The San Jose Jazz Summer Festival is held every year in downtown San Jose…read more It was a great time! Good vibes, multiple stages to choose from, lots of vendors and an awesome grown & sexy vibe. There are levels to the stage access, general access wristband gives access to 4 stages. Then there's an all stages wrist band that gives access to additional stages. Those stages were on the perimeter of the festival at the surrounding hotels and one stage was at the BreakRoom close to the festival main entrance. I arrived to the festival around 12 noon and the lines to enter were long. There are a host of volunteers who show up take the event flow. Day 2 of the festival Patti LaBelle was headlining!! Bring your own chair for a seat at the main stage, people arrive early to set their chair up, so consider this if there's someone you want to see on the main stage. The weather was great and I had a fantastic time. I'll check out next years lineup for sure! Cheers!

There was a promo saying "beat the rush & buy your tickets online!" So, I did. When I arrived,…read morethinking I just needed to show my QR code get my wristband and away I go - WRONG!!! Everyone else must have seen the same promo because the line snaked around so much I couldn't find the end. No exaggeration. Was in line over 1 hour to get in. They definitely need to improve this. So, once I got in, the music was great. I missed The Altons due to the line fiasco. I did get to see the Sinceres from East LA. They were very good.

Sunnyvale Lantern Festival took place from Feb 15-16, 2025 for several blocks. According to…read more@OMG.Entertainment_USA, there were over 110 vendors (food, desserts, drinks, crafts) and entertainment (dancers, music) plus activities (photo booth, games). The weather was perfect, free parking at nearby lots, and so many food and drinks choices. We had the best coffee from Robu Coffee and some delicious pan fried pork dumplings from Taste of Sha Xian.

Where do I begin? FoodieLand Night Market was such a food and drink extravaganza. So many foods,…read moredrinks, desserts and every thing in between was available here. Walking in and I was overwhelmed with all the choices I had to choose from. I wanted one of everything and but knew it would be almost impossible to eat that much food, so I had to choose wisely. My eyes said to my stomach, you will eat and everything will fit My brain said, I wish I had the room for all this delicouse food that caught my eye, but do the math eyeballs. Some of our choices were BAO BUNS Daddy'sBeef Ribeye Buns Thinly sliced beef ribeye marinated in sweet Vietnams Soy and sesame,garnished with both pickled and fresh veggies,topped with sweet chili sauce. These boa buns were very asty and satisfying. Buns were fluffy and meat was well seasoned. Topping were fesh and crisp in every bite. It was just an appetizer to the begining of our food journey. QUESIBERRIAS Quesiberrias were small but they came in an order of three so there was enough for each of us. They were the perfect size with good flavor and seasoning. They were topped with onions, cilantro, avocado sause and a slice of lime to squeeze on top. Also ordered some chicken wings that wee very good with the right amount of spice. BONE MARROW Bone marrow came with mushrooms in a garlic sauce and a slice of white bread and slaw. Really enjoyed this and happy that our bone had a good amount of bone marrow. The mushrooms and garlic complemented it well and it was well seasoned. This was one of the foods I was really looking forward to trying. DRINKS Bought a horchata and ube horchata to quench our pallet. One thing I can say is these drinks wee over the top and very satisfying. Horchata was cold and refreshing. Ube horchata was differnt but the flavors complemented eachother well. It was topped with a chocolate rim, whip cream, a chocolate drizzled cookie and a cookie waffer. The portions were enought for two to share. DESSERT Went with the Dubi mini pancakes. The pancakes were fluffy and topped with chocolate, pistachio gem, and the crunchy stuff, lol, you know what I mean. These were sweet and satisfying and a good size portion to share if you wanted to. Second dessrt we went with the panden sago. It was panned jelly, panden pudding, coconut strings, coconut jelly. and sago. It was cold and sweet but not to sweet. It was perfect for cool off from the hot weather. Was looking forwad to the ube sago wich wwas my first choice, however, they sold out. It was a good day of them, yay. This was a food filled, sampling, drinking and eating experience. Had a good time and chared some good food. Definately looking forwad for the next one.

