I LOVE the GREEK FESTIVAL!! Every year I look forward to it! This year was my 3rd year and it was…read moretheir 60th anniversary! I caught the festival 2 days in a row this year on both Saturday and then I went back for more on Sunday! I'm so glad I went back on Sunday because I discovered that the whole inside area was NOT just overflow seating, but that there was a dining area and like a buffet-type of area and wine bar area and the kitchen demo area was in there too and another performance area AND a beautiful prayer book store!!!! WHAT!? I had no idea that was all in there so I hope they have that next year - I will explore those areas more! Saturday, I got my favorite Saganaki - flaming cheese!!! and I got the greek chicken dinner that came with greek potatoes and a deliciously light and fresh greek salad! Also got a whipped greek coffee at the coffee bar! New this year: I did get to the upper level retail vendor area and new GROCERY area which was SO delightful and intriguing. I had to look up what some of the items were but it was all very exciting. They had different rusks which - I don't know what those are but I will look into it and hopefully get some next year. They also had a lot of cheeses in the refrigerator and dairy products like lebnah and then a sour cherry drink??!! So next year I will be prepared and try some of those things and bring them home! I was looking for the Moussaka which I tried for the first time last year but I was told that they didn't have it and that they do a skip year or something and that this year they had pastitio instead, so I tried that and it was similar with the meat filling, béchamel and cinnamon and was like a casserole and it was very delicious! Also got another round of the flaming saganaki cheese which is SO good with the greek salad! I love all the social media they did this year for the event on instagram and I had even seen many clips of them on local news on YouTube leading up to the event! Very cool! So glad I got to check out 2 days of this festive community event!

6/7/26-My first time attending this event and overall it was over priced and poor to bad food and…read morejust not worth the time. Also not ADA friendly. The elevator had apparently broke on Friday and had trapped someone inside according to one worker. Long lines and high prices for the foods and drinks. Little shade and few places to sit. Then one of the vendors, 2 Greeks, were stealing money from people. They didn't bring change, so if you were paying cash, they would just keep the change. So, very crooked vendors. If you go to this once in a lifetime is enough, but I would recommend just not going. Parking was also not good. We tried to get there early, but they still had church going, so what was supposed to be the handicap lot was full of non-handicap cars. They only good thing I can say about the event was the female head of security was nice.

After a friend purchased VIP tickets for both Westword events (Out to Brunch and Tacolandia), I was…read moreexcited to be invited as his plus one to attend both events! Hosted at Civic Center Park each year, Tacolandia is easily one of the coolest taco-centered events in Denver. With this being my first time, I found myself interested, impressed and wanting to attend again next year! PRO: The festival itself is laid out well, allowing for vendors throughout the entire park - paved areas, grassy lawn, you name it, booths are there! I was pleasantly surprised about the amount of shade which was welcomed on the 100-degree day! CON: The parking situation is awful and extremely limited. We were lucky to get a spot a few blocks away for $15 and took it on the spot. Just be prepared to pay and walk. PRO: VIP area was tiny but mighty - offering at least 4 restaurants and a bar to the VIP ticket holders. We hit the bar first and was surprised by the number of non-alcoholic offerings (sober girlie now). CON: Two of the restaurants weren't ready when the gates opened, so we missed out on a few items to start. Also, the judgment from one bartender regarding the "mocktail" I ordered was a little offputting. PRO: 30+ restaurants came out to showcase their delicious offerings - ranging from tacos, to soups, churros, quesadillas, Bierria and a million other options - all of which were absolutely delicious! One ice cream truck was also there, providing a variety of delicious items to cool off! We made our round within the VIP hour, which we were thankful for. ....CON: because damn, it fills up fast when the general public comes in! By the time we were walking out, each line was bout 30+people deep! Yeesh! Despite the heat, my friend and I feasted, had fun and can easily see returning next year!

