220 Holiday party guests had amazing food and service. The food was hot and the double food line…read moremade for quick service. The room was decorated beautifully

The St. Paul Greek Orthodox Church in North Royalton has hosted this major fundraiser for over…read moretwenty years, and it is run like a well-(olive)oiled machine. Their large, air-conditioned main hall seats hundreds, while a massive outside tent offers covered festival space in their parking lot. A makeshift midway runs between the two, lined with food, clothing, jewelry and artwork vendors. We chose to dine in the main hall, which was set up cafeteria-style, with two separate service lines. The menu included a nice variety of Greek specialties, such as seasoned, roasted chicken, braised lamb shank, gyros, fish, moussaka, stuffed grape leaves and Grecian seasoned meatballs, accompanied by an a la carte selection of side dishes and beverages. Greek beers and wines were also available. The dessert area offers quick boxed baklava, but take time to walk through and linger over the divine selection of over a dozen varieties of sticky, fruity, chocolaty, honey-nutty homemade Greek pastries. Their volunteers are more than happy to help you make your selections. This is the real deal, if you appreciate authentic Hellenic cuisine and culture. Both indoor and outdoor areas featured live bands during the evening, with a large group of young adults engaged in a lively line dance outside. Parking is tight, but they have an overflow lot nearby with shuttle service all evening. Major credit cards accepted in the main dining hall, along with most of the vendors. Delicious food, awesome desserts, great entertainment and a fabulous venue combined to make for a wonderfully pleasant evening.

First time here with my wife, good decent entertainment, fireworks. Good selection of fare, just…read morelike those expensive fares that you pay to get in to pay for everything. Anyway, looks like a good turn out, oh and they also have rides for kids.

Homemade cantaloupe ice cream and watermelon sherbet. The athletic boosters are selling fresh…read moreroasted ears of corn, with butter and salt, and auctioning a steer. Homemade lemonade made with half a lemon, water, sugar, and ice, and then shook up by some middle school kid. All day drinking at the Lions Beer Tent, or if you are trying to get laid with somebody you missed out on during high school, the Wonder Bar. Yes, this is the place to be before school starts, every Labor Day weekend. Be sure to catch the parade, and wave to the Melon Queen, selected from all the senior girls at the high school and riding on her Melon Slice Throne on the parade float.

Horrible long lines. Very few ribers. And for the beer festival a total lie only one type of beer…read moreand it was ok. I would not recommend going and I will probably never go back

Another year of the Berea Rib Festival has me in a BBQ Coma . My favorite this years was Porky…read moreChick's BBQ from Arkansas. Although the meat is a little tougher (not fall off the bone) the seasoning and taste were spot on perfection. A little peppery heat but not HOT at all. That's what I look for in BBQ. I don't buy into macho-hotter than hell to prove who a man is. That's childish, I just want a little sweet heat to let my mouth know that it's alive. Cover charge was reasonable, there was also pierogi, chicken paprikash, roasted corn, fried foods and sweets vendors as well.

One of the Best Festivals If its kind in the country, In…read morethe era of $150.00 dollar attraction for the money. $10.00 is a great Deal Many stages of live entertainment , Hugh quality Crafters, great food, Love exhibitions , Any one who doesn't see the art of this festival needs to stick with Tractor pulls and flee markets!!!!

This is by far my favorite festival. All of the vendors sell high-quality merchandise and the food…read moreis delicious!

Great festival, live Celtic and Irish pub music, family friendly…read more Only complaint is there is not enough Irish inspired food. A lot of carnival food. Would like to see more authentic foods.

The best festival around by far! Delicious food. Great live music. Tons of seating options inside…read moreand out. I look forward to it every year!

We have been going to this festival for years and years…read more Love the gyros. Last year the we realized they forgot the tzatziki when we got home. This year we checked before we drove off and we got it. Unfortunately the pita were so stale and hard. Hopefully this was just a fluke.

Countless trends have come and gone over the past century. Failure to recognize that there is no…read moreone homogenous group called white people tore apart cultural neighborhoods. New generations turn backs on the traditions that defined this city. No official recognition or PR efforts have been directed toward the Eastern European immigrant soul of Cleveland. But that soul survives. It is the churches and ethnic organizations that pass on the traditions of the muscle that created the wealth of art, industry, sports, parks and identity called Cleveland. For one day every year the Scouts recreate a neighborhood where Hungarian is spoken, bands play folk music and rhapsodies, and dancers entertain. Hungarian cuisine differentiates itself from all others in that much of it is prepared outside over open fires. After all goulash was beef cooked by cowboys in lard flavored by chilies. In Texas the same is called chili. On the grounds of the German Central Park volunteers prepare chimney cake, pork steak sandwiches, grilled kolbasz, palacsinta and the fried bread called langos. Most likely the beer garden is overflowing when the Irish or Germans hold their events but Hungary is a coffee society so the cafe is favored for pastry with strong coffee. In the restaurant the home cooked paprikas, stuffed cabbage, and sausage is endlessly served. A mass is held as well as a Protestant service. The parking lot is filled to the overflow lot across the street as Hungarians and guests come from all over the region. Like all Eastern Europeans, Hungarians are self sufficient, proud and loyal. We like life as Hungarian Americans living in the Great Lakes. Our culture endures thanks to organizations such as the Hungarian Scouts. Our influence remains whether at a stall in the West Side Market, a small restaurant in Avon, St. Emeric's defying the bishop, or the haunting music of Cleveland's Harmonia band. We are still around.

A wonderful yearly event for the Hungarian community to come together and support the CLE chapters…read moreof the Hungarian Scouts. There's something for everyone here: food, beer, music, folk dancing, and even some soccer matches. Regardless of ethnicity all are welcome.

Confession my wife is 1/2 Greek and we had her mom along with us this year who was born in Greece…read more They both enjoyed the lamb shank and none of us could pass on the little donut balls that they bring around. My favorite and choice this year was Pastitsio which is a lasagne like dish but with wonderful spice seasoned into the meat. After filling up on the food and enjoying the live music we burned some calories walking through the shops, silent auction and garage sale in the basement. It's such a lively, warm community that you feel like an extension of it right away. Last piece of advice - try something outside your comfort zone maybe Dolmades or Spanikopita.

ANNUNCIATION IS CELEBRATING ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY!…read more The Annunciation Greek Festival is in its 58th year and is hosted by Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church of Akron. As I was reviewing information regarding local activities, this festival popped up. We all know that when we hear "Greek Festival", it is akin to ringing a dinner bell. The festival was scheduled to open up at 11 am and we arrived shortly before to get the "lay of the land". The one thing I really appreciated about this event is that it was free and parking was on site. I have never attended a "free" festival so this was a very nice surprise. There were two dining options available, (inside with a buffet style option and outside in the tent with individual items offered). We chose to eat under the tent although we would love to have been in a more open and airy space. We were "early birds" so we moved through the line with ease. We purchased gyros, salad, fries and beverages. The gyro was one of the best I have EVER tasted. The meat was fresh, had great texture and was appropriately seasoned. Those fries were perfectly prepared as they were cooked with the skin on and lightly seasoned. The salad was used to dress the gyro. Perfect! Most importantly, it wasn't overly salted and did not have that heavily processed taste. It was heavenly and I would love to return for dinner when the entertainment will be on and popping! Today's festival does not end until 11pm so you still have plenty of time to enjoy some great food, entertainment, and shopping. Don't just sit there, get moving!!