Expensive and poorly operated…read more PROS: - There is a LOT of different food, drink, and shopping vendors. The food we had was delicious. My favorite was Elaine's bread pudding. - They bring local artists to perform CONS: - Parking was $15 and it took us 40 minutes in line to park. That was ridiculous. - Entrance was $12, but with the cost of the expensive food, we felt like there should not be an entrance fee on top. - The food is x2 or x3 the normal price!! ONE churro was $10!! Seriously? Half a lobster with garlic noodles was $33. A half pineapple with rice and chicken and mac and cheese was $25. TIPS: - If you do come, bring a picnic blanket or chairs to chill on the grass. So glad we did, got to relax on the grass while eating. - Not allowed to bring a backpack, but can still bring small bag and water bottle. There was a refill station but it was empty when we tried to get more water. A lot of the food I guess are considered fusion or "trendy," like sushi pizza or korean tacos. It was cool to try but with the hassle of parking and prices, I don't think we'll be coming back.

Highly recommend checking out the obon festival. This is an all hands on deck community event to…read morehost locals and those who just want a taste and feel of culture! Enjoy the amazing musical performances, yummy food/snacks, and carnival games (led by the local Boy Scout troops) fun will be had by all!

First time to this festival and learned that it is tiny compared to the festival that in San…read moreFrancisco Japantown which takes up about 6 blocks. Food stalls are all in one area located next to the Japanese Buddhist church annex. Overall I enjoyed seeing friends and the sunshine compared to the overcast skies where I live.

Campbell Beerwalk 2017 was Star Wars themes as it was held May the Fourth (as in May the Fourth Be…read moreWith You). Just like their Wine Walks, the Campbell Beerwalk was well-organized, with a painless registration process and helpful handouts. The colorful, graphic-heavy pamphlet included a map to scale, with the business names and each beer vendor. I expected more people to dress up, but it was mostly Star Wars shirts and some apparel (Yoda backpack, R2D2 beanie, Chewbacca jammies, Jabba the Hutt colostomy bag, etc). There was an awesome Darth Talon (the star of the night) and a lot of girls with Princess Leia hair, so it was appropriate to walk by them and say, "Nice buns." My friends were supposed to dress up, and I gave them lots of DIY ideas (staple candy bars to a shirt to be Admiral Snackbar, or pin a dollar to a green shirt and be Queen Im-a-Dolla), but I was the only one. I safety-pinned six red Solo cups to my black vest and went as Cup Solo. With a late start, we probably hit 21 of the 29 vendors in 2 1/2 hours. Lines were rarely an issue, and the event was trash-free, in both senses of the word. The Art Beat poured Altamont*, Snake & Butterfly poured High Water (including a subtle sour Little Devil and refreshing Cucumber Kolich), Spread poured HBC, Frost poured Lagunitas, Campbell Brewing poured their own*, Rocket Fizz poured Lost Coast*, the Olive Bar poured Uncommon Brewers*, Tessora's (who questionably pushed their tables against the wall with a "For Customers Only" sign) poured Firestone, Redemption poured Calicraft*, the packed Sushi Confidential poured Ballast Point*, Steepers poured Goose Island, Therapy poured Heretic, Geoffrey's poured Saint Archer*, the Celtic Shoppe poured yummy Golden Road, Socialight poured Elysian, Khartoum poured Breckenridge*, Liquid Bread poured Sonoma Springs, Freshly Worn Furniture poured Discretion, an awesome Luke w/ inflatable Tauntaun at Brown Chicken Brown Cow poured Anchor, Bestie's Boutqiue poured Full Tilt, Blue Line poured a yummy orange Sierra Nevada, Abraham begat Isaac; Isaac begat Jacob; Jacob begat Judah, and so on. The best location for any beer or wine walk is Campbell Plaza, because it feels like an outdoor bar. There, Cali Muscle poured Strike, and Bombshell, Embelish, and Cruiser Shop poured Santa Clara, Golden State and Geartooth. Being Cup Solo I took a picture of the Hoth-planet Leia in white who was keeping people with drinks from exiting. She told me she loved my costume. I told her, "I know."

