Beer Me

Gene Simmons Hoists a Beer With Wolfgang Puck To Detail Röcktobefest at L.A. Live!

Wolfgang Puck and Gene Simmons at L.A. Live!
Wolfgang Puck and Gene Simmons at L.A. Live! Photo: Brooke Newberry

This morning, Kiss bassist Gene Simmons took the stage with Wolfgang Puck to announce the details of Röcktoberfest, the week-long beer-slurping sausage party the two are pushing at Downtown’s L.A. Live! with help from Beck’s and AEG in October. Before getting down to business, the two super-rich superstars chugged from their steins and traded quips, with Simmons dubbing themselves a “team of powerful and attractive all-stars” and Puck joking that Gene was going to be the new maître’d at Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill, noting that “all the women will love him.” So what does the most successfully branded rock star and the most commercially branded chef have in store for L.A.?

After Puck reminded him that Oktoberfest is Austrian in origin, Simmons countered with typical bombast that Röcktoberfest is going to be much more of an L.A.-style celebration, poised to be “the biggest party in L.A.” and recurring annually.

The God of Food with The God of Thunder

A series of nightly parties hosted in and just outside W.P. Bar & Grill at L.A. Live! will find Puck-approved menus of pig knuckles, wienerschnitzel, apple strudel, and chocolate cake, along with more Cali-favored party foods like pot stickers, quesadillas, and other Chinese and Mexican dishes that pair well with beer. Entry will be $20, which includes a stein and seating, with a la carte dishes on offer and all inclusive VIP options available for a price. Other venues may eventually be involved, but the full picture’s only begun.

The event kicks off on October 15 with an opening night “charity jam,” held as a benefit for The Wounded Warrior Project in a ceremony attended by musicians from Kiss, Motley Crue, and Guns ‘N Roses, among other celeb guests. Tickets for the opening start at $100 and stretch to $250 VIP and $800 for a VIP table for eight. Every night thereafter, from 5:00 to 11:00 P.M. through October 21, L.A. Live! will feature food, beer, and rock n’ roll, as Simmons claims that German music “gets tired.” So yeah, sorry, you’ll still have to hit Alpine Village if you’re to get your chicken dance on.

The final night, Sunday, October 21, will find a craft beer festival on the scene from 3:30 to 6:30 P.M., featuring more than 50 breweries from L.A., San Diego, and points in between, with $50 tickets buying twelve three-ounce pours and going to benefit the Grammy Museum.

Naturally, Grub Street was a little more interested in hearing some sort of salacious story about how these two hooked up in the first place. Simmons tells us “they let him in at Spago” one night, where he was blown away, describing Puck as “the god of food and good living.” He was brought a chocolate guitar-shaped cake to end the evening and says he’ll never forget that, adding “I got lucky that night.”

For full details and ticket information, check out Röcktoberfest’s web site.

Gene Simmons Hoists a Beer With Wolfgang Puck To Detail Röcktobefest at L.A.