Can you have fun without WestFest? West says yes, with plenty of kolaches and sausage.
There’s no WestFest on Labor Day weekend, but plenty of kolaches.
The annual festival in the McLennan County town of West was lost to the pandemic.
But you can still come to West for kolaches and klobasniky (“sausage kolaches”) in shops like Gerik’s Ole Time Bakery & Deli.
“People are telling us, ‘We’re still coming,’ “ said Bryan Anderson of Gerik’s, the insiders’ must-stop at 511 W. Oak St. behind a more touristy Czech gas station-bakery on Interstate 35W.
“People want to support the businesses in town,” he said. “In our whole lives, we’ve never had a Labor Day weekend without a WestFest.”
The Czech-American Restaurant, 220 N. Main St. in the old downtown area, will dish up sausage, kraut and pies..
Gerik’s is doing about the same business as last year, maybe slightly better, Anderson said.
(The shop moved from its longtime bakery into shared space with a pizza restaurant next door. Bonus: Gerik’s now sells kolaches and its giant specialty cinnamon rolls nightly until about 9 p.m.
Gerik’s biggest sellers are the cherry and apricot kolaches, but its signature items are the specialty cinnamon rolls in flavors like turtle-cream-cheese, apple strudel, birthday cake or wedding cake.
Gerik’s also offers both sausage klobasniky and also a puff pastry with crumbled sausage as a filling, a local favorite.
Gerik’s opens daily at 6:30 a.m. and serves through dinner. It’s one block east of Interstate 35W; 254-826-3327.
This story was originally published August 26, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
