I went for two days. I parked on the street which was challenging with the meters. The final day…read morehad free parking which was great. It wasn't extremely busy when I went, on purpose. I loved exploring and trying to various foods. You can buy coins in person or on line. The coins are what you have to use. I do wish the drinks were not samples as it is usually hot. I understand food samples but drinks so be regular size and allow people to purchase them. Loved the food that I tried. I will be back again. I appreciate getting out and exploring my area and learning more about local businesses.

I honestly did not love the crowds and the long lines on a 90 degree day . However, the items I did…read moremanage to Taste were good, I regretted that I did not go around 11 am before it got hot. The walking and lack of seating was truly exhausting.

Oh, my tummy. What I did to it today was just cruel. But sometimes it's necessary to punish one…read moreorgan when you reward another. And the part of my body getting the reward would be my taste buds. Yay for taste buds! Amazing BBQ to be had here at the festival. Starting with one of the finalists (I didn't find out if they were a winner), Rocky Top Smokies. I have never in my life had more tender melt-in-the-mouth ribs in my entire life. I will have to keep an eye out for these guys because they're simply amazing. The rest of the festival is an opportunity to sample more roasted meat and side dishes as these folks compete for prizes and bragging rights. And then are the non-BBQ tents. Prize wheels from Time Warner Cable and Fifth Third Bank (thanks for the hat!). Greyhound also had a prize wheel (thanks for the cool shopping bag and T-shirt) and one of their new buses for touring (really slick - wifi and power at every seat that is more comfortable than flying for sure). Parking is only $5 and it's a pretty good deal. We were fortunate to have great weather today - I can't imagine that it would be nearly as much fun in the rain. Get there early, get your 'cue and beer, and get going. It got crowded later in the day and it wasn't as much fun with all those people around. As Yelp Elite, we got a bit more insider information, including a "media pass" and a guided tour and explanation of the competition process for the Memphis Barbecue Network. (Side note - I need to plan "Memphis in May"). And that meant meeting the Rocky Top folks and getting to sample their wares as well as ribs from a half-dozen other competitors. So much food. Don't skip the beer sampling - hopefully they know how to pour better than I do! Purple Haze from Abita Brewery and Carolina Brewery's Sky Blue were good, but Starr Hill's Dark Starr Stout was a surprisingly delicious pour.

My first visit and if it's like this every year I will certainly be back. I think the best thing I…read moreliked about it, besides the fantastic pig, was the cool names of the BBQ competitors. But lets keep this in perspective, the food is why you come. Yes they have bands, they have craft beer but the pig is the reason for the season. Park your car and as soon as you get out you will get a wiff of the BBQ and it's like a trail of bread crumbs leading you to the promise land. Shout out to Rocky Top Smokies for their generosity with samples of their award wining pig! If I had any criticism it would be to get the local beer involvment up a bit and I think this even would be a complete blowout for all involved!

This was our second time coming to the Strawberry Festival. The last time we went was 8-10 years…read moreago. We enjoyed ourselves each time. Tips: Arrive first thing when they open to avoid traffic and finding a spot to park. They have several different lots to choose from - some will shuttle you or others are a short walk. We chose the lot with the short walk. Bring cash for this - it's $5. Arriving early allows you to walk around to each of the vendors before it gets slammed just to check things out. Lines for food started early, so if you think about having lunch at 12, be prepared for long lines. We had no issues with vendors accepting credit card or cash. Bring water. We brought our hydroflask filled with water and ice which was nice because it gets warm fast. What I love: That each vendor had at least one menu item featuring strawberries - whether it is a dessert or a meal. If you love strawberries like me, you can find a lot of great items to fill you up! Look forward to it again next year, it's a great time!

AMAZING fun time for the whole family! Great food selection from many LOCAL food establishments…read morethat have their own trucks. A standard set of faire food too... YES on the FUNNEL CAKE! A good set of rides for kids aged 8-12 years old. Prices are carnival-level... not cheap... but understandable. LOTS of lawn and grass areas to hang out. LOTS of police and safety folks very visible. All the tent vendors are in the shade, so it was easy and nice to walk around and visit them out from the sun. LOTS of toilets... AND a physical toilet building for those that dont like the plastic portable toilets. There is a NEW kids area they built in the park and they had it fenced in so the kids would not be running away and out of parent control, it was like a mini-day-care. Excellent selection of local and appropriate music to listen to that was at appropriate volume levels to be able to enjoy. Parking was difficult, but there were bus shuttles to the local school that ran every few minutes, so that was helpful. They had a classic car show, that was fun to walk around. I think they should have had more 'competition' style activities.

This festival just continues to grow each year! I genuinely love checking out Festival in the Park…read moreevery single year, because there's always something new to see. There's probably hundreds of vendors at this point, from food, drinks, desserts, artists, charities, jewelry. I mean there's SO much to see at this festival! My favorite part about it is the live music. My friends and I always bring a blanket and just come lay out there and enjoy the live band. This year it was actually the same singer as last year and she was great!!! Love her voice and she always sings upbeat songs everyone knows. It's always a whole vibe. We grab food and bring our own cooler and just pick a spot up on the hill and enjoy. That's exactly what we did this year too. For food I couldn't decide what I wanted so I kinda settled for a gyro and it was pretty good, all things considered. The fries we great though! Nice to have so many food options available though. I'll continue to come to this festival year after year!! Definitely a lifetime fan.

