The name of this fest really sums up the experience you'll have here…read more It's held at Arts at the Armory, a Somervile space that screams local. With its castle-like exterior, exposed brick, and quirky nooks, the venue welcomes instead of overwhelms. The variety of brews and ciders to sample is vast, and the local nature of the locations and ingredients used are a great spark to many conversations with the company representatives, who all seem relaxed and happy to chat. During the Saturday day (3-6pm) sessions I've attended the past 2 years, the vibe is easy-going. There are minimal (if any) lines for drinks, people sip rather than chug their samples, and there is lots of talking and enjoying of the music. It's not all about getting toasted, it's about toasting to great times with friends and community. Where does the hyper come in? You'll surely be feeling giddy after checking your way through the program of these delish pours. I was (pleasantly) surprised to find many unique ciders this year like the Hot Cha Cha Cha, a peppery cider by Woodchuck, and Lei, a jalapeno pineapple cider which is my new obsession by Far from the Tree. There were also some alternative offerings like spiked seltzer and hard ginger beer. Hyperlocal Craft Brewfest will have you feeling the hyper, local love as you sample craft brews and connect with your community. And don't forget to check in at the Yelp table for some sweet swag!

I had a great time at this event tonight!…read more As it got later, the crowd definitely got larger so it was a bit hard to move around. They had a TON of beer to taste. I am not a huge fan of beer and was hoping for more of a cider and wine selection. But, since I was driving it was probably best that there was only one row of cider and wine peeps. All the vendors were really friendly and happy to give you all the details about what they had to offer and where you could find it. My favorite sample was the cider from Bantam. My friend and I decided to take a sampling break and purchase some food. We got some cupcakes from Kickass cupcakes that were okay and a pork belly taco (that's right pork belly taco) from Five Horses Tavern that was delicious. The band was fun and a right fit for the venue. They are having another event in October and after my experience at this event I would certainly go again in the fall.

I have been to my share of local beer festivals, but I have to say after attending the 2014 Extreme…read moreBeer Fest this past March, I have to say it was far and away the best beer fest I have been too to date! Extreme is definitely what it sounds like - crazy varieties and collaborations, many of which have pretty high ABV. To me this is a great way to taste beers that I would not normally find in my local package store, taste beers from breweries I have not had the opportunity to try and best of all meet the brewers to talk all things beer! The folks at Beer Advocate (who put on the event) do a great job at getting a pretty wide variety of craft and "craft" breweries to attend this event. At no time did I ever feel that the event was overly crowded and although there was a bit of a wait for some of the more popular beers (like the Funky Budda French Toast), they moved quickly. In addition the fest had several food vendors set up - and let me tell you after several hours of beers nothing tasted better than that Roxy Grilled Cheese I scarfed down. A few tips for first time attendees - *If you are from out of state I would strongly suggest staying overnight. These beers are extreme and after you will be glad if all you have to do is head to your hotel rather than drive home. *There were food vendors but I also highly suggest having a bite to eat beforehand. The fest is located around the seaport so there are several dining options nearby. Remember this is an EXTREME beer fest. Nothing worst than being "that guy/girl" at the end having to be dragged out. *Before you go, make sure you check out www.beeradvocate.com for a listing of breweries/beers. Makes it easier to go in with a game plan then wandering around aimlessly. *Remember everybody is here for the same reason - BEER. Don't be pushy, there is plenty to go around!

The festival certainly sets itself apart from the rest of the beer festivals in Boston. Hosted in…read morethe seaport world trade center, it was easy to get to and the huge variety of vendors here was mind boggling. What makes it extreme though? The Brewers are encouraged to bring their most off the wall stuff, so you'll find few pils or hefeweizens here. Instead we sampled many sour, stouts, and sour stouts. The stand out to me was Burley Oak. There was a surprising amount of sour beers but we chalk it up to the recent rise in popularity of those types of beers. They were all pretty strong beers too! They had some food vendors here too, so if you get the munchies while sampling, you will find some tasty bites.

