Great summer food option at Great America! We were very lucky that we got to come here when our day…read moreunder the sun with rollercoasters and the water park coincided with Taste of Orleans. Since everything here looked way more delicious than the regular food park (and we confirmed they're much better!), here's my review of each offering. We paid to get a badge with little tabs that you rip off for each dish that you take. They're small bites, and the nice thing is that between the 3 of us, we got to share and sample each dish. These were what they offered at each lettered station: A) Chicken & Sausage Gumbo over rice A) Cajun Brownie B) Crawfish Fritters with Creole dipping sauce B) Muffuletta Slider C) Fried Oyster Po' Boy C) Boudin Sausage with Peppers D) Creole Shrimp and Crab Cheesecake D) Crawfish Boil E) Blackened Chicken Pizza E) Peach Cobbler F) Beignets F) Praline Bread Pudding These were some standouts: 1) Boudin Sausage with peppers--this was the first one I ate, soooooo good! It consisted of sausage stuffed with rice and peppers. Wish there was more sausage. 2) Cajun brownie--it looked like an ordinary though tasty brownie. Once you bite into it, you realize there's a spicy kick! 3) Crawfish Fritters with Creole dipping sauce--fritters were small, and they give you waaayyyy too much sauce, more than you need. 4) Muffuletta sliders--I took a bite, sliders aren't my thing 5) Fried Oyster Po'Boy--not a whole lot of oysters, to be honest. I would have liked more of them. 6) Gumbo--nice and hearty 7) Creole shrimp and crab cheesecake--one of my faves! It's a savory cheesecake, very unique! Save the creole sauce from the crawfish fritters (if you get them), because the dipping sauce goes so well with this cheesecake! 8) Blackened chicken pizza--mmm, good pizza! It was funny to receive this and marvel over how much better than looked compared to the basic pizzas that were being served to those getting standard food 9) Peach Cobbler--it was fantastic to see my boyfriend enjoying this. So nice and sweet! 10) Beignets--sweet, with an explosion of powdered sugar everywhere. I looked like a cocaine addict Great America should definitely do more of these food events!

The Taste Of Orleans Festival premiered at California's Great America for the first time this year…read moreand I must say that I was very impressed. This seems to be the new thing with various amusement parks having food and wine festivals and I think it's a great idea because it allows the guests to try different foods and beverages outside of the normal amusement park fare. The festival took place in the Orleans Square section of the park and this are was really brought to life with various New Orleans style decorations, the huge Taste Of Orleans billboard/postcard and of course the zydeco music blasting throughout the area. This festival was held for two week on weekends only from 12-10. They had various creole/cajun food items that were available during this festival such as shrimp po'boys, Muffulettas, beignets, Crawfish Étouffée and so on. You could purchase the items seperately or purchase the tasting card. The tasting card listed 6 items to sample for $25 they included the beignets, creole meatballs, bourbon grilled chicken wings, Crawfish Étouffée, chicken and andouille gumbo and red beans & rice. I tried everything on the tasting card except the red beans & rice and I must say that I was really impressed with the food. The portion size was very generous and 2 people could probably split the tasting card and get full. The bourbon grilled chicken wings were really good they had a sweet and spicy flavor and were cooked to perfection. The creole meatballs came with three huge meatballs that were tender and not overcooked and topped with this unique sweet sauce (probably my favorite item). The crawfish etouffee was very good, it was my first time trying it and I was not disappointed. It was very spicy and full of flavor and served over rice. The gumbo I was skeptical to try because I don't eat gumbo, actually haven't had it in over 10 years but it was pretty good it had nice chunks of chicken and spicy andouille sausage but I wish it was served with rice or at least a piece of french bread. And lastly the beignets, these I was not too impressed with because I felt they were too heavy and tasted too much like a donut. I've had real beignets and while these were a step in the right direction they didn't really make the mark for me. I wanted to try the special bananas foster funnel cake but was too full. They also had a beer & wine tasting room and you could purchase a tasting card for that as well and from what I was told the pourings were very generous as well. Aside from the food there was lots to see and lots of entertainment throughout the area. There were two stages where a couple different bands played the traditional Zydeco music and they were good bands might I add. It really added to the festival and it was nice to see everyone dancing and enjoying themselves. There were about 6-7 artists making chalk art and it was amazing, they endured that heat and messed up concrete to draw this lovely artwork. Then every hour or so there was another band and singer that had the little second line thing going on, they would come from the middle of the park playing music all the way to Orleans Place. All of the staff working the festival had their nice Mardi Gras colors and outfits on, the girls on stilts were a hit with everybody. They would be dancing and throwing beads to the crowds of people while the band played. Then to end the night after the festival they had Cajun themed fireworks, these were by far the best fireworks I've ever seen at Great America although they were a bit on the short side. I see they have taken a page out of Disneyland's book because this was just amazing, when it starts all of the lights go out and the Zydeco music starts playing but the fireworks are timed to the music. They had fireworks and fire shooting from the buildings and everything. They really outdid themselves and I was very impressed. I absolutely loved the festival and was told that it will be back next year but bigger and better and I think it's definitely work checking out!

