Column: Christkindlmarket opens bigger and brighter at RiverEdge Park in Aurora
The first thing I noticed when stepping through the gates of RiverEdge Park in Aurora was that this year’s Christkindlmarket seems brighter, busier and certainly bigger.
Perhaps it’s the giant Nutcracker soldiers that greet visitors at the downtown park’s two entrances. Or the giant gingerbread and candy cane sled, or equally exaggerated candy-land sofa or the small herd of adorable reindeer characters scattered throughout the market.
Or it could be that Christkindlmarket has expanded its footprint at RiverEdge to include more vendors than last year’s premiere in Aurora.
Turns out my eyes were not deceiving me. In addition to all the interactive holiday photo ops, there are 53 vendors taking part this year, a significant increase from last year’s 39 tents and booths.
Bigger and better is the promise from Jim Jarvis, vice president of programming and sales for RiverEdge Park. While last year’s first-ever Christkindlmarket in Aurora was without question a success, with more than 160,000 visitors, this year’s, he says with no hesitation, will top those numbers.
For one thing, compared to last December’s frigid conditions that even forced the market to close a few days early, a milder forecast is expected. Which was certainly the case at Friday’s opening with the thermometer registering in the mid-50s and folks pouring through the gates dressed in more sweaters and jackets than last year’s parkas and snow pants.
“We could easily see 300,000 people” go through the gates from now until Dec. 24, said Jarvis, who has been leading the Paramount team that’s worked closely for the past 10 months with the city of Aurora and German American Events, which founded its Christkindlmarket endeavors 27 years ago.
What makes Aurora’s traditional German Christmas market so perfect, says Maren Priebe, CEO and general manager of German American Events, is the ease in which visitors can get to it, plentiful and easily available parking and the expansive venue that RiverEdge offers.
Plus, as both she and Jarvis point out, Aurora’s holiday market is offering some unique features not seen anywhere else, including Chicago. For example, every Thursday through Nov. 21 there will be glass-blowing demonstrations, where people can sign up in advance for a $35 workshop to make your own.
In addition to face-painting and other fun activities, there are also wine tasting sessions offered in the skybox on Dec. 2 that will feature eight unique mulled and cold wines from Germany and Austria, as well as Bavarian chocolates and Austrian food.
And for the young and young at heart a reindeer scavenger hunt at the park featuring the likes of Ollie, Joy and friends.
More visitors through the gates, of course, mean more gluhwein being poured.
Last year, 25,000-plus mugs of this spicy traditional German wine were sold. Which is why, says Jarvis, when the Kane County Cougars held a garage sale a few weeks ago, he scooped up “at a greatly reduced discount” one of its industrial-size coffee warmers, which was retrofitted to reach 190 degrees Fahrenheit in order to keep that warm red wine flowing throughout the five weeks of Christkindlmarket Aurora.
One thing I learned last year when covering the premiere of this market - it’s all about the wine. This year, however, with Priebe as my guide, I focused more on the food.
Priebe, who was born in Frankfort, Germany, lived in six countries and has been with Christkindlmarket 17 of its 27 years in existence, certainly made for a great one as she offered me tidbits on the food and culture of the countries that are featured at the iconic market.
Among my favorites: a warm fresh raspberry/marshmallow drink from Polish Bistro-Zapiekanka; traditional Dutch miniature pancakes from Puffy Houzz; the “Sandwich of Death” from Baked Cheese Haus; melt-in-your-mouth mini doughnuts from Decadent Flavor; and a piping hot cup of Belgian Hot Chocolate, which co-owner Bob Bausch tells me he expects to pour 1,000 of these delicious drinks “on a good day.”
The calories that can be consumed on a stroll through the festival are impressive, as are other numbers from this local Christkindlmarket site.
For example, the family from Polish Bistro-Zapiekanka tells me they expect to serve up to 3,000 of those above-mentioned warm raspberry drinks through Dec. 24.
Kevin Berls, vice president of patron services for the Paramount and RiverEdge, predicts there will be over 50,000 mugs of gluhwein sold this year, doubling 2022 numbers.
Last year, he added, 6,000 plastic steins of beer went out the gate, but “given this year the mugs are ceramic and the design displays images from the Aurora and Chicago markets, we think we will be selling over 15,000 this year.”
People I spoke to on Friday certainly see the “bigger and better” picture.
As she stepped into the giant sled for a photo op with her adult daughter Lorinda, Ellen Ballinger told me she had been eager to return to the holiday market again because she was impressed with how many more food venues there were this year.
“I have a limited diet I have to follow,” said the Aurora woman. “This is great because I have more choices.”
Also making their return to the Aurora market were Sherry Budd of Elgin and her daughter Jennifer Budd from Itasca, who were truly enchanted by the reindeer figures scattered throughout the park.
This year’s market, they both agreed, was not only far warmer but much larger.
Plus, it’s not only easier to get to than Chicago, with a market that is less congested, it’s “a lot safer,” added Sherry Budd, who is very much aware of how Aurora has changed its image to become a family-friendly destination.
Indeed, on this same Friday, it was opening night for “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” at the Paramount Theatre, as well as for The Second City’s Holiday Revue at Copley Theatre across the street. Also on the calendar was the Winter Lights Festival downtown that included a parade, fireworks and visit by Santa, thanks to the city of Aurora, which has “decked out RiverEdge more than ever,” says Jarvis.
“Just like Charlie got the golden ticket of the chocolate factory, the Christkindlmarket is definitely the golden ticket of the outdoors,” he added.
“It’s like everyone wanted to up its game … man, has it been upped.”
