This past weekend was the 9th Annual Eagle Rock Music Festival, and I can say unequivocally that…read morethis was the most fun I've had in the longest time and all in all, it was SUPER entertaining. But that's not even the punch line. Here it is: IT'S FREE, peoples!!! Now, before I get into more, let me give big ups to the LA denizens. There must have been 100K swarming the fest, in every nook and cranny. Colorado is on a slope, so that when you're at the eastern most portion of it, you can look back down, and it was a teeming swarm of humanity. It looked like a mini Woodstock west!!! Okay, with that outta da way... FACTS, HIGHLIGHTS, ETC: 1. It's advertised at 40 bands 2. It covered at least 5 or 6 blocks long 3. There must have been at least 10 stages/music venues. It was unbelieveable... 4. Some of the acts JP saw: a. Dengue Fever b. Black Shakespeare c. The Mama Suki d. Hecuba e. The Sirens f. The Curs g. "Special Guests" I thought the punk stage was the most entertaining and clearly was my link back to the halcyon LA daze of the 80's. The Sirens - an all gal band - was kicking it pretty good, and the Curs were the most musically inclined,had the best sense of humor and displayed the most intelligence of the night. Surprisingly (pleasantly so) they were young kids blending punk and rockabilly in a power trio with an upright bass, quasi surf dos and matching blue leotards. But the most fun was watching the mosh pit - the look of glee ... TONS of genres are represented: world music, hip-hop, hybrid/fusion, rock, punk, performance art, folk... INSTANTLY, ONE OF JP'S TOP 3 BEST ENTERTAINMENT VALUES In short, MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR NEXT YEAR!!!

(Attended 10/05/13 SA @ 4:00pm): Rock the arts and allow the creativity to soar!…read more I decided to be a volunteer at the 15th Annual Eagle Rock Music Festival instead as an attendee in order to experience this event from a different perspective. Even as a volunteer, I still ponied-up the suggested donation fee online ($10.00). I've always had a really good time at this wonderful local music and food event. But this year, the theme was more about "quality than quantity". The amount of stages was nearly cut in half (down to six this year) with one central main stage on Eagle Rock's main drag of Colorado Blvd., and the other five stages on the property of local businesses. http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=Gf_xctSA1jQuXWVPKrfEBw&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw Make sure you planned accordingly with comfortable shoes, sunscreen, and cash. From 4pm-10pm, you had a selection of nearly 40 acts to sample from, along with your requisite food trucks http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=YjdwKPogBzKYLDJT7g21Vg&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw, vendor and sponsor booths, local businesses, and of course people watching (which could've been considered another act) http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=pqFy39E_bUNjan-hMifupA&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw. As with most local music festivals, I'm lucky if I've ever heard any of the bands before, but that was usually the draw for me to these events since I'm all about the music! Each stage was its own unique music genre from rock (Center Stage), experimental (LA Filipino American Church), family (Eagle Rock City Hall), sub tropical / global bass (Rantz), Americana/folk (Women's 20th Century Club), blues/jazz/rock & roll (Colombo's), and indie/punk (Bateman Heating And Water). Oddly enough, with the exception of the very first act of the day (Little Red Lung) whom I felt was surprisingly good although I still couldn't think who the female singer sounded like, all the others I caught were okay. My head was bouncing during the Dub Club set http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=Gdwoe9MzV5juj9IGOtBsmg&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw and, the Joe Johnston Band played good old "geezer rock" http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=ZVjK67bciBbaqzol1MdJJA&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw. One additional shout out to my Filipino heritage and the killer melon juice I bought ($2.00 cash) at the LA Filipino American Church. Such a bargain and seriously one of the best damn juices I've ever drank. My aunties never made this! http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=eWEls4X64AETEmOdq3V6Rg&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw Service - It was pretty straightforward to enter as there were two main entrances at both ends of the festival. At the entrance lines, the volunteers kindly asked for a "...suggested $10.00 donation to help support the Center for the Arts...", and if you did you were handed a program and given a hand-stamp as acknowledgment for your donation (regardless of amount). If you purchased a VIP pass online through Ticketfly $20.00, which gave you a quicker line, access to the front of the main stage, and passes to a show at the Center of the Arts, you were golden. Entry and re-entry were simple. Once inside, do as you please and all the vendors and food trucks were ready to serve your needs. For the most-part, pretty seamless. Parking - The best option was to park your vehicle at the Eagle Rock Plaza and took the shuttle that dropped you off at Eagle Rock Blvd. Or, you you rode your bike, there was a bike valet also at the entrance of Eagle Rock Blvd. If you chose to drive...good luck! If you were lucky enough to find non-metered parking along the many nearby residential streets, you scored big-time! I volunteered to work the event so I was there early enough. I didn't see any private parking lots. Atmosphere, décor, ambience - Outdoors along a mutli-block stretch of Colorado Blvd. between Eagle Rock Blvd. and Argus Dr., you were free to roam the streets or along the sidewalks. The police and security presence was everywhere so safety certainly wasn't a concern. The crowd was as eclectic as you'd expect. The sound from each stage was very good, and no TVs or monitors anywhere. Attire - It was an outdoor festival, so I was in a t-shirt, boardshorts, and comfy shoes - lots of walking and standing so no flip-flops this time around. Overall, if you're generally a fan of music, supporter of the arts, and wanted to explore a community, the Eagle Rock Music Festival accomplished these. You honestly couldn't beat a day outdoors in the warm fall California weather as music rumbled through the air and the aroma of tantalizing food - technically all for free! I found total value based on the prices, service, and experience noted above (total experience was around $12.00; no tip required), but again, you could've spent nothing at all. And, my credit card of choice wasn't accepted at all vendor booths and food trucks, my ticket purchase/donation was...AMEX!

