Fun event in Safety Harbor right by the water. Beautiful location. $15 to get in, you receive beer…read moresamples, but the food and other beer you had to purchase. There were vendors as well, clothing, decor, food. They ran out of the beer samples at the end, which was the purpose of my visit but I did get there late so that was my fault. They also had live music which was very cool. I expected better options for beer at the beer truck but unfortunately they had limited options. There were several food trucks that had burgers and other options so there was good variety for the burgers. The Slider truck was the winner of the voting and Flying boat won the beer vote but I didn't get a chance to taste their beer.

Pretty good event at a wonderful location, but it wasn't without its missteps…read more This is the second annual Safety Harbor Beer & Burger Throw Down event, so it seems a little odd to me that the event staff was not 100% prepared for the day. So let's start with the bad. First off, I can't think of anything that makes people piss faster than beer, except Mountain Dew, so for there to only be one set of restrooms seemed borderline cruel. There definitely needs to be some portable Johns setup somewhere on site because the lines were really long, especially for the ladies. In the corporate world, we call this a "missed opportunity." Second, not sure how there can be a beer throw down with only 3 craft beer vendors. Crooked Thumb from Safety Harbor was there along with Backdrafts Brewing, who won the beer competition. I couldn't see the name of the 3rd brewery due to the position of their banner, which was covered by folks standing in line. There was also a keg truck selling Sierra Nevada, Oskar Blues and Bell's, and because it was the first beer vendor people would see upon entering, they had the longest line all day. That truck and Crooked Thumb were the only vendors that didn't run out of beer by 6 PM. Lastly, someone thought it would be a brilliant fucking idea for the DJ to be 50 paces from the live music stage. So from where we were sitting in the "VIP" tent, it sounded like pure shit. Left ear, pop music. Right ear, live rock cover songs. Absolutely terrible planning. Now for the good. There were only 8 burger vendors setup at the event, and at first I thought it was not going to be enough, but they proved me wrong. They were busy the entire time, and with the corn dog, potato tornado and sausage vendors there, it all worked out really well. I absolutely loved the fact that all of the vendors were offering sliders for $3 in addition to their full-sized burgers. When I'm out a tasting event like this, I crave samples and not full meals. It's a brilliant idea, and I've always wondered why food trucks do not do this at food truck rallies. So kudos to the staff for getting that right. Eats! American Grill won the burger competition, though my favorite was the Frybread burger (Navajo burger) served up by Bilagáana's. Truly unique and new to this region of the U.S. VIP tent staff, Crooked Thumb and Eats! were on point in the hospitality area. Steven kept the guttersnipes out, despite their repeated attempts to get in, Crooked Thumb kept us sufficiently lubricated with their Amber Ale and IPA pours and Eats! kept the burgers steady flowin'. Overall, I really enjoyed the event. The venue was perfect, the weather cooperated and the food and beers were great. Suggestions for next year, separate the DJ from the band, add port-a-potties, throw in some more beer vendors and make sure they bring enough brew to last for the entire event. Maybe even separate the burger vendors from each other too. Having them all in one row caused for confusion as to what lines were going where.

I was hoping for more but it was a fun evening. The music was great! The fireworks at the end of…read morethe end were much more than expected. When an event is call Taste of ..., you expect there to be great food with lots of choices. I was very underwhelmed by the choices. It would have been nice as if places offered small plates so that you could taste more than one place. I did try the pulled pork nachos from Jackies Bistro, they were yummy but nothing worth seeking out the restaurant. I was also sad because it was a fundraiser for All Children's but there wasn't even a table about the hospital. The venue was a little underwhelming as there wasn't much shade and the music could be clearly heard from outside the gates. There was many boats in the harbor that pulled up for the concerts. It was strange that the family area with the kids bounce houses were also outside the gates.

It was great in terms of the concert aspect! Pat Benatar was what I was excited for. There were…read morelots of restaurants that were showcased, but not many were impressive. I would say I was most impressed with Daiquiri Shak! It had tasty food for a reasonable price, unlike most of the other places. As well as the hooker tea company, which I did not know existed in St. Pete, so I will definitely be going there next time I am in St. Pete.

I enjoyed Shopapalooza much more this year. We usually come every year, & this one was especially…read morewarm. Initially i didn't want to walk through it bc it wasn't shade, but it finally cooled off a tiny bit. Lucky to get parking nearby we walked by the water front. Many sat there for a rest, to eat their food, or witness the dolphins going back and forth . It was nice and chill. The best part was the fashion show and dog adoptable. I took tons of pics of them bc they really caught my attention. There's 350 vendors here, & tons of food trucks. Def a fun stop each year the weekend after Thanksgiving.

This was my first year to make it down to Shopapapoolza at Vanoy. It was a beautiful Sunday to be…read moreoutside and on the water while walking around all the booths. It is a free event and there are a ton of different booths and several food trucks and food booths. I will say that the layout could be better. It seems that they jam everyone in at the beginning of the park and then once you get towards the back the layout/walkways make no sense and there is a lot of extra area. I walked around to all the booths and found a few that I liked, one in particular that I was able to order something to be made special for me as a gift for Ben that I arranged to meet her at another location and pick up because she is local. A lot of the vendors were locals which I love! I also found something that I thought my mom would like and the vendor was super sweet about offering to make one specific for her or if I wanted to take the one she had in the booth. The event is a great way to get out and support small businesses.

Nice vibes as always.... Lots to do Only thing is the…read morebathrooms not working or enough of them.