This was a really nice event, much better than I expected. What more can I say?…read more Kim said it all.

***************************** 1369 ***************************…read more Bite Silicon Valley, Day 1, How Can We Shape The Future of Food, Health, and Technology to help our Growing Population, End Food Waste, Create Affordable Food for All, and GMOs Debate Conference, at Levi's® Stadium. The Bite Silicon Valley, the nation's first-ever FESTIVAL exploring the intersection of food + tech, at Levi's® Stadium June 5-7, 2015 has come to a close, marking the very first year of the best and the brightest in the worlds of culinary, chefs, innovators, pioneers, winemakers, and tech all got together in the heart of Silicon Valley. With over 60 chefs, 30 wineries, 20 speakers, and all for great cause, Bite SV Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara & San Mateo Counties and the 49ers Foundation. Unlike other Food & Wine Festivals in Las Vegas, South Beach or Aspen, where celebrity sightings, fancy dinners, after-parties, and happy hours sponsored by many luxurious high end brands; Bite has been a successful food + wine + tech + innovation festival, like no other, where ideas, issues, awareness, and solutions were raised and together we will make this world a better place. I was humbled and truly honored to attend Bite SV and joined favorite chefs and Bite Silicon Valley to make a difference in our community. Day 1 with chefs: Jose Andres, Michael Chiarello, Roy Choy, Kerry Diamond, Editor in Chief, Yahoo Food., Dorothy Cann Hamilton CEO of International Culinary Institute, Hampton Creek, Josh Tetrick, CEO/Founder, Dr. Robert Fraley, EVP and CTO of Monsato, food waste activist Jordan Figueiredo, and more. It was an amazing day 1 of the festival. Bite Silicon Valley, Day 2 & 3, Grand Tasting, Cooking Demonstrations, Seminars, Plant Based Food, Clean Energy, and Wine Industry, at Levi's® Stadium. There was different chefs on each day, but you can always check the website, so you can meet your favorite celeb chefs and chat with them - Chefs: Roy Choi (LA), Jose Andres (ThinkFoodGroup, Bazaar Meat, e, Jaleo), Michael Voltaggio (Top CHef alum, Ink LA), Michael Mina, Peter Armellino (Pumed Horse), Dominique Crenn (Atelier Crenn), Dmitry Elperin (Village Pub), Richie Farina (chicago), Yu Min Lin (The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse), Louis Maldonaldo (Top Chef Alum, and Spoonbar), Charles Phan (Slanted door), Parke Ulrich (waterBar) just to name a few. There was so much food and wines flowing all weekend long. There was NEVER a line to anything. This is probably 1 of my favorite food and wine festival of all, because of the imitative and goal to end food waste, how to feed the 9 billions people on this earth by the year 2050, fight GMO, and better way to end world hunger. No food went wasted this inauguration Bite Silicon Valley because company Feed Forward took the food and passed on the less fortunate each day. They were able to feed more than 500 homeless and low income families on each day of the festival. This is not only a festival but it's for a greater cause. BITE Silicon Valley is pleased to support two outstanding organizations: Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties (SHFB) is the trusted leader dedicated to ending local hunger in Silicon Valley. Since its inception in 1974, SHFB has become one of the largest food banks in the nation, and could literally fill Levi's Stadium three times over with the number of people that it serves every month. Second Harvest provides the equivalent of one million meals every week of the year. Through a network of more than 330 non-profit agencies, SHFB distributes healthy food to one out of every ten local residents. More than 90% of the food distributed is highly nutritious, and over half is fresh produce. The 49ers Foundation mission is to 'Keep Kids Safe, on Track and in School.' The Denise DeBartolo York Education Center, located inside The 49ers Museum at Levi's Stadium, provides learning platforms that connect, inspire, and engage students in grades K-8. The curriculum will feature content-rich lessons in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), ingrain invaluable life skills and encourage physical activity. Your $150 for the grand tasting is money well spent. Because you make a different in your community! P.S. Parking is FREE, the volunteers and staffs were amazing the whole 3 days of the festival.