If you know me at all (especially through Yelp), you've figured out that I LOVE tacos. So of course…read moreI was all in when I heard about Westword's ¡Tacolandia! Today I threw on my "tacos and tequila" tank and made my way to Civic Center Park to check out the goods for the second annual ¡Tacolandia! Restaurants slinging their delish tacos included: R Taco, Los Cingones, Chuey Fus, Jefe's Tacos & Tequila, Bubba Chinos, Rio Grande Mexican Restaraunt, SOL Mexican Cocina, Lupita's Mexican Restaurant, and maaany more. So the taco devouring consumer could know what sort of tacos they were getting there were icons taped under each restaurant name depicting the type of meat or lack-there-of (ie a pig for pork, cow for beef, etc...). There was a VIP area featuring Lola Coastal Mexican and a variety of their tacos and their signature coin margarita. Those were the best! It's not all just tacos and tequila! Little Man Ice Cream was there serving up three of their signature flavors: salted oreo, space junkie, and Mexican chocolate. I opted for the Mexican chocolate. Which is a favorite of mine even outside of the fest. Jarritos was there serving up some Mexican sodas. Melinda's Hot Sauce was there slinging some sauce! I really enjoyed the jalapeño and mango variety's. Heck there was even a silent disco that looked pretty awesome! I can say that once general admission was in full swing the lines were at least 15 people deep at each of the tents. That was a major bummer. There was supposed to be some tents offering VIP "express lanes," but if there was I couldn't figure out which ones offered it. I hope that gets improved in the coming years. Given my love for tacos I know I will keep this fest on my radar for the years to come!

I do this with a VIP ticket that I get through work, so I'm already starting with a positive. That…read morebeing said, this is otherwise still an amazing event! Music, drinks, food, and a great cause? I love it! And the people-watching is amazeballs. Enjoy!

I was so excited about reading about the fetish ball and how it was their 16th annual last night…read more My husband bought a Groupon for a male ticket, female ticket, and bondage gift. It was also supposed to start at 7p per our Groupon. We showed up at 730p and they told us that only VIPs were allowed in at 7p and that we couldn't get in until 9p. Well, we showed them the Groupon and they let us in. When we got in, we realized that they just opened and nothing was set up. The dancers didn't start on the stage til 8 something and performers were still trickling in. If I had paid for VIP, I would have been disappointed since they were still trying to figure out the night. Most of the entertainment was in their After Dark area, but it was so divided and crammed that it wasn't really worth watching the acts upstairs. I felt that the other stages upstairs in After Dark were thrown in a corner. The downstairs in Diamond Cabaret were 1 stage of performers and 3 stages for their normal dancers. The headliner for the event who was supposed to be a world renowned fetish model was on stage for maybe 3 min. Her act consisted of sitting on a chair, removing her shoes and stockings, putting on ankle bondage cuffs, removing her bra and skirt, putting on wrist bondage cuffs and a blindfold, then being escorted off the stage but a not so pretty drag queen. They also installed a small dance floor in between the stages. Normal tickets were $39 for damsels and $79 for dukes. I felt like it was a glorified costume party at a strip club. Highly disappointed especially considering the prices to get in. My husband and I left before midnight because it was just a let down. Entrance to After Dark was an additional price at $20/person.

The 2023 white rose gala was such a disappointment. we got the VIP tickets because we wanted to…read moreavoid too many lines and crowds however it still took us nearly 2 hours just to get drinks. It was very understaffed, the VIP section was small and the main area more interesting but the table we purchased was in the VIP area so not much we could do besides abandon the table we paid for. the music was not fitting for the event besides, the live band that played for maybe an hour max that was good. the balloon drop that was supposed to happen at midnight that everybody was waiting for never happened. a staff member had to pull over the mermaid and manually climb up there to drop the balloon nets one by one. The selfie with the light broke as we were waiting in line for it. just overall way too expensive for the experience, which was very college like considering how expensive the tickets tables and drinks were.

Good times were had in the wilderness outside of the city!…read more I rarely venture out into the sticks, but this was a fun experience! There were a lot of breweries and some great music acts. I loved how they were selling oversized water buffalo hats and then people were wearing them! Also, the photo option was a hoot, gimme a bonnet, a chicken, and a pitchfork anytime for a picture! It was thankfully not too sunny or rainy, as there was no shelter. And there were prairie dog holes and signs warning of rattle snakes so that was crazy. But, in the end all of the money goes to a good cause and that is what matters. It would've been good if some food was included in the price or a bottle of water, but it is a charity event. I had some great beers and ciders, talked to some friendly brewers and got some stickers too!

