One of my favorite foodie events of the year is the Taste of Bayside- Bell Blvd. Food Crawl. It…read moregenerally takes place the first weekend in June. I have been going to this event the past 5 years or so. The tickets cost $40 this year which was raised from $35. It is worth the cost in my opinion. When you get to the event, there are a few places you could go to pick up your tasting ticket. The ticket is good for a taste from each of the participating restaurants. There are about 35 restaurants that participate each year. After you get your ticket, you can stroll around and grab food samples from the different participating restaurants. I was able to try a majority of the restaurants that were participating in the event and most of them offered a tasty treat. I will go back to this event as long as it continues as it is always a very chill day. I always leave stuffed and happy and enjoy spending the day with my family at this family friendly event. there are also other activities and things to do while at the event.

It was a perfect opportunity to drive out to Bayside so even if I was late, I dropped by Adria…read moreHotel to check out Taste of Bayside and respond to Jando's invitation to us. I even invited Yifang L., a Yelper from Bayside so she can meet others in the Yelp Community but although she tried to make it, the student's Regent exams finished late. When I arrived, Jando was already busy signing up guests for the Yelp newsletter, chatting them up and listening to their experience with the Yelp phone app and just attending to others who were spinning the wheel to get one of the Yelp freebies. Mike B. and I even had a chance to talk about Yelp to those who approached the table. It's just easy to talk about something you like and are already using. At one point, a grandmother approached the table and said she wanted one of those fingerless gloves. Of course, she got 'em! It was fun to meet Bayside residents, talk about Yelp and discover that the fingerless gloves are being rocked out on the street even by grannies! The party was already in full swing by the time I got there. Most of the participating restaurants have ran out of food (and alcoholic drinks) but I was able to get a taste of food from: ~~Papazzio - Medallions of veal sauteed in mushroom and marsala - Unbelievably tasty and even if the portion was tiny it was very flavorful and satisfying. ``Tequila Sunrise - Churrasco Steak - Seasoned perfectly and tender. They were also serving margarita but they ran out of it quickly. Just as I a found the Boylan drink stand, Monique and her friend increased the visibility of the Yelp table. More people approached the Yelp table and as the event concluded, the power of connecting with the community and of Yelp swag were further reinforced. Thanks, Jando!

A pretty low-key street fair that comes to 63rd Drive in Rego Park a few times a year, usually in…read morethe spring and fall. The event closes off the four blocks between Queens Blvd and Austin St. Most vendors sell jewelry, clothing, bags, or kids' toys. There aren't a ton of food options but you can usually find Italian festival food (sausages, fried food, etc.), a Jamaican tent, a Mexican one, and another serving arepas. My favorite has been Parka Zada's Jamaican food, which offers reasonable prices and generous portions. While the 63rd Drive Festival isn't a huge attraction, it is a pleasant way to stroll the street without cars for a day.