Attended the Campbell Beer Walk for the first time last week in honor of Silicon Valley's Beer…read moreWeek! I understand this is their second year putting on the event and found myself having a pretty good time. However, the cons outweighed the pros for me and I probably won't be attending again next year for the price of $30. It is $30 in advance and $35 at the door - we checked in outside of Khartoums where they hand you a map (that you cannot lose), a glass, and a wristband. I had thought it would be a farmers market like set up with the street closed off so we couldn't be walking around drinking in an open area.. however the breweries were actually located in the individual boutique shops/restaurants/bars around Downtown Campbell. Pros: +Pretty decent selection of beer +The crowd that comes out to Downtown Campbell is fun, not in a ghetto Downtown SJ way +Lots of restaurants around to eat after +Free glass, easy check-in Cons: -The shops were small so the lines got very long to wait for your beer -You had to reuse the same glass for each sample without even a rinse.. which is not the proper way to sample - you definitely should not be mixing any flavors of different beers -If you got there around 7:00pm like we did, you did not have time to taste everything -The map did not label which breweries were in which shops, so you couldn't prioritize and just had to wing it from shop to shop -Although they have a number of local breweries come out, there weren't many that you couldn't get locally already (Almanac Brewing was the most unique one I tried)

Water Lantern Festival is a must, you have to attend at least once and youll be hooked to come…read moreagain and again. What a fun experience this was to create a lanten and then launch it off into the lake. Got our Water lantern Kits and began getting creative on how to decorate our oun indivitual lanters. You get only one marker so its a good idea to be prepared and bring your own markers of you want to have a veriaty of colors. Dawn was upon us and we began to get ready to launch our lanterns. It was biter sweat launching them because it part of the process however part of you wnts to keep it and take it home. I was curiouse as to what happens to them after they are launched and everyone goes home for the night. You do have your deck of cards both playing cards and conversation cards that were fun to keep as your souvenirs. You also get a wrist band and draw sting backpack that comes in a veriety of colors. Ther are lots of food trucks for purshasing food, drinks and treats. Remember to come early if you want to have dibs on a good spot. Bring a picnic blanket and a pictic to share as they do alow outside food and drinks. Also remember to bring a jacket or light sweater as it gets cooler in the earning. Cant wait for next year and bringing the hubs to enjoy a picnic and the Wate Lanters.

Cute event and opportunity to launch water lanterns and reflect. Check in is smooth and there are a…read moregood number of food vendors for the event. Things that can be improved are: More guidance towards timing of when to decorate your lantern and a provided template. They bring people on stage to share, but maybe there should be an anonymous reading as well. I personally think the event is better in fall because the crowds in summer were too noisy for the performances and meditation. Bring your own picnic blanket and water!

They really delivered on the art at this event. Beautiful and creative paintings, pottery, and…read morestained glass, one of my favorite vendor booths being Richard Curtner's Collage Art. There was no shortage of wine tents either, including Naumann Vineyards and Shunyi Cellars. The festival took place near State Street Market, so I opted to grab some snacks there rather than from the various food vendors on site. But the offerings were pretty decent, ranging from asian street food to paella. Of course, ice cream and funnel cakes too. I enjoyed the live music, with rotating bands on multiple stages. Caught a performance by the Jazz Connexion at the Veterans Community Plaza and the Wanderers in the early afternoon on the main stage, with a playlist including Walk Like an Egyptian by the Bangles, Bruno Mars' Treasure, and Everybody Wants to Rule the World. The sound system was pretty bad, but the musicians were good as usual... I've actually seen them perform at other local events before and have been a fan for years. There were tables and seating provided as well, though most people squeezed into the shaded area while I was there. All in all, I had a good time, and I appreciate that it was free admission.