So imaginarium is a little pop up that comes out in different locations, constantly moving! Seen…read morethis little pop up and had to bring my lil family to explore this! I heard from my coworker how fun and exciting this place is! Definitely a place to take a lot of pictures! You will have to come when the sun is out so you can experience the beautiful lights! They have little coloring games, a bubble foam machine, and even little concerts!

Took my niece and nephew here and my nephew kept screaming "best day ever" while running around, so…read moreI'd say this place is a resounding success! We went at around 9 pm on July 4th and there was still a lot of people but not enough to dampen the experience thankfully. Tickets are easy to grab online and there is ample parking available because it's in the great mall. When we first walked in we were greeted with lots and lots of foam. Foam in the air like its snowing, and foam on the ground. My nephew was so excited and kept running through it excitedly which was cute. We were also told the last show of the day was about to start so we luckily caught it. Loved watching all 3 performers - aerial, juggling, and hoops. From there we just walked around and saw as much as we could. The little rooms they have with different decorations and aesthetics are great for pictures and selfies. There are so many good photo ops that I basically spent an hour being the munchkins personal photographer :) was a great time

I've been coming to the Willow Glen Holiday lights for almost 10 years now, and it is pure…read moremagic...minus the crowds. It's amazing to see how all-out so many of the houses go, just about every single one has some sort of Christmas or Hanukkah display, light, or decoration. It's also amazing how much more crowded it gets every year. I used to drive it, but now I don't dare try. I'll typically park near one of the main streets and get out and walk. This is usually much more enjoyable since you aren't having to fight nonstop car and foot traffic. This year I went a little late in the season and even walking it wasn't all that enjoyable because of the groups of 15+ people together and the people running around doing a scavenger hunt, so lesson learned. This past year we parked a bit further and got to see some displays that I either haven't seen in the past or are newer, but it was nice to stroll the less crowded streets and still enjoy the holiday magic. Unlike in years past, there were even street dog vendors out this time around. Felt like I was leaving a concert or a sporting event!

The wonderful people of Willow Glen produces amazing holiday displays for both Halloween and…read moreChristmas. The festivities and major decorations are very much appreciated by those who may not have the resources to partake in decorating. There are a few neighborhoods in Willow Glen you can walk through and look at beautiful displays. It is animal and kid friendly Another way to view these decorations is something called the Holiday Trolley Ride that you purchase to participate and The trolley rides through the decorated neighborhoods. (Not pet friendly) I recommend bundling up because it gets chilly at night. Don't miss out! Thank you people of Willow glen!

Our favorite convention every year is CAX! Crowds have grown a lot over the years (my first was in…read more1999) but Mark, Michelle, Jim, and everyone else who puts on this show do an amazing job of keeping it well-run, fun, and friendly! Now that it's at the Hyatt Regency each year, we've often stayed in the hotel or one of the other closeby partner hotels and make a local vacation out of it. There's nothing like waking up in the morning and heading right to the pinball action! Lots of new and classic video games, too! My 6-year old is shaping up to be a li'l pinball wizard and her 2-year old sister is not far behind! It's really awesome and encouraging to see all the young kids picking up on pinball! If you've never been, plan on checking this out next tine it's going on (usually late July every year)!