Every year during the second week of August, tents line up behind Myanmar Baptist Church in a quiet…read moreresidential enclave in Briarwood. Some vendors are selling raffles & wares while most of them are dishing out some delicious home made Burmese food. After living here for years and missing one of the better lesser known food fairs right in my backyard, it was time for me to pay a visit this year and have my first taste of Burmese food. With so many dishes to choose from and a small appetite considering it was our first meal, the BF and I decided to make our rounds before finally deciding on what to eat. At 1pm an hour after the doors had opened, the seats at the communal tables were already filled, the live band and singers were performing to a party and the kids were running around burning off their meals. We bought $20 worth of food tickets ($1 each) at the front table to splurge on the dishes available. Most servings were $3-5 and the portions perfectly sized allowing you to sample a nice variety. The Fried Paratha ($4) with bean paste & fried onions was first on my hit list as blogs noted it was the fair's most popular dish and entertaining to watch as the dough is freshly made out on the tables prior to frying. The "bread" dish reminded me of a cross between the Indian naan and the Malaysian Roti. Use it to scoop up the accompanying bean paste making this a humble yet filling first course. Any soup incorporating coconut milk is terribly hard for me to resist so our second dish was the Coconut & Chicken Broth Noodle ($4). Cooked noodles are topped with fried chips (similar to those shrimp chips at Chinese restaurants), dried chili flakes, an egg, lime juice and topped with creamy broth with chunks of chicken. This was quickly devoured and the bowl slurped clean. Full from after only the first two plates the last two dishes were to be taken home. Craving something cold led us to the papaya salad table ($3) where two ladies were pounding away at the ingredients in a mortar and pestle. "Spicy?" one asked. My hands gestured to respond with "a little" before seeing her throw in 3 birds eye chilis into the mix of shredded papaya, beans, garlic, tomatos, peanuts, sugar and sauces. A taste test made my eyelids sweat but my mouth smile from the savory, fiery bite. As I couldn't stop thinking about the chicken broth, I caved and bought a serving to go. With still a few tickets in hand we ended our meal with the crushed ice dessert ($3) topped with a bunch jellies and sauces that we felt were all too sweet. Food also offered included noodle salads, beef tripe soup, fish noodle soup, vegetables fritters, chicken biryani, and an offal dish. Next year I'm coming armed with more bellies. The Myanmar Fair is small but feels like lunch at the park. Church patrons are lounging on beach chairs or mats laid out. The kids are playing. It started to get crowded later on but not annoyingly so - a welcoming change from the more popular, pricier food fairs hosted in the city. See you next year.

Great time again this year (2025) at the NYC Hot Sauce Expo…read more The admission fee was $15 online ($20 at the door) for general admission. There are higher tier admissions which include beer, food, hot sauce and merch. Although public transportation is usually the way to go in and around the five boroughs...Industry City is right off of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (278) and the parking lot there (Parking Lot C) is only $6 (at least on Saturdays) when booking online. The Expo is in buildings 7 and 8 with the entrance on 34th Street. After checking in by presenting your ticket/QR code, you proceed to the expo. The Expo has lots of vendors selling hot sauce and were more than happy to provide samples and tell you a little bit about their sauces. I found hot sauces ranged from $8-15...with the majority being $12. Some vendors had other items including dry seasonings, jerky, dips and marinades. Keep in mind to pace yourself and know your limits while tasting...you don't want to start off the hottest stuff first which would screw up your taste for the rest of the expo/day. The center stage is where the (very entertaining) competitions take place. There is a schedule...it was on the hour from 11am - 5pm if I remember correctly. Hot donuts, hot wings...and bobbing for reapers!!! There is a beer/liquor stand in the corner of the expo area. There is a center Courtyard area with some outdoor space. There is a beer/liquor stand there, some vendors (pretzel and louisiana hot sauce) giving away some freebees and a few food vendors as well. I was there from about 11am and left at 2pm...and I have to say that there was a big crowd difference as your approach 1:30/2. If you want to avoid the crowds, I would suggest going early on (maybe 10-1) and then exploring the rest of Industry City after as there are tons to see and eat there. As it approached 2pm, it was a bit challenging to move around, let alone getting to each vendor's tables to sample hot sauces. Overall, I had a great time...especially as a fan of hot sauce. The environment, vendors and crowds were all great and it was more than worth the price of admission. All staff and vendors there were super friendly and helpful.

I had fun at this expo. I did an article for the Brooklyn Downtown Star regarding the growing…read moreindustry of hot sauces and its scene in NYC. Hot Ones was there and it was fire. Click the link below: https://brooklyndowntownstar.com/news_ql/2025/10/02/hot-sauce-expo-in-brooklyn-sets-foodies-ablaze-with-craft-competition-and-hot-ones/