Good times had by all. The beers were flowing, the tunes were pumping and the people seemed to be…read morehaving fun. I'd say all in all you couldn't really have a better beer fest in the outskirts of Aurora. Being from Denver this was quite a hike for myself and I had to be a bit cognizant of how many samples I did try, but I still had a great time. All of the breweries seemed to have brought out there big guns and were very willing to give a bit of a spiel on each. I was very happy to see the breweries in Parker and Highlands Ranch were there, since I rarely get out to this area to try out beers. Everything was delicious and overall I would recommend anyone to attend next year. Along with the good beers the bands were cool covering classic hits, as well as, giving some fresh new songs. They also had a little photo area where we could dress up as prairie folk.Overall great experience!

OMG, if you don't go at least once and, you love pinball, this is your annual spot! Free play,…read moretrivia, multiple rooms and cool merch. Some macines wentout of service but, there are so many, coupled with the room full of older consoles, that it's unnoticeable. The food is typical snacks but, enough to fuel you up .

The pinball showdown is such a wonderful experience for families, kids and adults alike!read more

You can call it cheesey if you must, but we're cheddar together!…read more Having heard rumors of a festival that incorporates grilled cheese, mac and cheese, and beer I just knew I found my Saturday plans. So we donned our fest apparel, skipped breakfast, and made our way to the Stockyard Event Center to nosh and sip the afternoon away at the Denver Grilled Cheese and Mac Fest. Yum! STAR #1 - Early entry is where it's at! You get 30 additional minutes before the general admission crowd joins in the fun. Def recommended getting the most out of your noshing and sipping! Plus you get a handy spork to aid in your consumption of all the cheesy goodness which is pretty cool! STAR #2 - The bites were *chefs kiss! From I Heart Mac n Cheese, to Chick-fil-A, to Bandwagon Sandwich Co, to Alpha Charlie's, and so many more! There was mac and cheese pizza, chorizo mac, green chili mac, legit too many to name - but all wildly delicious! STAR #3 - The sips were the perfect pairing to wash down all the yummy eats! Denver's finest were in attendance: Prost Brewing Co, Ceria, Black Shirt Brewing, Golden City Brewing, Firestone Walker, Mythology Distillery, Odell Brewing - you get the picture. The Denver craft beer scene was well represented. STAR #4 - Loved the DJ! Though I will say there were times his volume was a bit off for the song and I found myself telling to talk to someone next to me. Overall, though, he rocked it! STAR #5 - The venue choice was great! It was nice to have a large space to host all the attendees and ample parking for those of us that opted to drive. An option of some benches would have been nice to take a load off, but the high top tables throughout helped while eating, for sure. Have to say that this was my first Grilled Cheese and Mac Fest, but it won't be my last. Cheese is life and I am here for it! Cheers, Denver!

Ciao Cara! If you find yourself craving a little Italian food, music or wares, bring your…read more"appetito per la pizza e pizelle". Plenty of vendors for that as festval goers have options to enjoy a slice of Italian Pie. Shop local businesses here as they share their creativity and artistry, be it with clothing or empty wine bottles. Best part is the time of year so take a stroll on Alaska and enjoy all the festival offers. Colorado is "in its season", so grab a bite and park yourself in front of the music stage (the event showcases local talent with two band stages), then watch the local troop "throw flags" at closing ceremonies. Bella!

Our family attends every year! One of the highlights of the summer for us! The kids crushing grapes…read moreis fun for the whole family to watch...face painting and delicious food! Gigantic rice crispy treats, authentic Italian desserts, the olive oils are a must buy as well is the farmers market! Sausage and peppers are my favorite foods to sample and the strawberries and cheesecake on a stick is to die for! Make sure you bring tons of cash for the food samples, games for kids, drinks and gifts! For a family of four we bring $200 but that buys us each food, drinks, face painting, a bottle of wine, olive oil and veggies from the farmers market! Make sure to list this as a must for September! Bel-Mar is also such a beautiful area and the shops are fantastic as well