I'm pretty disappointed with the event we attended last night. Purchased VIP tickets and was only…read moreabout 10 people from the front. When we entered at 6:30 (an hour early for VIP), the place was somehow already crowded?? Minutes later, it was hard to even walk inside the hangar. We were shoulder to shoulder with people. Luckily we got to sample most foods. The food selection was great. Plenty of wine tastings and other drink options. The issue was not the food. The problem was how incredibly crowded it was. Around 7:30 when it was time for the general admission entry, I thought there's no way they could fit anymore people in here. Then it became SO CROWDED that you literally could NOT WALK or get to anything! People were bumping into each other trying to get anywhere. It just became an extremely stressful experience trying to get to anything, so we just left. I just want to say shame on LA Food and Wine for overselling and cramming as many people in like a SARDINE CAN! This used to be a wonderful event and I was so excited to finally be able to attend again, only to be disappointed. THIS WAS A FIRE HAZARD! There's no way that many people in that hangar was safe in any way.

A bit underwhelming. Many vendors ran out of food maybe around 9pm. An entire wing turned into a…read moreghost town of empty counters. Bummed I didn't get to sample everything. Tried great scallop, crab, pasta dishes and a tomato soup I really liked. Chocolate chip cookie was outstanding. Blood orange mule was pretty good by Lobos. Other dishes were so so. Definitely not worth the high price tag even after 30% discount.

I have been participating in the Montrose Arts and Crafts Festival as a designer of jewelry. While…read morethe advertising and promotion is pretty good, there are too many jewelry people, someone walked by my booth and said" jewelry again"! That made me feel badly since I take time to hand design and make all my pieces, I sign up early and pay to be among the early vendors. This year, there were lots of people but they were not buying jewelry. The security is very good with the security guard at night. Unloading and loading are fairly organized as well. from a vendor perspective I've done better in prior years, from a shopper perspective, the fair is fun and the variety is fairly good.

It was so nice to attend the two street length Art Festival in Montrose; it was a beautiful day,…read morewith the warm sun beaming down on this wonderful event. I enjoyed seeing all the woodworking sculptures and unique paintings and photographic works. My wife liked the jewelry and custom clothing. We both wanted to get the Apple Cobbler, but it ran out within two hours of the festival opening. I'm hoping they will have more today, so that we can enjoy some of the food available!

1st impression: Parking Sucks!!!! We literally looked for…read moreparking for over 1 hour and finally found one that was about a 10 min walk. Not too bad but it was blazing hot. All the lots were closed and most spots were only 2 hour parking and they had meters so you risk getting a ticket since there's no reentry to the event. Location needs to be changed for next year. Luckily, half of the festival started to get some shade or we would've burned for sure! A couple really cool and entertaining pizza performances! Great turn out for the 1st year! Yet, if it gets more popular next year they need to, relocated for sure because it will get too crowded. Over 20 different booths! All had a few selections of pizza on their menu but it seemed that after 3pm, mostly everyone was starting to just serve their version of margarita pizza. Yet this allows you to purely judge their sauce and dough. Line waits varied, some you didn't even have to wait for at all! Not to say they weren't good but it gets old after a couple slices. I was expecting to see more variety but we did get there an hour late due to the Horrible Parking (can you tell I'm still upset about it? ...yes it was that bad! lol) Not to say there wasn't a few new things to try, I just expected more. International Pizzerias and chefs were appealing and cooking demos were cool too! $40 for presage tickets wasn't a bad price, although I wouldn't pay more than that unless they upgraded the event. Waters were $4 for a bottle, which is average for an event. Beer was sold but I wasn't drinking so I don't know how the prices were. They had a lot of give away as in the beginning and booths had more throughout the event. Over all it's a very fun and family friendly event! Great idea and definitely has the potential to grow into an iconic event as they smooth out the kinks over the years. Can't wait to see if they have a second one!