Say Cheese! I don't mind if I do! (Sorry for the cheesy joke :/ .. ok I'll stop!). This was the…read moreinaugural fest of what I hope is many more to come in the future. Of course many north east cheese makers and mongers were the stars of the show, but there were other tasty treats to go along with all that dairy goodness. Here's some highlights: - I was really impressed with The Maiden Creamery's ( https://www.facebook.com/The-Maidens-Creamery-947353872006400/ ) Seven Sisters Aged Raw Goat Milk Cheese because it is something you don't see too often, most goat cheese is soft and creamy, but not here. The aging added a depth of flavor to goat cheese usual funkiness. I liked it! - I loved Cooperstown Cheese Company http://www.cooperstowncheesecompany.com/ assortment of raw cow milk cheese - so much so I bought some to take home. - Awestruck http://www.awestruckciders.com/ (great name and branding) offered up inventive ciders that were not too sweet. Lavender hops along with a slightly sweeter Hibiscus Ginger. They were drier than most ciders I have tried and reminded me of a good prosecco in being accessible to most people's tastes. Also, how adorable does one of the creators Patti look holding her "baby" in my photo? - Finback! http://www.finbackbrewery.com/ The guys were having some fun while giving away some tasty saison and hoppy dry pale ale. Great stuff from this Glendale, Queens brewery! - How cool is that Rooftop Reds http://www.rooftopreds.com/ is launching NYC first commercially viable rooftop vineyard in Brooklyn! The wines at this event came from grapes grown in the Finger Lakes region, which were delicious. - Reisling was thee wine of the night - a no brainer to accompany many of the delicious cheeses here. - Silk Cakes http://www.silkcakes.com/ with their delicious cheese cake (of course), but assortment of different flavored profiterole. Working some magic right here in Forest Hills, Queens. - The M Wells Raclette http://magasinwells.com/ was absolutely mesmerizing and freaking delicious! There was a line ALL NIGHT LONG for this delicious dish and to see the show of half wheels of cheese being scrapped like a waterfall upon toasted bread and pickled veges. Of course it's ooey gooey deliciousness was the subject of Yelp's photo contest winner (Congratulations Katie - awesome photo!) All and all a great event with so many good things happening on two levels here. I do have a constructive criticism for next time: there needed to be better ventilation on the second floor with all the people and the hot soup, and raclette smoke made the space a bit oppressive at times. Overall, the event hit the right mix of vendors and had impressive offerings from most!

The Great NE Cheese Fest is a feast of cheeses with a side of prosciutto. There are multiple cheese…read morevendors, two dessert vendors and a couple drink options. K and I had so much fun! Growing up in Vermont, I am a huge fan of cheese. I loved sharp cheddars so much, I would slice squares of it for a snack (until the block of cheese was half gone). This festival was a great way to try other cheeses. We checked in, and got 3 beans to vote for our favorites. Coat check was behind the check in table but we opted to start eating first. The first cheese we tried was Merrion Park, which made round balls of hard cheeses. They looked like gigantic truffles. They were fun to eat. One of my favorite was the Hudson Valley Truffle. It was so aromatic and soft and creamy. It was perfect! The Italian black truffles blended well with the creamy white cheese. Another amazing cheese was Beecher's flagship (aged cow's cheese) and flagsheep (aged sheep and cow's cheese). These aged cheeses were so savory and sweet with Tyrosine crystals. I love hard cheeses with a crunch. It was so amazing that I am salivating as I am typing this. The Beecher's fresh curds was soft and fresh. Tasted like a milky slightly-sharp-mozzarella. The dessert cheese was caramel mixed with cheese from Call me Caramel. This was amazing! Gruyere cheese caramels or Cheddar cheese caramels. They were sticky savory and sweet. It was so unique! Don Rodrigo Duarte served an amazing pata negra. This was a welcome break from all the cheeses. The jamon was savory and slightly sweet from the pig's diet. The slices melted in your mouth. They were generous enough to let some people slice their own prosciutto. It was so fun! There was a VIP room filled with prosciutto, salami and cheeses. There was a gooey baked brie pie. I loved this! The flakey buttery crust complemented the cheesy brie. The raspberry jam cut in the butteriness of this bite. Casa del Chef served a good gnocchi with cheese sauce. Thank you so much everyone at Cheese Fest and Yelp! We had a great time! instagram.com/snackchatnyc

Been to eeeeeatscon 4 times now and it's always a blast! NYC Oct 2025 had some great vendors…read moreincluding Cowy Burger (from Miami, their burger was probably my favorite bite of the day), Santo Taco, a delicious collab between Potluck Club and Carnitas Ramirez, and much more. The "passport" feature is fun, if you eat at 7 different stands you can earn some free swag. It's a fun challenge, but definitely filling!! Activations were fun, including the Pepsi shuffleboard and trying a few new flavors of LaCroix.