This was my first ever food festival, this I had no experiences to compare it to. It was a little…read moredifferent than I was expecting, however... not bad different either. The retailers are this event those who produce their goods locally (as the name implies), and as they are local, the producers here are seldom found in grocery stores (while some are). The fact that things are locally produced also goes with the fact that most items here are natural. It is truly awesome to have a food festival dedicated to promoting local businesses. With many, you can buy at the festival, and order their products online too. While credit cards are pretty widely accepted... It is not a bad idea to have some cash. What I was expecting was many more stands offering samples of their products. Sure there were many, but many were also just selling normal size portions of food. Additionally, because these are small, local businesses using locally sourced products they don't have the advantage of economies of scale, and costs are a bit high. Other things I would have liked is hand sanitizer being widely available at the event. Especially as flu season heats up, it would have been nice to have the opportunity to have clean hands. Having there be maps available would have been nice too, although since the event wasn't massive it did create a bit of an adventure walking through the stands and seeing what was being offered. I did really like that there were people making sure guests recycled what could be recycled, and composted what could be composted. While events like this tend to have a high food waste, composting lessens the impact on the environment. Oh yes, and I was thrilled that there was tap water provided... Allowing people to either drink from a fountain or fill their bottles. It is nice when you don't have to purchase a bottle of water for 3 bucks when you can get a case of 24 bottles for $4.

I wasn't impressed with the Boston Local Food Festival this year…read more I was happy that it wasn't canceled by rain (as I feared it might be as I walked to the Greenway). It was basically a large farmers market. Which is cool, but I wanted to get some of the "dishes from talented chefs, all including locally sourced ingredients and priced at $6 or less" as advertised on the Boston Local Food Festival website, but I didn't see any meals available at that price point, so I ended up buying lunch elsewhere. Thanks to Olivia's Organics for the delicious free Spring Mix sample! It was also nice to see Yelp there and spin their wheel for a prize after showing I'd checked in.

It's Gala time!!!!!!…read more I have been a gala fan since I was a student member of NABA. So of course I found it absolutely mandatory to fly back to Boston for the 30th Anniversary celebration. It's been a few years since I have been, but from what I've heard about the past few years, this has been the best one in a while. I loved that everyone came DRESSED TO IMPRESS! Everyone stepped up their games this year (as they should). Still a few people who don't thought they were going to club night at Slades (lol), but overall I was delighted to see the masses of beautiful outfits. Originally I was told that there would be no food, so we arrived a bit on the later side. However a buffet was served, but from what I heard, we didn't miss much. No matter what your music preference, there was a room for that ... If you like Jazz, the main ballroom had a band playing. If you like hip hop, there was a small, yet VERY HOT room playing the latest music, and there was a reggae room for us reggae heads. Vendors were out selling there goods. I get it, but the last thing I wanted was to walk around carrying bags. So I didn't by anything, but there were some really cute pieces. All in all great night. It's like big Boston family reunion. It was nice to catch up with everyone. Good event. Can't wait until next year.

The Race company and director's at Cambridge 5k hold a number of races in the Boston area. Each…read morehas a theme and is unique for it's party atmosphere after the race. I've done the Oktoberfest race for 3 out of the 4 years now and have loved the atmosphere of the after party for the number of breweries they bring to the area. This year, the race was moved into technology square to a move private setting that wasn't as packed from it's previous location by Cambridge Brewing Company. This meant a new course and new feeling for the after party and unfortunately in my mind both were disappointing changes. Positives: - After-Party was roomy, you could sit on sidewalks, grass or stand under a tent if you liked. - Police presence on every turn on the course was AMAZING. - Food at the after-party from Jacob Worth was a great bonus, loved the unique german food and the gift cards they handed out. - LOADS of beer (see below for further explanation) - Lines were MUCH better this year. You could get beer, checked bags, much more quickly this year. -Checked bags were in a parking garage. Sounds funny but it felt secure and DRY if the rain came down. - Dance party and prizes were of course one of the best parts of this race. The Disappointments: - No one could hear the start of the race, all of a sudden we were running - Race clock at mile 2 was 5 minutes behind and terrible for those pacing themselves. - There was only one water stop, this is a beer race people don't tend to be as in shape as for half-marathons. - Course was 3.3 miles and not 3.1, more importantly the new course was extremely windy in the final stretches so you couldn't find the end of the course. People also tried to cross the final stretch to get bags and it was not safe or fun for those sprinting the last few feet. - Beer. I paid for this race for the beer selection not quantity. The amount was amazing but where was Notch, Nightshift, etc? It was only Cambridge Brewing company this year and it was extremely disappointing not to be able to try other companies. Overall, I broke my no 5k rule for 2014 for this race and I'm not sure that was the best call. Although you do get bang for your buck for sure with Amazing friends and company, the things that really set this race apart from the others was the beer fest after the race and without it, it's not the same.