This was an amazing art and wine festival. It was easily a city block worth of booths and a…read morewonderful array of vendors. We purchased a really cool print from a so cal artist. Prices of wine were reasonable, I got a solid cup of white for $8 (4 tickets.)

Looking for an awesome time in the park then you've found it as this festival has a bit of…read moreeverything for everyone food beer and sound wise! Coming to this festival I wasn't sure what to expect other than a good time in the park as well as a bunch of delicious eats! Of the eats it was all about the corn on the cob and the tombstone slider as they were just super scrumptious and all around yummy! The pulled Pork bun was decent but it totally needed some more BBQ sauce to make it alright but not to be forgotten was the Apple Pie bacon cheddar whipped cream combination like wow what a crazy combination of flavors that was just super delicious so much so we thought about getting another one! The one I really wasn't a fan of though was the chicken hearts wrapped in bacon on a stick yeah I'm just not all that into things like that and didn't really care for the taste too much! Don't forget to get a brew tasting card as well because there's a ton of delicious beers around for all to enjoy! There is only one more weekend left to check out this festival I highly recommend you do and get one of the tasting cards as it's totally worth it and just all around yummy! Overall this is a good eating time and it's cool to see other Cedar Fair parks doing festivals like this because it's a good time for everyone and a great way to get some good food and drinks wile in the park!

Great America has really stepped it up with this festival! 2018 was the second year of the Red,…read moreWhite & Brews Festival and it was way better than last year. It's held in the Hometown Square area of the park and they have everything decked out in Red, White and Blue colors and decorations as this festival is supposed to be like your all American type of festival. There are several booths serving beer, wine and of course yummy food. Since it is a "brew" fest they offered a wide variety of craft beers (32 varieties to be exact). You could either buy them separately or buy the tasting card for $25. If beer isn't your thing and you prefer wine they also have a wide variety of wines and a tasting card for $25 as well for that. If you're feeling a little adventurous they have the San Jose Brew Bike available, why not bike around the park while drinking some beer (sounds like a good time to me lol). Now to the food, the first year of the festival the food offerings were a bit "out of the ordinary" and the items offered just didn't fit in with the theme but this year they revamped and stepped their game up thanks to Chef Ponce and his amazing culinary skills. There was plenty of barbecue and hearty sliders to fill you up this time around and some down home yummy desserts as well. While they offered a tasting card the previous year it was less items and they items were already chosen for you. This time around the tasting card was 8 tastings for $30 or $25 for season passholders. You could use the tabs for any of the items. I tried to taste everything but I ended up only using 6 out of the 8 tabs and I'm kicking myself for that. I loved the Sticky BBQ Pork Ribs, they were tender and falling off of the bone. The sauce had a great balance of sweet and savory, one of my favorite items. The Smoked Brisket & Mash was interesting, I liked it although I wish the brisket was cut up into pieces and maybe they could have used smashed red potatoes instead of potatoes that tasted like they came from a box. The brisket was good and tender, the sauce was nice and tangy and the fried onions on top gave it a nice crunch. But hands down the item that did it for me and was my favorite was the Pork Belly Slider!! The slider was loaded with some amazing and perfectly cooked pork belly, that was so tender, meaty and fatty. It was cooked just right. Placed on a pretzel bun with an apple slaw and spicy relish, all of those flavors went great together. Probably the best pork belly I've ever had! Of course the Roasted Corn was good, kinda hard to mess that up lol. The desserts were hit and miss, while I loved the Pineapple Upside Down Cake which was super moist and delicious I did not like the "Banana Cream Pie Parfait". This was in no way a parfait it was more like banana pudding stuffed into some hard cone thing, this was not properly executed and I was not a fan. Aside from the food and drinks they did have plenty of entertainment as well. On the American Stage they had 4 different bands that would perform each day as well as the Dueling Pianos on the Gazebo Stage and each night ended with a fireworks nightcap. This is a very nice festival to attend while at the parks. Good food, good drinks and great entertainment.