Oktoberfest Southlake Turns 25: How Locals Read the Weekend by the Hour

On Saturday, October 17, the first line at Southlake Town Square will be people with dogs, not people waiting for beer. Registration for the Wiener Dog Race and Costume Contest opens at 8:30 a.m. at the Gazebo Main Stage. That's an hour and a half before the festival's official Saturday opening at 10 a.m. About twelve hours later, the same lawn will be packed for a boyband tribute act that closes the night at 10:45.

Both scenes belong to the same free event, the 25th Oktoberfest Southlake, hosted by the Southlake Chamber of Commerce from October 16 to 18. Going by the 2026 schedule, this weekend is really three festivals sharing one address, and the hour you arrive decides which one you're at.

The weekend on one page

The official festival site and Visit Southlake give the same core hours. The Chamber's own Sunday listing differs by one hour, which comes up again below.

Admission and parking are free all three days. Everything that sets one visit apart from another comes down to the clock.

Saturday morning belongs to the dachshunds

The Wiener Dog Race is the one part of Oktoberfest Southlake with a fixed morning slot. The festival site puts the costume contest at 9:30 a.m. and the race at 10 a.m. on Saturday. The Chamber's 2026 race page lists the whole block from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Registration starts at the Gazebo Main Stage, and the costume contest runs before the race. Entry is $25 for the race, the costume contest or both. An older Chamber page still shows 2025 details with a Saturday, October 18 date. Owners registering this week should use the 2026 race listing.

The rest of the daytime program is built for the same crowd. The 2026 sponsor roster lists a Petting Zoo underwritten by Methodist Southlake Medical Center. It also lists a Family Fun Zone sponsored by the Grubbs Family of Dealerships and S&B Roofing & Exteriors, a Polka Stage sponsored by Freedom Iron Doors, and a Car Show sponsored by Vogt RV. The festival describes its children's area as games, activities and face painting. The published materials don't give a time or exact spot for the car show, so it's best treated as something you come across while walking the square.

Pets are welcome all weekend as long as they're leashed and well behaved. The festival FAQ singles out the dachshund races in that answer.

After 7 p.m., it becomes a tribute-band concert

By early evening the same square is a different event. The big-name entertainment is scheduled entirely on Friday and Saturday nights, and every headliner slot goes to a tribute or cover act.

• Ashmore, Friday, 7:30 to 8:45 p.m. This rock band has played since the summer of 2004 and is known for vinyl-era covers.
• Back in Black, Friday, 9:30 to 10:45 p.m. An AC/DC tribute that performs both the Bon Scott and Brian Johnson eras.
• Tommy Katona and Texas Flood, October 17, 7:15 to 8:30 p.m. A North Texas blues act that grew out of a Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute.
• Larger Than Life, October 17, 9:15 to 10:45 p.m. A boyband tribute from New York covering more than 50 songs, from the Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC to the Jackson 5.

The festival's schedule labels Texas Flood a "Warm Up Band Friday" but dates its set October 17, which is Saturday. The Saturday date is the one that fits the lineup, since Friday already has its two acts.

The Stein Hoisting Contest also runs on both of those evenings, Friday and Saturday. Contestants hold a full stein of beer up high for as long as they can. This year's sponsor is Volstead, which has a Southlake location. Alcohol is for guests 21 and older with valid ID. The festival's three stages also host local dance groups and jazz combos. The readable 2026 schedule doesn't name those performers or give their times.

So someone who comes only for the 10 a.m. race and someone who comes only for Back in Black could both say they went to Oktoberfest Southlake, and they'd have seen almost none of the same program.

Sunday is the daytime-only day, and its closing time isn't settled

Sunday is the only day with no evening program and no named headliner. The festival site and Visit Southlake both say noon to 7 p.m. The Chamber's separate 2026 Sunday event listing says noon to 8 p.m. Anyone planning a late Sunday visit should go by the earlier time unless the organizers confirm otherwise. Questions go to the Chamber at 817-481-8200 or [email protected].

The Sunday window fits the food and craft side of the festival best. The organizers promise bratwurst, pretzels, schnitzel, craft beer and nonalcoholic drinks, plus handcrafted arts and crafts booths around the square. The Chamber's sponsor list names Central Market and Portillo's Hot Dogs on Restaurant Row. No full 2026 food-vendor roster has been published.

What changed in getting there

For locals, the biggest logistics change is about transportation, not the program. The 2026 FAQ says there will be no shuttle service this year and suggests ride-share instead. That's a real break from the festival's earlier years. When the City of Southlake announced the festival's 16th year in 2017, it advertised a shuttle from White's Chapel United Methodist Church.

Parking stays in Town Square's two free garages:

1. East Garage, 1451 Federal Way
2. West Garage, 351 State Street

The bag rules are worth checking before you leave the house. Backpacks and large bags aren't allowed, and neither is outside food or drink. Sources list the festival's address two ways, 1400 E. Southlake Blvd. on Visit Southlake and 285 Grand Ave. on the festival's calendar link. Both point to the same Town Square footprint. No 2026 street-closure notice had been published as of October 12.

Twenty-five years, and a permit running through 2029

The "25 years" on this year's branding adds up. The city called the 2017 edition the festival's 16th year, and Community Impact called the 2022 edition the 21st annual. If the festival ran every year, counting back would put the first one around 2002, though neither source gives a founding year. Even in 2017 the format looked familiar. That year the city described three performance stages, nearly 30 food vendors, nearly 90 arts and crafts vendors, a family zone, a sports zone and a Biergarten.

Attendance figures have been reported loosely over the years. Southlake Style wrote in 2018 that the festival drew more than 100,000 people a year. Organizers expected the same number in 2022. The most solid number is lower. As Community Impact reported in June 2024, city documents counted more than 50,000 attendees across the three days in 2023. The first two figures were a claim and a projection, so they don't tell you whether the crowd got smaller.

The 2024 Community Impact article also explains why the festival is likely to return. It runs on a city special use permit for Town Square. In May 2024 the City Council voted to extend that permit for five years, which keeps the event going through at least 2029.

Before and after the gates open

Saturday's early start lines up with a new opening on the square. Ascension Coffee opened October 9 at 100 State St., Suite C1. It has a full espresso bar, seasonal coffee flights and a slow bar for pour-overs, plus pastries, sandwiches and salads. Community Impact reported that its grand opening celebration is October 23, the Friday after Oktoberfest.

After the steins are put away, Town Square's next big gathering is five weeks later. Home for the Holidays and the tree lighting are Saturday, November 21, 2026, from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.

At Rosie Smelcer Group, weekends like this one are part of how we know the Southlake calendar and the rhythm of life around Town Square. If you're thinking about what that calendar means for your own home and plans, schedule your private consultation.