us started.
Unfortunately, the event hasn't been held in years.
But the good folks at KCHO Radio have decided that a resurgence is in order! They are putting together a new and improved Chico Oktoberfest, to be held at the 5 Mile Recreation Area in Bidwell Park (details should be available soon).
Watch here and on our Schedule Page for updates on location, contact information, etc.
(Go Wildcats!)
Prost!
"Oktoberfest By The Bay" Expands for 2003!
The San Francisco Oktoberfest, Oktoberfest By The Bay, is expanding to four days this year! The fest will begin on Thursday, October 16th, and run through Sunday, October 19th.
And of course, the Chico Bavarian Band will be playing all four days, as will The Internationals™!
The fest will once again be located at Ft. Mason, near the San Francisco Marina. Tickets will be available at the door for $12.00, and children under 12 are free. For more details, check the fest's official web site.
This is an extremely popular event, drawing thousands of people each year. Plenty of good German food, beer, and (of course) music! You can check out some pictures of last year's event here.
If you haven't been there in years past, be sure to put it on your calendar now -- it's an event you don't want to miss!
See you there!
Prost!