This was a wonderful event. If you're a pizza lover this festival would blow you a way. I thought…read morethe concept of a pizza festival was strange at first. I thought it's pizza, there's only so much you can do with dough, sauce and cheese. Boy was I wrong!!! I was completely unaware of all the possibilities. Immediately knew I was in for a treat when most of the vendor were totally into their crafts, they took pride in the pizza they created. I sampled 90 percent of the vendors in hopes to find a pizza that wasn't delicious. I figured that mindset would be easiest as everything tasted like life, it would be hard to decide which is first, second, and so forth. To my delight there wasn't one slice that wasn't remarkable. I even went out of my comfort zone and tried the baby octopus pizza. That shit was fire too. I have a new respect for pizza. I tasted so much quality here that I will never eat dominos or the hut again. It is what it is. This event had an array of music on the grounds so there's never a dull moment. The beer and wine sections are sectioned off and has games like corn hole and play areas for the toddlers if you have any. This was definitely a place for the whole family to enjoy, and with all you can eat pizza, who could complain. 5 stars.

A local annual festival which took place this year from Friday, September 19 to Sunday, September…read more21. I decided to go Friday evening after work which ended up having slightly less scheduled events. However, the benefit was that there were lesser crowds, and the cool, end of summer breeze around the perimeter of the church was just the right temperature. The big draw for me was definitely the food. Specifically, I had a craving for moussaka. As luck would have it, by the time it was my turn in line the moussaka was almost out, so I was lucky to have one of the last pieces. Although the dish was only slightly warm, the taste was undeniably fresh and satisfying. My colleague and I talked about dishes to check out, and he raved about how delicious the roasted leg of lamb dish was. He also mentioned that the dance competition can be pretty entertaining. The group that was up that evening ranged from adolescents to the elderly, and it was clear early on the spirited elderly folks had both the charm and technique down to win it all. "Opa!!!" the audience would cheer them on. The surrounding area included vendors for jewelry, artwork, and even an AARP booth for ax-throwing. Decently sized festival and friendly folks around.

What a wonderful surprise! I stumbled upon this local Greek festival when driving up Rosemead and…read moresaw the buzz of excitement around St. Anthony Orthodox Church. Blue and white tents canvas the parking lot and house the vendors and bar. The festival offered a generous seating area where groups of all sizes could savor their meals and desserts to the tune of live music. The large dance floor means people of all ages joined in the group dances, creating a joyful atmosphere that was contagious! There is souvlaki that draws you in and the indoor hall where they serve plated meals. My favorite part of this enchanting event had to be the lovely grandmas who brought their energy and warmth to serve up their baked desserts, with a side of heartfelt smiles. We love the experience, and what this festival represents!

Neat to participate in. Cuban, Indian, American all kinds of food! We actually parked at the…read moreAmericana garage and had to walk several blocks to pick up the tickets. I wasn't expecting that. So we had to back track to make sure we did not miss any spots. Other than that it was a fun night out experiencing what Glendale has to offer

Annual event since 2001, apparently (not 100% sure). It was my first time, and I enjoyed it with my…read morefamily. Highlights: extensive food venues to sample, healthy servings, live music, friendly atmosphere, and somewhat family friendly (started early enough for my little ones to enjoy it) Cons: slow ticket lines when buying day of, some restaurants ran out of food an hour before the event ended Overall, this is a must! Go and be merry! *FYI- the alcohol wasn't that yummy, but I can't complain because it was only an additional $10