This event used to be very fun. Last time I was there, I did have some fun playing old games…read moreagainst my sweetie. However, this event has gotten overly crowded. When we went to it this year, we came early so we can get to play the most popular games and avoid the crowds. My sweetie and I got our tickets- $40 each! About 40 minutes before the facilities opened. No one told us where to wait nor anything so we decided to hang out in the lounge but found it strange that there were not crowds of people there waiting as well. Finally, about 10 minutes before the event, a staff person told us where we had to wait in line! Now that was after we acted confused and thought the event already started as we almost walked into the room. NO STAFF PERSON INFORMED US WHERE WE HAD TO WAIT IN LINE AT TIME OF PURCHASING THE TICKETS! So we found out that it was like a ballroom where there was a line that went around the wall. My sweetie told a staff person how upset he was. The guy said that once the event starts, that line will move fast. And yes, he was right but that is not why people come early! People come early to be the first to play the latest games. Once we got in, there were already long lines for the most popular pinball games. Even the games I recall in my teens were already taken up. I played a few rounds of the Skee Ball but once an annoying preteen girl who was so into herself cut in front of me. I found the merchandise that was over priced as well as always. To save money, my sweetie and I took a break for lunch and simply ate our cold deli sandwiches in our car as we watched a young couple construct hammocks from their SUV to lounge in all the while in the garage! It was hilarious to see!! But mostly, I did not like this event as much as I did in the past. Not being properly informed of where to wait before the event started, it being extremely crowded, no great deals on merchandise, ...and that allusive raffle for a pinball machine that only someone who is financially well off and who probably already owns one or more pinball machines should own. Pinball machines are fun but when they break down as I constantly see at events like this, they are costly to repair if you do not know how to repair them. I did not even see the Alameda Pinball Museum represented here which would have made the event more fun for me. I always enjoyed seeing that they were selling and to hear about the progress in getting a larger facility for the large pinball game collection that they have. Come to think of it, I would have rather went to the museum where there is not large groups of people - museum may be small and may only have one or two of the latest pinball computerized games but I would enjoy it more. I just sat around most of the time at the Pinball Extreme feeling tired not from lots of pinball game playing but from the overwhelmed crowds of people there.

Come next year if you want to get in the holiday spirit! About three blocks of houses with lights…read more Some are cute and some are simply amazing !! A few sell hot cocoa. They don't shut the street from car traffic, but they do limit it to one way. You walk on the sidewalk but there's enough room to go around people. Incredibly crowded. Pro tip: Find parking a few blocks away and walk. Like on Arroyo. Park BEFORE the car line starts or you will be stuck.

Á fun way to get in the holiday spirit. This last Dec we took my granddaughter and she was amazed…read moreat all thé beautiful lights and colorful decorations. Almost every house on the 2 block walkable streets are fully decorated in holiday spirit. Many houses in the adjacent area join in with more festive fun decor. My personal tip is to go on a weeknight, early in Dec for less crowds. Best to park a couple blocks before Orange Ave (near Britton Park) and walk into the area. Bring the family and enjoy!

I visited Winterfest last weekend and had a great time with my family. Many other families and kids…read morevisited as well, it was traffic entering the parking lot. As a Gold Pass member, I was really happy to get free parking + park entry for Winterfest. Winterfest ran from 4pm-10pm and we stayed nearly the entire time. We mostly visited just to take pictures with the decorations, tree, and the lights, and we were not disappointed. Seeing as there aren't many Christmas activities in the South Bay (outside of Christmas in the Park in DTSJ and Santana Row), I recommend visiting for the holidays! Since I didn't have to pay for park entry, I splurged a little on the holiday foods. The beignets were my favorites of the holiday foods, but pretty pricey at $6 each. The hot chocolate was hit or miss, depending on where you bought it. The funnel cake was good, but too sweet after a while. (Highly recommend splitting that with as many ppl as possible bc of how sweet it is haha) Dress warmly and have fun!

