Glier’s Goettafest

This review is for 2014 Goettafest.
+ Live music
+ Great location down by the river.
+ Alcohol
— Mediocre, not so impressive food.
I wouldn’t say it’s a destination spot for food, but if you want to try goetta in different forms, then check it out. It was kind of pricey in my opinion. I had a goetta jambalaya and was not impressed. It was hard to eat and I think it had bits of shell from the crawfish in it.
In the end, I’d probably just eat somewhere in Newport and head down for the entertainment. Kind of nice to just walk around outdoors!

We are from out of town, we have no idea what Goetta is and why it deserves its own festival. Well this was totally a crash course in Goetta, it is a sausage that tastes funny and can be cooked into anything and EVERYTHING. Interesting.
Live music, two stages, games for the kids, beautiful backdrop of Cincy. Interesting.
Food: ¹⁄₅ — No yum.
Service: ²⁄₅
Location: ³⁄₅

Oh man, I wanted to love this festival so badly. I’m not sure what I expected, maybe more goetta? There were a few amusing goetta concoctions though:
1. a chick playing a pretty rockin’ electric violin on stage
2. a vending machine that only dispensed goetta packages
3. a 2 or 3 story tall blow up goetta package
4. goetta balls
5. goetta fried rice
6. goetta nachos
7. goetta brownies
8. goetta reuben
9. goetta balls
10. goetta mac and cheese
11. goetta philly ‘cheesesteak’
12. goetta balls
13. goetta donuts
14. goetta pizza and calzones
15. goetta balls
So, get yer goetta ball fix here! And let me know how the spring roll goetta tastes, my adventurous side just didn’t kick in in time for me to snag one of those.

I was down in the area for a Unilocal event. The Goettafest looked like fun and the live music was awesome. I did stop at a vending machine and buy a roll of Goetta to make for breakfast over the weekend… YUM Goetta.

I was downtown for a charity event that finished early, so I popped over to the goetta festival with friends. Even just walking around the festival was enjoyable. They had a great band playing (and even two bandstands set up at both ends of the park). Every option of food was available. You name it or crave it. and it was there. Not into goetta? No worries, there was even pizza.
Don’t forget to bring your lawn chairs if you want to enjoy the concert. People did stand in the back, but a chair would be more comfortable. Great atmosphere for a summer activity!

We were only here for a short time but I thought it was a really nice festival. It wasn’t too large and had a good variety of vendors and activities. There was also a decent amount of kids activities. The festival wasn’t super large but there were two different stages full of live music. Plus a really cool vending machine that distributed goetta! How fun. I liked that this festival wasn’t as hectic as some others in the area and seemed like a good one to bring the kids to.

I attended Goettafest to only hear The Rusty Griswolds on Thursday night.
At 10pm on Thursday night there was still a crowd to check out Cincinnati’s classic 80’s cover band Rusty’s, lots of vendors with variety of food and drink.
They even had a special dance stage up front for all of the Rusty’s fans.
Good time in August on the opening night of Goettafest.

Waste of time! If you would like to try some real goetta go to Eckerlin in Findlay Market, the quality is so much better. The food at this Goettafest tasted like it had all been sitting under a heat lamp all day, which it probably was. The only good thing about this event is the people watching, a lot to see. When I was leaving I saw a mother describing to 3 policemen a description of her daughter saying that she couldn’t find her, meanwhile, the mother had a huge mug of beer in her hand, how terrible.

In my words, the most Cincinnnati of all weekends is Goettafest. This weekend hooked me back in 2005 when I was visiting from college, and now I make sure I get there every year. The people watching is amazing, the prices are good, and where else can you have goetta mac and cheese, goetta doughnut holes, and goetta crepes all in one place?!