Back in August, infatuation released a limited number of tickets for this year's Eatscon, along…read morewith this years lineup of panelists and food vendors. If you were a Chase card holder, you'd be able to purchase one of these coveted tickets for $25. Upon entering, I was greeted with free infatuation merch at the door. Then I was given the chance to meander throughout the venue to search for delicious viral food and other freebies/ activities. I had such a blast eating at this festival. If you were a chase card holder, you'd also be able to receive $10 cashback for a food item over $10 (1 redemption per account). Additionally, I was given a passport at the start of the experience. After dining at 7 different booths and receiving stamps at each, I was able to trade the passport for a prize and a tote bag. Overall, it was a great experience and I can't wait for next year.

If you like sake, this event is legit. It is crowded, but with an event this size, lines are kind…read moreof unavoidable--especially at entry and the most popular food stations. That said, the sake selection is top-tier. You'll be able to try bottles you won't find anywhere else outside of this event. The quality and variety alone make it stand out. The participating restaurants also crush it. The food and appetizers are excellent and pair really well with the sake. Is it worth the price? If you know, you know. You can easily taste $150 worth of sake within the first 15 minutes. On top of that, the vibe is great--everyone seems to be having a genuinely good time.

A few days ago on April 10th, this fun event was hosted at the Metropolitan Pavilion again from…read more6:30 to 9:30 which was around $145 per person. The line as noted by the other person were quite long but once you got into the main room, the lines are fine outside of maybe one or two of the food stations with a couple of the sake areas being a bit more crowded but it's easy enough to get samples. To make sure you don't get drunk and you can sample many different types of sake, most of the sakes outside of the booths are in pipettes so you can sample things and they have some labels for many of the sake consisting of stars for gold (black) or silver (white) at sake awards with anything with a * not being currently imported. I found a couple sakes that I was a big fan of which as expected were the more full bodied richer sakes (my photos are the ones which I enjoy the most) with my favorite being probably the unique three year snow aged Hakkaisan 'Yukimuro Chozo - Snow aged' 3 Year Old Junmai Ginjo Genshu Sake and the Taiheizan "Tenko 40" Heavenly Grace Taiheizan "Tenko 40" Heavenly Grace. Anyway as Yelp is more food oriented as am I, here were the food options with my remarks (there were also 4/5 more food options last year apparently.) In short, the biggest line was for Yopparai, my favorite was from Towa and Mishik, and Cha-An was very quick to finish. There was also some station which had sakura mochis which were terrible so I'm almost happy I don't remember the name. BondST and Steak Hokkaido Scallop Tartare- Japanese cucumber, jalapeño, myoga, red vein sorrel, chili oil, yuzu oil, lime zest. Good quality scallop. Flavors were a bit light otherwise. Cha-An Teahouse Matcha Tiramisu or Hojicha Tiramisu (with both desserts infused with sake.) I tried the matcha which as expected was excellent. Barely sweetened. Sakagura Tako and Iburigakko Yogurt- Octopus and iburigakko with tobiko, fresh shichimi pepper, micro vegetables, sake espuma. Didn't try as tentacle allergy. Others liked it Sake no Hana Hamachi Crudo- Sliced yellowtail served with satsuma mandarin ponzu, scallion oil, micro shiso. Didn't get to try. Juban Buta Kimchee- pork belly with kimchee. Solid. Pork belly wasn't too overly fatty with a light kick. Rule of Thirds New England-style Kanikama Roll- Imitation king crab, celery, cucumber, potato bun. Fun idea with the potato bun but it needed something to make it less dry (I'd say kewpie would be perfect.) Towa Seasonal Ohitashi- Boiled spinach in sudachi-flavored soy sauce topped with shiitake mushrooms, snow crab and ikura. Outstanding/my favorite. Nice sweetness from the seafood with a nice citrusy soy which mixed well with the cold spinach. Yopparai- Yopparai Signature Oden- Traditional Japanese "soul food" of assorted fish cakes and vegetables simmered in a dashi broth. Very tasty broth/I could see why they were crowded. Good quality tofu skin pocket/inari in particular. Sen Sakana Ceviche Nikkei (Torched Salmon Ceviche-)yuzu leche de tigre, crispy Peruvian corn. Not spiced enough but good enough quality salmon. Alright. Hirohisa Aosa Seaweed and Wakame Soup. A bit too bland for my liking. Zuma Truffle Hamachi Tartare- Hamachi tartare with truffle mayo served on a miso brioche bun. OK. Truffle was a bit overpowering for the delicate fish. Mishik Sakura Honmaguro- Cherry wood chip-smoked bluefin tuna tataki, citrus ponzu, almond, mango. 2nd best of the night. Good quality fish and good pairing. Slurpeak Marco Polo Lasagna- Nicely spiced One Bite Shakshuka- Tasty also Sen Sag Harbor Uni Panna Cotta with Hokkaido Scallops- Panna cotta infused with uni topped with sweet Hokkaido scallops marinated in yuzu olive oil. This was available with black or red tobiko. Odd texture for the cold panna cotta with the chopped scallops. Not my favorite but unique at least. Sushi by Bou Holy Hotness Maki- OK. Nice chili oil Chopped Tuna- Good Wayla Karee Chicken Puffs- Potato, onion, sweet potato, white pepper, turmeric. Alright. Good texture. Filling was lacking in curry spice The food was overall good and it's hard to complain when I got around 4 glasses of good quality sake plus 13 different bites or so. I would likely go back next year unless the price goes up too much.

