The OPF. Where people come by the tens of thousands to buy local art, drink, listen to music, ride…read morerides, eat a corn dog or funnel cake... you know the typical festival happenings. For some reason, although it's no one's fault, the OPF seems to have the rainiest or hottest weather of the summer. I think the June in Maine is always a toss up. The highlight of this event is vast amount of local artisans and craftsman who sell their homemade items. I also like the kickoff event of the Shoestring Theater Puppet show at 11 am. Going early may be the best time to grab some freebies and some handcut fries... You beat the heat and the intense crowds. This year I took a LYFT ride down... ProTip. For me, this festival is OK. The prices are high, the streets are packed, parking is a s**t show, and by the end there are many highly intoxicated twenty-somethings. Maybe this would have been my jam back in the day, but unless I'm working downtown, I'm probably not going to go.

Old Port Fest is a staple event in Portland come June. In reading a variety of other reviews,…read morepeople have reflected on how it can get incredibly busy and crowded, and it certainly can, however, I appreciate what the Old Port Festival offers Portland. The Old Port Festival includes a variety of local artists, food trucks, and entertainers, so the fact that the Old Port Festival is highlighting what locals have to offer, then I am okay with the mass amounts of people that are out and about on this day. Along with the various offerings and music at Old Port Festival, there are also some restaurants with drink deals, or bars that get busy, but again, it's highlighting what Portland has to offer. I typically spend my time during the Old Port Festival at the Porthole where they also highlight local talent to play music, and they have a great outdoor deck to enjoy the weather. Overall, I appreciate what the Old Port Festival offers Portland, and I will be a supporter every year.

Ok, I love free stuff. I mean, if you don't, you're probably a bit of a weirdo…read more.. As I was running the shipard half the following morning, I only had a few beers at the festival but the tunes were great and the vendors were fun and full of knowledge! I'm pretty sure I walked away with five new coozies and a whole lot of coupons and stickers! I'll be back next year!

Epic fest. Tons of sponsors. Good music. Nuff saidread more

Great time at Market on the Harbor. I got lucky and got a complimentary ticket to this event. So…read moremuch great food and awesome wine and beer, Black cherry soda from Eli's was so refreshing. Coffee by Design always great, wicked whoopies gave out a great little gift bag. Izzy was there from Izzy's cheesecake, the pumpkin one was my favorite. So much good food all set up in 2 huge tents, was well organized and had a good flow. Really clever revamp of the fortune cookie by Shuckie a cook that looks like a scallop shell with a message inside. I head the moose sliders were really tasty. So much fun.

This kind of event usually makes me really happy. The opportunity for the public to meet, greet,…read moretaste and connect with local chefs and makers is a wonderful thing. Last year, there was a looong line to get in leaving a whole bunch of people standing in the pouring rain, I was excited to return this year, figuring the entry process would have been tweaked and streamlined... This year, I was once again lucky enough to get a complimentary ticket to this event. It was a warm and sunny morning, no rain AND I got there early so there was little to no line. Curiously, there was also no sign or indication whatsoever that this event was taking place from the street. Anyway, as we waited, several event staffers came around checking ID's and placing wristbands. About 10 minutes before the 11am start, a woman came out to make an announcement. She whistled very loudly and let the crowd know that we needed to be in 2x2 lines for entry, otherwise we would be slowing everything down. She kind of "apologized" for her intense tone by saying she was just a "loud" person etc... It was actually kind of awful, it felt like the people waiting in line (most of whom had bought tickets), were a bunch of unruly teenagers pushing to get into the school dance for the free pizza. NOT a great way to welcome the paying public into an event. Once inside, it was easy to shake the entry experience and interact with the vendors. Some highlights: Sip of Europe-Delicious merengue/marshmallow cookies Black Tie Catering-A chicken cone and mini apple pie tacos! Linda Kate caterers-Excellent clam chowder and brownies Springdale Farm-Carrot cake cream cheese-bought a big one to take home! Leonardos-Smoked gouda pizza!!! Seacoast coffee-Thank you! The vendors were delightful and excited to share their offerings, and on that note, there was one other problem. The live music was WAY too loud! I am a person who is generally fine with loud music, but this was so loud that it was impossible to have a conversation with the vendors, which is the whole reason that people come to this event. I am a big supporter of local music and am in no way suggesting that this band was not talented or picking good songs. Often musicians on the stage can't tell how far their sound levels travel, if there is live music at all of the Harvest on the Harbor events, maybe hire a sound person? Your clients and performers will thank you! Bravo to all of the chefs and food innovators in this town! It is a gift to this city and state to have so much creative talent working to bring quality, local food to the people!

This will always be my first Maine Brew Fest! Last year, I went for the beer, and this year I went…read moreto volunteer because all that beer is finally getting to me. Yikes! Portland Brew Fest is awesome because it's a great opportunity to try a number of the local craft breweries in the greater northeast! Not only is there beer, you can find a good amount of ciders, meads, and shandys! While there's no parking lot, parking is pretty much the same if you were headed anywhere else in Old Port, and Labor Day weekend is the perfect time for a nice stroll! One thing I liked about this year was the change to unlimited pours! There will always be a few people who have to get drunk, but for the most part, everyone was super friendly, and not having to hold a drink ticket means one more free hand. I had a blast, and the tacos and pizza were delicious too! The ONE thing that might make it a little more awesome? Live music!

