The Fry Down is a fantastic annual event for adults and kids alike. This fundraiser helps ensure a…read morehealthy future for the Cahaba River and let's you have a great time in the process. Birminghamians love cooking competitions, so you know the crowd will always be good. There are usually around a dozen teams that provide fish for the crowd. In addition there is beer for the adults and cooking demonstrations as well. For the kids, there are clowns, hands on activities, and even an area for them to play in the river itself.

The annual CCA (Coastal Conservation Association) Crawfest is being held at the Birmingham Zoo May…read more7, 2015. Silent auction, raffle, Food, drink, and Crawfish! The event is catered by Crazy Cajuns. There is more than just crawfish and some really great trips and prizes. This even is primarily an adult event, but all ages are welcome. Live music featuring Rollin In The Hay. Proceeds benefit the Alabama Coastal Conservation Association. This is a Birmingham premier event which attracts over 1,000 people every year. Open to the Public, all donations welcome! From 5-9 on May 7, 2015.

I went to the Festa Italiliana today which was a lot of fun. It's a nice venue but a little rocky…read moreso people that have mobility and balance issues really have to be careful. One thing this event could have done to make it better would have been to provide a map of activities and vendors. Just would have like to also see more Italian wine. All in all, it was very pleasant. Had great food, drink and nice people.

Lowering my review after this year's festival. There was bad weather both days, and Sloss only…read morecared about their liability. On Saturday, everyone was forced out of the location by their staff, and onto train tracks which had trains on them, leaving several people to almost get hit. The staff were also telling people the whole day was closed, which was not the case. They just wanted people to leave. We missed out on about 3hrs of shows on Saturday due to all of this. On Sunday, bad weather struck again. We were not forced off the property this time, Sloss having learned its lesson. However, we were all gathered underneath the overpass and were there 4-5 hrs. When someone plugged in a phone and played music to help pass the time and improve the mood, it was removed after 3 songs, upsetting everyone. Eventually the festival resumed, but only 3 acts remained to play that night. Overall, a pretty disappointing experience, and Sloss has yet to really comment or offer any kind of refund for literally missing over half the shows promised. I know they have no control over weather, but some kind of response and restitution would be appreciated. I hope next year is better, or Sloss may not recover.

Great food event at Sloss Furnaces this year! There was food from EastWest, The Mayor, Bongiorno,…read moreSol y Luna, Tre Luna, Adorned Sweets, Daniel George, Habitat Feed & Social, and Troup's Pizza (that I can remember at least!). There were cocktails from Reve, Paper Doll, Adios, as well as beer and wine samples. It is a great way to taste some local cuisine!

This is an annual event held in Linn Park, downtown Birmingham…read more This is a well conceived, but poorly executed event. Tickets are sold in advance and at the gate. There is not enough of a discount for the pre-sales to take the risk of inclement weather as absolutely no refund is offered. That would be okay if the "organizers" did some planning and made arrangements for rain. But no, they have outside tables with no cover so these tables are useless if it rains or is very hot as was the case in 2013. You end up standing in line for measly offerings of food and then stand to eat. There are no facilities in the event itself to go relieve yourself of consumed beverages. Why not expand the area for the restaurants? This is a real charlie foxtrot. Nobody can walk by, the lines are ridiculously long and when it rains, it is just a massive jam. If you are going to take my money and offer no refund, you need to plan for rain, very hot weather and other contingencies. The portions are small, usually cold and unappetizing. You can go to a good restaurant for the money and not have to put up with all the inconvenience. We will not go back until better planning is initiated. I would recommend taking this event off your future plans. I came home wet, aggravated, disappointed and feeling like my pocket had been picked. No, no, just no. If you want to be miserable, go. Otherwise, go somewhere else. IMHO, this is the kind of event that needs to go out of business.

Magic City Art Connection is a very special event that brings together artists from all around the…read moreSoutheast. Entrance this year was $15. Even if you only utilize this event as a gallery viewing, the cost is well worth it. The creativity of some people is mind-blowing. There were dozens (hundreds? I'm not great at estimating numbers) of booths of all kinds of media, including painting/drawing/visual, jewelry, sculpture, and more. I purchased a coffee mug from an artist whose designs were inspired by the events of 9/11 and technique was derived from Ancient Greece. I also purchased a necklace from an artist whose techniques included some from Korean tradition that melded together gold and silver. Truly beautiful. These items were evidently made with great care and quality materials. I felt that the prices were extremely reasonable. There are several activities within the Art Connection that would be fun for children and are included in the cost of entrance. My friend and I stopped by the Amor booth and made beaded bracelets. There are food vendors in and around the Art Connection, but the lines were quite long! All in all, would recommend, and the weather was perfect this year!

It's been a couple of years since we'd attended MCAC, but we went this year because a friend…read moresuggested Corks & Chefs. It was GREAT. The parking was easy. Check in took a minute, but was well organized. Corks & Chefs was fabulous and turned us on to some new venues (and taught us more about tequila!). The vendors were super high quality and friendly. There were local folks displaying their wares in addition to regional and even national folks. I attend a fair amount of "craft festivals", but this was beyond that in level of quality. Really a fine group of assembled craftspeople. Thanks ONB!

My friends and I came here for the Summer Shindig last weekend. We had the best time! Admission was…read more$12 and with that we were each able to pick out 5 sunflowers and got complimentary watermelon. There was also hayride, fireworks, cute farm animals, live music, and lots of vendors that day. I can't wait to come back here for more events!

We visited this farm on a school field trip! It's a cute family run establishment. They have a…read moregreat setup with a hayride, pumpkin patch, cotton picking fields, animals, hay bale maze, playground and pic nic eating areas. The employees were so friendly and seemed to genuinely enjoy their jobs! I loved the cotton picking session, it was a bit lengthy on the history discussion and the kids (kindergarteners) lost interest about 10 minutes into the 20 minute speel. Overall, we had a fantastic time! BTW, I hear they do a fun setup for Christmas ;)

Yes We pulled up to this black owned ranch hidden in near Adamsville, just past Forestdale. We came…read moreto attend a memorial bday party. The host drove up in an all terrain vehicle and told us where to park. We took a short walk to the picnic area. They have multiple pavilions with the side shades. Grills were available and fans were brought out to cool the day off . They brought out a Misting fan to cool us off. They have an above ground pool with seating area and there is a kiddie pool as well. Three nice portable Johns were available. There was a volley ball court with sand. Extra seating areas all over. Multiple horses available to ride; watch out for the pods in their zones. It is worth a try.

I finally made my first trip to Sidewalk Cinema for the Summer of Spike series and saw "Do the…read moreRight Thing". It was such a great experience from the moment I walked in. The lobby is incredibly inviting--I even noticed someone relaxing at a table, coloring, which perfectly captured the laid-back, community feel of the space. Having a bar in the lobby was a nice touch too, making it easy to grab a drink before the movie. The theater has a cozy, welcoming atmosphere that's perfect for enjoying classic and independent films on the big screen. Seeing "Do the Right Thing" in a theater setting reminded me of the genius Spike Lee is!! I'll definitely be back for more screenings.

I absolutely love Sidewalk Cinema! My guy and I enjoyed a showing of the movie "Love and…read moreBasketball" as part of a special tribute to director Gina Prince Bythewood during Women's History Month. I love the roomy seats and the no frills online ticket sales. There's so much to do here besides viewing the movies. You can play games, both board games and computer games, you can sip on cocktails and chat, or enjoy the themed nights offered throughout the year. I love this place so much that I may become a member! I encourage the city to please support this independent cinema. It's a nice space that we want to keep around for a very long time.