VENUE ______________…read moreRaleigh Studios was a great venue for this event. Parking was at a lot across the street ($10) which was convenient but pricey. This was a perfect day to be outdoors. There were two places with restrooms. There was enough room to walk around and the vendors filled up the space. I liked that the restaurant was left open so that we could eat in their outdoor space. It was shady, convenient, and very comfortable for a festival event. EXHIBITORS _______________ According to the food festival schedule/book there were 61 of them. There were a few food trucks, some food stands, some people selling their products like vegan themed t-shirts and lotions. It was really a mix of things but, of course, the highlight was the food. FOOD _________ The food here was amazing! It was definitely a highlight of coming here. I discovered a lot of places I really liked that I never would have known about beforehand. Cena Vegan: Carne Asada Nachos (guacamole was an extra cost but necessary and should have been included in the price), would have liked a little more salsa on it as I ran out of sauce at the end. Nevertheless, this was delicious and definitely the most beautiful dish here, enough for 2 people to split Mama's International Tamales: We split the mole tamale and the sweet corn tamale. Both were good. I preferred the savory taste of the mole to the sweet corn which was much sweeter. Pop-Pa's Gourmet Popcorn: This vendor was the best. Generous with his samples, CEO is a super friendly and a kind person, very fresh product with great flavors, and a family business. We got the cinna-pop but it was hard to decide between that flavor and the savory fiesta flavor. Only $3 a bag. Scandylous Delights: OMG this funnel cake! We got The Works which was the funnel cake with strawberry, and bananas, a scoop of soy ice cream, chocolate sauce and powdered sugar. We told them we were sharing and they cut it in half for us. Sweet vendor! These funnel cakes won "best of vegan street fair LA 2017" and it's definitely well-deserved. This was one of my favorite desserts at the event and maybe of all time. Punk Rawk Labs Cashew milk cheese: Just tasted this cheese on a cracker. Tasted rich, almost like real cheese. Very delicious. I approve of this vegan creation. Lulu's Sorbetto: I just had a taste of these flavors but they were amazing. Not too sweet. 100% natural and dairy free, gluten free. The pure chocolate was so good. Entertainment ________________ I skipped the speakers as there wasn't too much I was interested in and, for the most part, it was not cooking demonstrations and my focus was on the food. The main speakers were speaking in an area of the restaurant and it was hard to hear them unless you were sitting up close so I didn't stay for that. The speakers were free but I wish there was more free food or they were making food for me to eat for free. They had a nice band playing as we walked in. They were very good. I enjoyed listening to them. They had a kid zone which is nice and convenient for families. PRICING __________ Not a huge fan of the price for this event. The entry fee the day of is steep: $30 and before the event it is $20 (they also had a promo code for 40% off online). Goldstar (a discount event website) had tickets for $12 (plus the service fee). For the entry price, I expected there to be more free samples there were hardly any. There was some free water bottles from Essentia water, Cedar's hummus gave a generous sample, and Pop-Pa's Gourmet popcorn was also generous. Most everything else was pay as you go. Parking at $10 was a surprise we weren't expecting. And for the entry fee, I thought there'd be some sort of souvenir, even a mug would be nice but no, nothing. And, if you wanted a bag to carry the stuff you were buying or picking up, well, that was $15 too. I wish they just didn't have an entry fee or had a cheaper entry fee as I'm not sure what I was paying for besides maybe the use of the space. I would also be okay with an entry fee that was higher where the food from the vendors was included in the price. I think they should rethink their pricing for next year so people get more bang for their buck. OVERALL 3.5 stars __________ This was a fun event. I love the concept of a vegan food festival. Great venue. Amazing food options to purchase. Lots of people but not overcrowded (and everyone I met was super nice). Lines weren't long and food was fast to pick up. Parking was convenient but pricey. It was a nice experience and I'm really glad I went and I would recommend it for people of all ages, families, and dates. I think there should be more cooking demos than speakers, emphasis should be on the food. I do think they should rethink the entry price and the parking price and give some kind of souvenir/gift basket (it could have samples and coupons advertising their vendors) at the door and have more free samples in general.

First Annual CA Veg Food Fest was pretty awesome!…read more They were promoting this like crazy on social media so there was 40% discount promo codes for pre-purchase tix which came out to $18 per ticket. I saw many complaints online about vegan events being so crowded. But this was the LEAST crowded vegan event that I've been to this year and I've been to 6 vegan festivals in 2016. That's the benefit of this having an entrance fee versus being free to the public. Now the most important stuff, THE FOOD!!! It was easy to walk right up to the vendors since there were hardly any lines. Here's a list of all the yummy things we got to enjoy: - Mac n Cheese, BBQ Chickun and Greens from Southern Fried Vegan http://bit.ly/2fQO1mg - Mole Nachos from Casa de Brisa http://bit.ly/2fpFND5 - OMG Grilled Cheese from TGI Vegan http://bit.ly/2fLnc2s - Vegan Bratwurst from Dogtown Dogs http://bit.ly/2f7rXlT - Rocky Road Vegan Dots http://bit.ly/2g9040V My favorite was the OMG Grilled Cheese which was cheddar, mozzarella, pepper jack, parmesan, garlic butter and avocado on sourdough. I think it's my new favorite thing in life! :) Knowing that I couldn't eat everything on site, I was fully prepared to take a few goodies home including: - Tamales from Taqueria La Venganza - Cosmic Date Treats (raw chocolates) from Alegria Xocolatl I couldn't resist getting a fresh coconut from Zen Comfort. Electrolytes please! http://bit.ly/2fOqHnx I'm also kinda regretting not picking up some tacos to go from Cena Vegan :( It was a hot day but it wasn't super difficult to find some shade to sit in. The layout wasn't as spacious as I thought it would be considering that this event took place at Raleigh Studios. But I appreciate the easy parking situation. They do have a parking structure. Not sure how much it was since we found residential parking nearby. Didn't find any parking restrictions on a Sunday. If the entry price is the same I might go again next year. If they offer the same discount, I'd definitely go.