Does Maine have a higher-than-normal occurrence of local horror films due to its naturally spooky…read morecharacter? Perhaps. Damnationland 2014 provided a peek inside the minds of a few local filmmakers. Ranging from humor to surreal to straight-up-slasher, this festival was all-around fun (and not too bloody for the slightly-horror-averse like myself). For those of you expecting shaky cameras and stilted performances, think again. There wasn't a stinker in the bunch. Looking forward to an equally spooky offering next year. *at least one extra star awarded for the quality tagline "The way life should bleed"

2015 was my first experience going to this event. The State Theater is such a great facility to…read morehold this local "horror" movie feature. We did not realize just how popular this is and thought that getting to will call 30 minutes before opening would be plenty of time. We were wrong. The line was already around the corner and 1/2 way to the church. Many more people came as we waited. *a credit to event staff for repeatedly coming around to let ticket holders know this was will call/buying and they could go to the front if they already had a ticket*. My only opinion being that there should have been more than one person in the booth and split the line in two, one being buying tickets and one line for will call. It was great that they held the start of the show until the line had mostly gotten back up on to Congress St. Not knowing what to expect, we were surprised at how great the production was in each short film. For me, I will always think of what happened at my favorite coffee shop which was a featured location in Misandry. The trailer awards were great and we were happily surprised to see a finalist group we know. The overall flow and presentation was well done and the organizers did a great job. Now that we know what the hubbub is about, I'm sure this will be a yearly event for us.

Or me the Highlight of this year's art walk was either the stand offering awesome framed pictures…read moreof Jack Russells or the man who mad Art it of drift wood, left over pieces of chopped wood etc. From it's houses to jewelry boxes to wooden gift boxes hs stuff was amamzing.. But I LOVE art walkregardless because everyone stuff is amazing. Part of Portland's summer fun and festivals, Art Walk is a unique classy and fun way to spend a Saturday..

Title: Maine Brewer's Festival…read more Location: Portland, Maine Number of craft brewers in Maine: Over 50 Number of Brewers at this festival from Maine: About 10 Cost: About 60$ a person I was super excited to try out this event. I love Maine, I love beer, and I love trying out new things... This should have been a huge win for me, but I wasn't sold. For 60$ I was expecting a much bigger turnout from the local crowd, but upon arrival I realized that only the bigger names in Maine craft brewing were there: Shipyard, Baxter, Gritty's, and Allagash (to name a few). Then you had Long Island (NY), Massachusetts, and New Hampshire represented. Strange. With all the micro breweries in Maine why are we inviting other states to the "Maine Brewers Festival"? There must be some politics behind this event. There were a few gems. The Ginger Libation and the Boom Sauce were nice surprises. Full disclosure, I scored some free tickets and was able to get in early. This was key. If I had had to wait in lines at the beginning of doors opening, I would have been very sad. If I had paid for this event at all, I would have been very sad. I won't go back unless my luck continues with free tickets. I can go out, in Portland, to the breweries on any other day, spend less than 15$ and try just as many, if not more, types of local brew. The variety would be better, there would be more options for food along the way and I wouldn't be in a sweaty gym with 500 people with pretzel necklaces... Although I may wear a pretzel necklace to some other event because I love pretzels. Save your money. Go to breweries on a Saturday with your friends and then grab lunch in town. Ps. DO Be on the lookout for that Ginger Libation deliciousness at RSVP!

This year I felt the brew fest was not as organized as pervious festivals. Not all of the brewers…read morewere from Maine breweries, very disappointing. That's the point - MAINE BREW FESTIVAL = MAINE BREWERS. Additional out of state breweries are fine but not the point. There were some critical in Portland and in Maine Brewers missing. Bissell Brothers and more were not here. Very disappointing. The locals are the reason I come. It was great to have Saco, Maine represented by Hidden Cove - excellent beer and I had not heard of them until now. A baby brewing company established in the past two years. The t-shirts from the company "Live ME" in my opinion, should all be sewn in Maine or New England (or at least the US) and printed in Maine. Some were made in the US, but not all. The directory printed by the MBF was disappointing. The booths had numbers but not prominent signs to indicate the company so in some cases you didn't know which line you were in. Very discouraging. I do not care for IPAs and stood in line at a brewery I was not familiar with only to find nothing other than IPAs available. :( Points of pride: a little addition of different types of "brews". Ginger brew, mead and ciders. Well done. A food truck, add more! Points to improve: have at least 95% Maine breweries. Do not advertising breweries that were NOT IN ATTENDANCE. Improve labeling of booths: as shown by pics. Improve accuracy of lists breweries and beers, label breweries with coordinating booth numbers. It's hard to tell where you are unless the signs are high above the tables. If it is Maine Brewers week and the Brew Fest is competing choose a weekend that is not competing - PLEASE! Overall it's a good time. The music is not always my first choice but the website didn't give details about the music either. The Brew Fest needs to invest more in LOCAL music that appeals to more people, have the fest during a weekend without as much competition and get it together a little more. So that's my opinion. For year 23 I hope LOCAL is the theme and as much as possible is from Maine, New England and the US. Truck food is good, spread it to the parking lot? Good luck in 2016 and I will attend hoping for Fests more similar to the mid 2000's. Cheers!