A Salute to Oktoberfest Servers
Here at Thirsty Swagman, we believe the Oktoberfest servers (and others) need a little bit of extra recognition because after all, without them, no lager would touch your lips.
Let’s give a hearty PROST! to those who pour, who carry, who push and shove in the service of your thirst. Prost to those who stand for hours, who walk for miles, and who probably get their ass grabbed at least a dozen times a day. Prost to those who go home wet and sticky and dirty, with sore muscles, aching feet, and bruises just all over. But most of all, prost to those who can do all that money math in their heads—for they are the true Maß masters. (Maßters?)
To be one of the chosen Oktoberfest servers is to be something a little more than human. It’s being capable of surviving a fortnight of the most grueling and underappreciated work. It’s a year’s worth of training—physical, mental, emotional—for two straight weeks of 12-hour days. On their feet, in a tent, under all kinds of pressure.
There are those who serve—who, no matter their size, must carry stein upon stein upon… just craploads of steins, ok? Each full Maß weighs over 2 kilos (4.4 pounds). Stack those up and each server is carrying about, oh, a million pounds of beer through an impenetrable crowd all screaming for John Denver to take them back to West Virginia. (And that’s what the whistles are for.)
And then there are those who pour—who stand alone in the dark background filling glass after glass after glass after… well, just repeat that process about 22,000 more times. Per day. It appears effortless, that perfect, line-reaching pour, but only years of practice does perfect make.
But that’s the easy part.
Feeling hungry? The same people who bring you beer also bring you lunch and dinner—trays of heavy plates of heavy food piled high and carried over your head. Trays big enough for you to sleep on. Trays so packed that dropping one is not an option. Think you can hendl that?
Having the coveted job of Oktoberfest server means maintaining a fitness regimen, getting little rest, and enduring, well there’s no polite way to put it, the shenanigans of the completely sloshed. It’s loud and icky and exhausting but most of them wouldn’t trade it for the world.
It’s often a thankless job but it’s the most important one there is (in our opinion). So at the 2020 Oktoberfest, remember what it takes to be one of the stellar Oktoberfest servers. Thank a server. Tip a server. And keep your hands to yourself.
Ready to see the Oktoberfest servers in action?
Book one of our Oktoberfest tours and join us in Munich!
