Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival

Located just one hour north of Columbus, Bucyrus, Ohio is a small, quiet town for 362 days of the year. All of that changes in mid-August, when the town’s population swells to over 100,000 during the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival. In 2001, Ohio Magazine voted the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival as the “Best Food Festival” in the state. Not only does the festival celebrate the town’s German heritage with some of the best bratwurst in the world, but more than 100 other delicious foods are available, made from local family recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation. However, bratwurst reigns King during the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival when more than 27 tons of the German sausage is cooked over open fire pits during this three-day, fun-filled, family event.

The Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival is held in the downtown streets of the town (with Sandusky Avenue being the main drag.) Bucyrus is recognized the world over as the “Bratwurst Capital of America.” The state of Wisconsin is usually considered the authority on the bratwurst with annual celebrations in Sheboygan and Johnsonville, but in the early 1970s, Bucyrus took on Sheboygan in a “Battle of the Brats” and won, thus earning Bucyrus the much sought after title “Bratwurst Capital of America.” Plus, Sheboygan’s festival is a much smaller event than the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival, attracting only about 8,000 visitors per year. It is said that Bucyrus bratwurst is different because the recipes vary from maker to maker whose families have emigrated from Germany. Local butchers have perfected these recipes over the years, giving them their own special touch and cooking them over open fires. The Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival actually dates back to Colonel Crawford Days when merchants held sidewalk sales and the city was also once home to numerous bratwurst makers who sold their brats from curbside stands.

The Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival traditionally begins when the reigning “Bratwurst Queen” takes the first bite of a bratwurst. The Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival also offers continuous free entertainment and live music, three parades, rides and games, a fabulous crafts show and an art show, beer gardens, and booth after booth of food – french fries, ice cream, fried pickles, cream puffs, giant pretzels, and of course, bratwurst. Visitors eat their fill of Bucyrus-style bratwurst, served various ways; such as on a rye sandwich roll with mustard, chopped onions or sauerkraut. A young girl is chosen as the new Bratwurst Queen during the festival and her image is struck on a limited edition brass coin.

Other things to see while visiting the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival include the beautiful “Great American Crossroads” mural and “Liberty Remembers” mural in downtown Bucyrus. At Cooper’s Mill, you can step back in time and view apple butter being made over a wood fire and stroll through their quaint shop with its’ delicious homemade jams, jellies, apple butter and fudge. Carle’s Market in Bucyrus offers visitors a market full of fresh bratwurst and other meats, delis, imported foods and hot foods. You can also watch bratwurst being made by hand at Carle’s. The D. Picking & Co. shop is an old copper shop that looks much as it did when it began manufacturing in 1874. It is the last of the old Copper Shops still making its original product (apple kettles) by hand. The Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival is also a good stop for anyone on their way to Lake Erie (State Route 4 runs straight through the town and will take you right to the Lake Erie shore, approximately one hour away.)

For more information regarding the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival, call 419-562-BRAT. The following is a list of hotels in Bucyrus, and you can also find places to stay in the surrounding towns of Marion, Mansfield and Upper Sandusky. For good old-fashioned family fun, nothing beats the Bucyrus Bratwurst Festival, or, as it’s known by many – “Ohio’s Eatingest Festival!”

Al Smith’s Place
(419) 562-5014
(419) 562-3609
1885 E Mansfield St
Bucyrus, OH 44820

Knights Inn
(419) 562-3737
1515 N Sandusky Ave
Bucyrus, OH 44820

Holiday Inn Express
(419) 562-5664
(419) 562-4224
1575 North Sandusky Ave
Bucyrus, Ohio 44820

Hide Away Bed & Breakfast Inn
State Route 4 (two miles south of Bucyrus)
Bucyrus, OH 44820
(419) 562-3013
(800) 570-8233