I have had the Dunedin Mardi Gras Festival and Parade on my To-do list for a while, but it is on a…read moreTuesday, and an hour away from our house. This Year, my hubby and I took the day off. Yes, specifically for it. Why not? Bonus, we met up with friends and hung out with them, and had a good time. They have different craft vendors, beer and food, Mardi Gras masks and beads. They are all located down Main street. They have 4 band stages throughout Main street as well as John Pioneer Park in the middle of everything. Admission is free, but they have VIP which includes two drinks, appetizers, desserts, and special spots for the parade. Parade was suppose to be at 7:30, but ended up starting around almost 8pm. It lasted like about a half hour to an hour. It was cool in some parts, loud in other parts, and a lull in some parts. The best part was the hot law enforcement and firefights manning the streets. It was a fun festive experience that I am happy we checked off our list!!! If you want a post party afterwards, they have that at the surrounding bars and Club Blur! There is definitely something for everyone.

The Chocolate festival I attend is the 9th annual event. There is a lot of people. Parking is a…read morenightmare due to a lot of people. The compound parking is not enough. Every car try to cut in and take advantage the line. The festival location using the Egypt Shriners. It has good building structure to host the event. It also has the clean restroom and place and table for the food you want to eat. The festival chocolatier is on the building. The food trucks surrounding the building parking lot. There is a lot of food trucks. It turn out a good food selection. We got to try the Groovy Dawgs hot dog. They carry two type of sausage. The crawfish and gator sausage. We got the crawfish sausage. It is ok. But I really want to try their gator sausage next time. We also stop at the Flipino Cuisine Masarap Bowls. We got the bigol bowl. It has cabbage, grilled chicken and noodle. Is is just ok for my standard. I wonder the food truck collect tax after the price in compare to many food truck is one price. We also has the Boba Nirvana. They have very good boba. They have this green Thai tea with boba. Love it. My wife have the brown sugar milk tea boba.

Where we the chocolate? I was so excited to attend this…read more What I had in my head was not what I pictured. Entrance to this venue was like a scene from Mad Max! People were driving aggressively so they can get in to park but there wasn't any where to park so people got creative. There were no police to help with traffics flow. There were no staffer to help direct parking . People were parking in the gas station, on the side of the road, this road only had two lane and people were parking on shrubs, grass, bushes & rail road tracks. When we finally park we see that the parking lot of the Shriner had a few spot open. The first thing you saw were food trucks. Then some vendor selling cute items but the chocolate was indoor and there weren't that many to choice to try chocolate. There were hardly any sample to get a chance to taste. Only 2 vendors had sample. Those were the one I bought from. Some of these chocolate were fancy & expensive. Which is fine but I want to know what I was paying for. I also got a s'more cookie and a macaroon. I did have some chicken empanadas & this amazing lemonade from a black own business. She makes her own lemonade, even the syrup. My friend from Orlando was looking forward to glowing to this I told her her don't. When we left the police and for fire department finally showed up. They block the entrance to help ease traffic & parking is my guess. This was a big disappointment.

2021 PhilFest was really a must for me - recommend attending it at least once in your life,…read moreespecially since they canceled it in 2020 - felt spoiled because we live close by! $10 to park (they used a third party affiliate) to manage the incoming and outgoing traffic or walk to the event if you live in one of the close neighborhoods. I recommend saving yourself $10 easily by parking at the nearby bank with access to sidewalks! It's $5/person for the entrance fee & free for Veterans. I think there were fewer people because it had rained the previous day and was a bit chilly (this is an all outdoor event, so dress properly and warm). We didn't get to the good parts, dancing or singing, because we left early. They had +5 food vendors and others who were selling trinkets and included face painting for kids. To eat, got Lechon Fried Pork from a stall and Halo Halo from Mata's Philippine. The Lechon was a small serving for the price, def. would get a larger portion at Mata's. I am a sucker for anything fried, so of course the crispy fried skin was the highlight of the dish coupled with the flavorful pork that has Hispanic influence + Asian spices...even found a sprig of rosemary in the pork (loved the spices used in this dish). You'll learn about Jose Rizal who liberated the Filipinos from the Spanish. They have a statue of his head in honor of his sacrifices!

This event is little overrated with $10 ticket entry. Food vendors are limited and the line was…read moresuper long to order the food. Compare this festival with other festivals around Tampa Bay. This could be the worst one to attend. I would not attend this festival again even it is free.

This festival is easy located, easy free parking, free entrance. This festival is not crowded. I…read morewould said the festival is kind of lack of participation. The vendors didn't fill up entire park. I like the free tasting of the pepper sauce along the park. But how much pepper can you take. I am up to the challenge. The event also have jalapeño eating contest. Not sure the entrance fees. The stage have different musicians playing. The festival is a two day event. There are some food vendors. But I think they are too expensive. I got some chicken on the stick, shrimp paste on sugar cane, sugar cane juice, kettle corn, pepper orange teriyaki beef jerky.

I really enjoyed the Chalk Art Fest in Clearwater! It was a nice surprise because I kept thinking…read moreit was going to take place on the pier. But it actually took up a good space of the side walks and the art was impressive! So much detail in everyone of these. My favorite was the 3D mermaid from Opal Sands. One of the other ones was a tropical drink. They told you where to stand to take a perfect pic as if you were drinking from the straw. The art vendors were cool too! This was a good size Chalk Art Fest and free! Can't be beat! The worse part was the parking. We figured it out though!