I loveee this park. I have coming to Forest Park for soo many years and the Bandshell never…read moredisappoints. This summer we had the pleasure of watching "Rent" at the bandshell and we've seen concerts in the past...Always Free!!!! Great place to BBQ and just relaxed, picnic fun with friends and family!!!! Can't wait for summer!!!

The story begins in the mid 1980's at the Forest Park Bandshell parking lot, (also known as Suffert…read moreBandshell, its proper name I believe) a huge circular grey top upon which many a hodgepodge and hatchpatch of rough looking fellows (and those not so threatening) would congregate most every summer day into early evening hours, enjoying as if it was Saturday night every day. Rolling in with Harleys, Barracudas, Indians and GTO's, rolling out after some drink and smoke -- laying down tracks of melted rubber with peel outs so massive, you'd have thought they had bleached their tires as the thick white clouds seemed to linger on and on, unable to see the activity at the opposite end. Every vehicle had a boom box set upon the roof playing rock music at full blast, coolers in the back seat or trunk filled with beer and the occasional arsenal of illegal fireworks. The quicker the beer was drank, the sooner the 8oz rockets would come out and fuses lit with no real understanding of where they were to be heading. My best friend and I would pull into the lot in his sun beaten red 1967 Firebird, park after a observational lap and walk around a bit to get a closer look of all that was happening. The bandshell did not offer any music then, only a place for the dealers to sell drugs of many varieties, Angel Dust being the popular item of the day. Fast forward to modern times and the bandshell hosts many musical acts each summer, family picnics have replaced the beer swilling while car squatting, frisbees replaced rockets --- and burning rubber to the sounds of Iron Butterfly blasting are a thing of the past -- gosh it feels so long ago. This transformation is clearly for the best and at now at another stage in my life, I see the young families smile as they picnic upon a pretty quilt under the shade of the oak trees -- and it makes me very happy.