What else can I add to what Grace C. has already extolled about this event? :)…read more It was my first time to A Taste of Old Town Monrovia, after hearing my boyfriend rave about all the deliciousness of years past. Thus, expectations duly raised, I went into the event with high hopes and an empty stomach. I was not disappointed. There were fifty booths this year, representing many a palate. From hotel cuisine to soul food, there was a stand to satisfy one's appetite. Did I go back to Paradis Gelato's stands twice? Maaaaaybe. ;) Thanks to this event, I had the opportunity to sample foods from many different eateries. Jake's Roadhouse, Sena on Myrtle, and Bottega della Sera were particular faves for me. There are many other places that I look forward to visiting. The live music was wonderful, everyone was friendly, and the overall atmosphere was just lovely. I really like the palette-like trays they gave us (there's a slot for holding your wine glass, too!). The Kiwanis Club did an excellent job organizing this wonderful event! Totally brings me back to my days of volunteering with Key Club in high school :) Thank you again! I look forward to returning next year.

My first time ever at this 6th annual event organized by Monrovia Kiwanis! I've been meaning to…read moreattend one of these Taste of Old Town Monrovia events ever since I moved to Monrovia 3 years ago, but something always came up during my October weekends and I would have to skip out. Finally, this year, everything fell into place and at 5 pm on Sunday, with my pre-bought ticket in hand (you save $10 not buying at the door!), I was ready to taste and drink my way through the main street on Monrovia on Myrtle Ave with the over 50+ vendors from Monrovia and the surrounding areas. The entire street of Myrtle is blocked off from Lime to Colorado. Upon check-in (and checking your ID to make sure you're over 21), you're handed a reusable tote bag with a wine glass and reusable food tray (with handy slot to house your wine glass). The tote bag is great in holding coupons and menus and business cards handed out by the various vendors. Some vendors have storefronts right here on Myrtle while others are in nearby cities (like Duarte, Azusa or Pasadena) or can provide catering and private orders! You definitely will not go home hungry! A tip learned from this trip is that it may be worthwhile to do a walk through first to see what's out there and pick what piques your interest. Otherwise you'll be full before you hit the halfway point! Plenty of food and availability to go back for seconds on your favorites! The lines were very reasonable, with the max being maybe 4 people ahead of you in line. The BF and I tried plenty of sweets (cupcakes, bundt cakes, ice cream!), BBQ foods, Mexican food, comfort food, and so much more! Plenty of alcohol flowing here too! I love that everything is included in the ticket price so you don't even have to bring your wallet if you don't plan to bar hop afterwards! Other than the food, there's a live band (Time Bomb) providing some great tunes through out the night, in front of an area set up for dancing to work off the food. A photo booth was nearby as well to capture your picture pre or post food coma. I have to give major props to the Kiwanis Club of Monrovia for such a well run event. Tickets could be purchased online (with a small convenience fee) or at a couple of different Monrovia merchants in person (cash or check only). The day of the event, checking in ran super smooth and the Kiwanians were all over the event -- making sure trash cans weren't overflowing, providing bottled water at their booths, and making sure everyone was having a great time! If I wasn't already a member of another Kiwanis club, this event would motivate me to join their club! And of course, the proceeds of the tickets all go towards benefiting the youth programs they organize in the community. What a win-win situation -- the kids supported by Kiwanis wins and my tummy wins in trying out so much variety of food! Of course, I have to comment that I had no problems finding parking as well. There are plenty of street parking and spots at the various free public parking lots next to Myrtle Avenue. Just turn on one of the side streets one or two blocks before you hit Line or Colorado to avoid the buildup of traffic from the blocked off streets. As I was heading out, stuffed to the brim at 7:30 pm, I saw a sign saving the date for the event next year - October 15, 2017. You can bet it will be on my calendar and it should be on yours too, especially for any first timers!