This was my first time attending the Winter Fest and it wouldn't be my last. There was ample free…read moreparking across the street. Admission was free, however, there was an option to skip the line for $10 per adult and kids skip the line for free. The line was long for the free admission with about a 30 minute wait. Once inside there was ample space and it did not feel crowded. Ice skating was available with an hourly fee; there was also a additional fee for skate rentals. I paid $25 per child to skate. There is an option to bring your own ice skates. There were several places to warm up and so many photo opportunities throughout. There were food and drink options for the children and adults. I purchased cookies and hot chocolate which were $4 each. Winter Fest also offered vendors selling varies craft and holiday items. This was lots of family fun.

Bright and wintery seasonal winter market with ice skating, a gingerbread hut that smells like…read moregingerbread, snacks and some vendors. Toward the end of the season, it is quite sparse though. When we went, the skating was open but all the vendors had just left their empty stalls.

Beer= good 120…read morebrewers + 500 kinds of beer= amazing Me drinking those beers = very, very happy Line to get in was very long, but the lines at each brewer moved pretty quickly. Got to meet a lot of nice people and drink some amazing beer (and a couple of beers which I wanted to spit out). Heavy on Northeast/New England breweries which is to be expected, but overall a great mix. I went on Friday night, the eventt was run pretty well as far as I could tell. TIckets were $50, but the experience was priceless.

At $45 a ticket, it may not be the cheapest of festivals but we had a pretty good time attending…read moreit. And by we, I mean Erick H., Marissa C. and myself. After taking the T to South Station and making our way over to the Seaport area for the event, things were a bit rocky at first to say the least. Despite arriving about thirty minutes before the doors were to open, we faced a line that must have been around a half a mile long. I'm not exaggerating. It was the longest line I've ever been into and made the DMV look efficient. Fast forward about an hour and we nearly made our way into the festival amongst hundreds of other attendees. Instead of having a full three hours, we now lost thirty minutes which is a real shame considering the amount of beers and stands present in the festival. Just over a hundred brewers were present to be exact, each refilling cup after cup furiously as the long lines moved slowly. While the event's location itself was spacious enough to accomodate everyone, the lines at just about every stand were very long and despite our best efforts to sample as many beers as possible, it was hard and we had about forty of the hundred before the whole thing shut down (10 minute early I might add!) All in all, the event was worth the money but I would have loved had they given us more time there. The gates opened at 6, we didn't get in until 6:30 the earliest and the event was supposed to run until 9 but a lot of places stopped pouring the beers at 8:45. What gives? Why? Annoying to say the least. Also the sheer volume of people made it very difficult to try and talk and connect with some of the brewers present there. Aside from asking for a pour of a specific brew, little talking was possible as the lines were just too long. They should consider having one more session during the afternoon or something if there's that much demand. Also, the food options were seriously limited - how about some catering from local joints much like Wine Riot does? Doesn't seem like it would be that difficult... But it was still a good time and I'm definitely going to attend the ones to come.

It's a nice small theater and I just watched The Marriage of Figaro. It is a hard theater to have a…read morevery Grand production of such an Opera. So it look like they skimp on the props so they could make the production work. The theater is modern and comfortable. It's ideally located in the Back Bay.

The Back Bay Event Center staff is superb! My company recently held an all day, open conference in…read moreBoston and ended up renting two rooms at the Back Bay Event Center. The staff was great! Cords, audio, parking validation, catering and all other logistics were taken care of extremely well and the day ran smoothly. Minor glitches were not brought to anyone's attention unnecessarily. Everything we specified in our contract from wi-fi access to turkey and vegetable wraps were spot on. Although this venue was a little pricey than others we had looked into you can easily understand why you pay a premium to work with people that truly understand how to put on events. If you are planning an event in Boston anytime soon this is a fantastic location and you should try to work with the Manager, David (so great and professional). The only reason I had to leave off the last star was due to a few hidden cost within our contract such as a clean-up fee and extra service fees. Just be thorough and ask about the total amount. Great place for seminars, banquets, and many other events.