The next two weekends will offer an opportunity to easily sample the wide range of food and drink offered in Brookfield. On Saturday night 12 bars in Brookfield, following up on the successful Brookfield Music Fest held the last two summers, will present their first annual Brookfield Oktoberfest celebration.

The following weekend, the Brookfield Public Library will be hosting its third annual Taste of Brookfield.

For the Oktoberfest event on Sept. 27, free trolleys will be available to carry revelers from bar to bar. Each bar will be serving bratwurst and a variety of German food and will have live music. There will be no cover charge at any of the bars. Trolleys will run from 7 p.m. to midnight.

“We started with the music fest last year, and it was such as rousing success,” said Ellen Frantzen, the owner of Joe’s Saloon and the head of the Brookfield Bar Owners Association. “We just want to have fun and bring people to town and let them know what a nice town we have and places for entertainment.”

The participating bars are Joe’s Saloon, 9220 47th St.; Salt Creek Wine Bar, 8900 Fairview Ave.; Irish Times, 8869 Burlington Ave.; Blue Water Martini Lounge, 9016 31st St.; Phil’s Sports Bar & Grill, 8901 Burlington Ave.; Brookfield Bowl, 3415 Maple Ave.; Off Broadway Pub, 9048 Monroe Ave.; Johnny B’s, 8436 Brookfield Ave.; Slager’s, 9308 47th St.; Brixie’s Saloon, 9526 Ogden Ave.; The Cordial Inn, 9207 31st St.; and Ryan’s Public House, 8942 Ogden Ave.

Irish Times will feature brats, German potato salad, sauerkraut, and have four special Oktoberfest beers on tap while a polka band gets folks into the Oktoberfest spirit. At Salt Creek Wine Bar, the Crown Vics will perform classic 1950s rock and roll.

For a little more sedate evening but a chance to sample the offerings from a host of Brookfield restaurants, don’t miss the Taste of Brookfield held at the Brookfield Public Library, 3609 Grand Blvd., on Friday, Oct. 3 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Nearly every restaurant in Brookfield will be participating, offering tasting-size portions from their menus. Food will range from rigatoni alla buttera from Trattoria Gemelli to a taco bar from La Cabanita. Irish Times will provide a keg of Guinness stout to help wash all the food down.

There will be music by the Chicago jazz band the Lamplighters, featuring guitarist Ron Smith. A silent auction will be held offering the opportunity to bid on Cubs, White Sox, Bears and Blackhawks tickets, as well as themed gift baskets and even a tour of the Channel 5 downtown television studios.

This year, for the fist time, babysitting supervised by library staff will be offered on the lower level of the library for children age 10 or younger.

Tickets for this fundraiser for the Friends of the Library are $35 if purchased in advance and $40 at the door. They can be purchased in advance at the library’s circulation desk, the Salt Creek Wine Bar, through the Brookfield Jazz Society and via Pay Pal through the library’s Web site (www.brookfieldpubliclibrary.info).

“It’s a nice chance for the community to come together,” said Kimberly Litland, the director of the Brookfield Library.

VFW Oktoberfest this weekend

In addition to those events, the Brookfield VFW Post 2868 will host its second annual Oktoberfest on Saturday, Sept. 27 and Sunday, Sept. 28 along Forest Avenue just north of Ogden Avenue.

The event, which will feature, food, music and, of course, beverages, is open to the public and will run from 4 p.m. to midnight on Saturday and from noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday.

During the event, the VFW will host split-the-pot raffles to help raise money that will go to fund some of the organization’s charitable work.

Pig roast rescheduled

Finally, the Brookfield Chamber of Commerce’s first-ever pig roast, canceled due to the heavy rains and flooding over a week ago, will he held on Sunday, Sept. 28, from noon until dusk in Kiwanis Park, Arden and Brookfield avenues.

The general public is invited to attend this event. Attendees can get a pork dinner with baked beans, corn on the cob and Texas toast for $10; a chicken sandwich with baked beans for $7; or hot dogs and chips for $3.