To be honest, I wasn't expecting much as I've been to Great America back when it was THRIVING like…read moreParamount's Great America. When we had Top Gun, Vortex, and a working IMAX theater. Well we had family coming and they were interested in coming and luckily they took advantage of the Black Friday sale. So for about $20 a ticket plus $20 parking it was a bargain. So make sure you buy tickets when it's Black Friday! Parking is organized. Just be wary that if you come right at opening, it's a long line to get in but there's plenty of parking. There are areas for folks who just want to be dropped off. After getting scanned for your tickets, you're basically on your way. There's a gigantic ice rink in the front, of course you have to pay extra, but all the rides are free. We just kind of went to the first ride right away and I guess everyone does this. I forgot how rickety wooden rollercoasters are. Yeah I was not doing so well after that one. But I rallied. It was a little long wait but it wasn't atrocious (there's another ride which was). Demon is as great as it was how I remembered. There's just so much variety in that ride. It has great ride to thrill payoff. Now we went to Flying Eagles which...took forever like...the niece really really wanted to ride it so we waited. Unluckily for us, someone had an accident as we approached the front of the line and that delayed us even more. I think we ended up waiting like 1.5 hours? Yeah. Not worth it. So go here first if you want to ride it without the wait. It did get a bit cold, so make sure you bring jackets. There are a lot of non-rides to enjoy like pretty lights and singers/dancers on different stages as well as themed food for Winterfest. It was quite expensive for food. The funnel cake I believe almost cost $20. But hey...gotta get delicious funnel cake and it fed 5 people so not too shabby. The lines are a little crazy, food prices are a little extravagant, but as long as you know what you're getting into, it's actually much more fun than I thought it would be especially for the Black Friday price which was well worth it. I would totally go again but I hear they're shutting down Great America soon. So I got lucky to at least experience this once. But if it is open still this year, I'd totally go again.

Super fun!!!!!! Our…read morefirst event!!! Will definitely be back!!! My son's first time at an event like this!!

First time here attending hypecon and I must say I enjoyed every bit of it. We booked our tickets…read morelast minute and ended up getting the BT21 VIP since the hypecon VIP was sold out already. Tickets were $49.00 per person for VIP. I do wish they did more on the badge it was honestly a bit too simple. For the VIP you get to enter the event an hour before general admission. It was definitely nice to walk around without the crowd so I definitely would take advantage of that first hour. How I would describe hypecon: overwhelming, amazing and fun. You have to have patience. This particular hypecon had so much pokemon I honestly did not know which one to go to first. Anybody who collects pokemon cards, this is the place for you. I loved all the sticker vendors. Their artwork was so cool. There was honestly so much to look at it was definitely overwhelming. I did love every single bit of it. Everyone was friendly, I was dressed up, there were other folks that were dressed up it was awesome. They also had a whole food section by the stage/dj. I didnt get to try the food but it smelled good. My one issue was I wish when we checked in, they explained the raffle tickets and all the other checklist things that you can do to get prizes. I wish there was a better organization to where there's arrows or signs that says go here first and what not. Anyways, all in all this was a great experience. So much vendors, everyone was friendly. You can definitely do some damage to your wallet here

Lots of really good food and drinks. Worth the price of admission. Huge variety of food. Something…read morefor everyone.

We tried this out before the Rams game this past Sunday. We loved it! They have a ton of different…read morefoods, including a carving station, sushi, wings, pasta, and burgers! They also include beer and wine and champagne in the cost of the tickets. They have multiple bars and there was no waiting in line. You even get to ride the roller coaster again no waiting, and you could ride it unlimited times. You can eat inside or outside and they have tvs with football onand live music. Would definitely recommend if you want to pregame without the prep or the clean up! We loved it!

Perfect location. Good vibes everywhere. They do a very good job around here in downtown Sunnyvale…read more I love the live performances on stage and O.M.G. Entertainment hosting the spot. Food selections are wide and it's great to see Asian communities and businesses coming together to provide annual mid-Autumn festival activities here. Sunnyvale weather is always warm/sunny/gorgeous outside. The Martin and other Cityline high rise buildings really add colors to life here. Best of all, Sunnyvale train is walkable distance. Plenty of free public parking garages to choose from. This year, Labubu dolls and doll clothes were everywhere. Food costs are still high and I still wish that more vendors would come out for a good spot each year. This year, there were delicious durian treats, roasted milk teas, candied fruits on a stick, grilled meats on sticks, roasted chestnuts, and coconut jello/sweet desserts. Handmade crochet bags are everywhere, but wow, they're not cheap for sure. Overall, this is worth visiting around the mid-Autumn moon festival days. I enjoyed watching the stage programs and children showing up in their best performance costumes.

So much food, drinks and fun! The booths are delicious Asian snacks you don't normally see at the…read moreyearly art and wine festivals. Daikon cake, sugarcane juice, aqua frescas, Indonesian street food, soy milk, coconut pudding, skewers and much much more. Don't forget boba and desserts. A great violinist playing contemporary songs brightened the atmosphere by another notch for the family fun. Everyone's loving it!! In front of AMC theater and Whole Foods downtown Sunnyvale and the streets are closed for safety.