Is there anything better than an entire festival just for goetta?! I think not!
Glier’s is the original and still the best in the city. If you can think of a goetta dish then I can almost guarantee you can find it here.
Plus Glier has been branching out in recent years and is getting more and more craft beer options for patrons.
I love goettafest because it always seems to mark the high point of summer. It’s a perfect celebration of what makes Cincinnati, Cincinnati. Sure the crowds are huge (possibly breaking 200,000 this year,) but that’s part of the fun!
you can see all walks of life at goettafest and they’re all there for one thing– taking down the best breakfast sausage in the world.
Don’t forget all the giveaways, charity events and music shows at goettafest. They have it all!
If you’re looking for some great family fun or you just have to get your yearly fix of goetta pizza, there’s no other place to go than Glier’s Goettafest.

Goettafest 2013 offered a wide variety of vendors, which made for a fun tasting experience. Everything was fairly priced, floating between $ 5 — $ 7. The few bands we saw were entertaining as well. The small area and poor parking staff were what made it a 3 star event for me. I was told by a parking attendant that the $ 5 lot was full and was directed to the $ 10 parking lot. Later I found out that wasn’t the case, and I unnecessarily spent double. In regards to the size issue, part of the enjoyment of an event like this, personally, is to walk around. There really isn’t much place to walk or to see. All in all, if a friend wanted to go, I’d tag along. But I won’t be clearing my weekend to make it.

Since 2001, the first weekend of August has belonged to Goettafest. Known as Cincinnati’s caviar, goetta is a sausage-​like meat made of pork, beef, steel cut oats, and spices. The origin of goetta is of German-​American heritage. It began as a peasant dish in the 1800s meant to stretch out servings of meat over several meals to save money. Glier’s is the flagship goetta producer in Greater Cincinnati, manufacturing around 450 tons of goetta annually, 99% of which is consumed in the Queen City.
While primarily a breakfast meat, Goettafest gives local restaurants an opportunity to show off their creative non-​breakfast goetta dishes. Combined with carnival games, live concerts, local beer, frozen drinks, and a scenic view of Cincinnati, this is one festival you don’t want to miss.
Some of the unique dishes include:
— Goetta Nachos: topped with onions, green peppers, and a homemade mild cheddar cheese sauce over warmed tortilla chips
— Goetta Hot Brown: turkey, goetta, homegrown tomatoes, Virginia baked ham, over toast and smothered in a mild cheddar cheese sauce topped with two strips of bacon
— Goetta Hash: Browned crumbled goetta, potatoes, green peppers, onions, jazzed up with a spicy sauce.
— Goetta Wrap: cream cheese, cheddar, and goetta wrapped in a flour tortilla and lightly grilled.
— Goetta Sushi Roll: with cucumber, carrot, and wasabi
— Goetta Fried Rice
— Goetta Pizza
— Goetta Goobers: donut holes sprinkled with goetta
— Goetta Brownie
— Goetta Eggroll
— Goetta Hoagie
— Goetta Chilito
— Goetta Chili Cheese Coney
— Goetta Philly
— Goetta Reuben
— Goetta Mac & Cheese
— Goetta Bun Link (it’s like a mettwurst or bratwurst)
That certainly whet your appetite!
New to the festival this year is Glier’s Cooling Tent: an air conditioned tent with tables and chairs to seat up to 400 people at a comfortable 75º. Another favorite of mine includes Snowie, the make-​your-​own flavor sno cone booth.
The nerd in me enjoyed the Glier’s Goetta History Tent with the story behind the meat, and the giant map where guests can stick a pin on the location of where they are visiting from. You may also spot a Goetta Vending Machine where you can purchase a goetta log for wholesale price: $ 3.50 instead of $ 5.00 at the grocery. Be sure to keep an eye out for Mr. Goetta, a giant plush cartoon goetta character walking around the festival. He’s so adorable, you’ll want to run up and hug him.
Goettafest is a festival unique to Cincinnati, earning its title amongst the ranks of The Flying Pig Marathon and the Opening Day Parade. Running Thursday through Sunday below Newport On The Levee, find time to come check out some hometown heritage.
Admission: FREE
Food price: $ 3.00 — $ 5.00 each
BRING CASH!