I enjoy FITP every year. The variety of vendors lets me purchase items I can't find in my weekly…read morejourneys. It's great to find something I've never seen before. I stopped by a cookie vendor, deliciousness! However, the food lines are typically ridiculously long. Not my speed. There should be a vendor who sells water only for one price. Parking is a task and requires a lot of patience. It may help to catch a ride and skip parking altogether.

Lots of family fun and excitement at the Rodeo! Location was easy to find, logistics were well…read morecoordinated, and the event was professionally done. We purchased tickets in advance ($20 each) but they were also available at gate with cash or card. Food options were fun- BBQ food truck, fried everything including elephant ears, fried fish, popcorn, cotton candy, corn dogs, etc. Not a salad in sight, so prepare to indulge. The beverage selection was soft drinks, lemonades with flavoring options, and water. I had a fresh squeezed lemonade with strawberry flavor that was delightfully refreshing. Lots of patrons packed their own cooler and went the BYOB route. The few who openly carried in a box of beer did not really fit in. Most responsible adults were discreet in their own cups, keeping their own trash in cooler, and handled it well. We did see some very young teenagers consuming that was concerning. Rodeo events included bareback bronco riding, saddled bronco riding, break-away calf roping, team calf roping, steer wrangling, barrel racing and of course, bull riding. Some kind of scoreboard or screen would have helped those around us keep track of things, or a visible timer. The announcer did an excellent job of explaining the scoring system and the scores of each ride. I loved the barrel racing. Lots of local talent participated along with the professionals. The rodeo clown stole the show with the kids calf scramble, a young ladies race to retrieve a water bottle, and a very well trained trick horse show. The professionals also did an excellent job of protecting the riders. Parking was easy and well laid out. The arena was in great shape and well cared for. The bleacher seats were well positioned. They could use a few signs to discourage standing or or sitting against the arena railing during the event. Police officers walked through several times to clear folks away from the rails and remind them of the danger.

After hearing about the Yiasou Greek Fedtival for years, my husband and I finally decided to…read moreventure to South End to see what it was all about. I can tell you that parking was one of my biggest deterrents in going. But I found three parking garages just a little over a half mile from the festival, making parking a non-issue with just a short walk - * Design Center garage - 240 Doggett St, $8 all day Sat & Sun * 100 West Worthington garage - $10 all day Sat & Sun * 110 East Blvd garage - $5 all day Sat & Sun We went early on Saturday, just after they opened. There are festival rides for the little ones, vendors/crafts, dancers and musical performers, tours, and of course, food. I was a little disappointed with the crafts. Other than the couple of vendors selling sterling silver items, most of the jewelry seemed of the quick-to-tarnish variety. I wasn't interested in purchasing any clothing, but they also had olive oil, Greek knick-knacks and home goods, and honey vendors. We decided against getting lunch there and headed straight for dessert, with the baklava sundae. This desert is HUGE, and my husband and I easily shared one. The topping was plentiful, and the ice cream was of high quality. Most of the "staff" working there are volunteers. I know this event takes a village to pull off, and we were impressed overall with the efficiency of the entire operation. While we didn't stay long, the baklava sundae alone will probably bring us back every year!

The chicken pita was bland and the fries were old. The pastry dough balls were the tasty and hot!read more

We love a good Food Truck and was so excited for this Festival to be able to try so many new ones!…read moreThis s was definitely a good first attempt for this festival as we had a great time and did enjoy ourselves but here are a few thoughts to hopefully make it even better next year! 1) It was hotter than Hades today so it might be nice to host it later in the fall or at least later in the day! 2) It would be incredibly helpful if the Festival provided a map of the grounds or at least listed all of the attending Food Trucks and provided a description of each. 3) Not many trucks had a $4 option as promised in the Festival description. We want to try and taste as much as possible but that's not as easy to do with the full portions being served plus it would be nice to have the option of cheaper portions. 4) We wish they had offered the VIP option without the shirt from the very beginning however the $25 VIP ticket was definitely worth it just for the shade tent. Plus it was nice that they did not oversell the VIP area. Maybe instead of including a shirt, we would have loved to have a few food vouchers or tickets included with the VIP ticket. Overall, we had a great time and will be looking forward to next year!

Largest food truck festival of the Carolinas? Sign me up. I am eternally grateful that I won the…read moreVIP tickets in the Yelp instagram contest. VIP is the way to go. Mostly because you get to enter the festival a whole hour before everyone who buys the general admission ticket. We didn't have to wait in line behind more than 5 people for anything. For a food truck festival that's insane. If you add the cost of a ticket and the cost of food (and maybe drinks), you're not looking at a cheap day. What I really liked about this festival though, was that every truck had to have a $4 item. That way you can try more items in smaller portions. Most of the trucks we ended up trying I had never even heard of before. My favorite thing was the Sriracha Chicken Bao Bun from A Bao Time. I definitely enjoyed the beer tent--- it was hot out there!!! I thought it was the perfect venue to host so many trucks and the new parking deck at Music Factory was clutch. A little more seating and shade would have been nice for such a large event.

This was my first time here and we had a wonderful time! The had a very immersive plot line mystery…read moreand a tasty dinner to go along with the story. A very nice experience worth coming back again!

Absolutely beautiful venue with very comfortable seating -- it never felt crowded. Everything was…read moreincredibly well organized and ran smoothly, making the entire experience enjoyable from start to finish. The show was fantastic, professionally executed, and the actresses were truly outstanding with their incredible dancing and singing. Highly recommend!