I love chocolate and I can't think of a better way to kick off the weekend in the middle of what I…read morefind a gloomy, harsh winter. With some light entertainment (music troupe) and chocolate, what more can you ask for at this 10th year of the festival? Line started forming around 12/12:15PM. We were lucky that today was warmer in comparison to weeks ago but it easily could have been frigid. I do suggest being prepared attire wise in case. By the time I left with a full plate of samples (fudge, ganache, chocolate dipped bacon, tiramisu, Starbucks brownies, Crema Cafe brownie/chocolate cake, JP Licks hazelnut ice cream and more), the line extended over 5 blocks long. I wish I was able to document all the goodies and vendors but it was too crowded to take pictures of every stand. As per the event website (http://harvardsquare.com/events/legendary-10th-taste-chocolate-festival-harvard-square), these are the vendors: Benedetto Cabot's Candy DAVIDs TEA Flour Bakery Freepoint Hotel Harvest Henrietta's Table JP Licks Parsnip Pressed Juicery Roseadela's Seacoast Sweets Starbucks Tatte Bakery & Cafe Toscano Zinneken's Suggestions for a more organized event though I could see how some of these may be difficult to execute: - Have previous registration - Use a fenced in area to ensure that those waiting in line can get a fair chance at getting samples - it seemed like anyone off the street could just join in at lightly crowded vendors instead of waiting in line for a plate that organizers hand out at the beginning; vendors are too busy to regulate who waits in line or not - Token/raffle ticket system - i.e. give a string of 12 tickets and each patron can use their tickets how they choose; in this way, there are more samples to go around Overall, I enjoyed the event, recommend it, and would definitely come again.

Who doesn't love free chocolate? The Harvard Square Chocolate Festival is an annual tradition (now…read morein its 8th year) and occurs over one weekend in late January. The festival culminates in a one-hour free chocolate tasting event that is held in Brattle Square, usually from 1-2pm on a Saturday. I attended the one-hour tasting today, and it was fantastic! The lines start to form around 12:30pm, so getting there early is a must. Also note that the event is outside, so dress warmly since you will probably be standing in line in the cold for 30 minutes to an hour. Once the line starts moving, it goes fast. The event features a lot of local businesses like J.P. Licks, Ben and Jerry's, Crema Cafe, and so on, and you basically pick up a plate and then move along the line to different tents in order to grab free samples. Some of the goodies that I got today were: - cup of hot chocolate from Shake Shack - scoop of chocolate ice cream from Ben and Jerry's - scoop of chocolate ice cream from J.P. Licks - mini chocolate covered cannoli from Toscano (delicious! My favorite item) - chili chocolate mini cupcake from Crema Cafe - Chocolate chip cookie from UNO's - Bite-sized portion of chocoalte cake from Wagamama - Chocolate square with a dab of honey from Follow the Honey - Sponge cake from El Jefe's - Fudge from Cabot Candy Most of the vendors also have free coupons and discounts that you can grab to encourage you to visit their stores. There was also a music group that was playing, and it contributed to the festive atmosphere of the event. Overall, I was very happy with the event - I just wish it could happen during the summer when it isn't so cold to stand outside!

What a waste of time .....small same food stands top-notch security police officers all over the…read moreplace did not feel safe. Trying to find a feast was almost impossible. Finally, we went online and it told exactly where it was.

It's so much fun! Many , many people with lots of food, games, music, and dessert. It's fun to…read morepeople watch. We really enjoy it!

Wonderful crafts from New England. It's like visiting a dozen craft museums all at once! Wood…read moreworking, weaving, glass, metal sculptures. A lot of jewelry. Though there were quite a few repetitive crafts, they each had their own twist to their art. The exhibit hall isn't overwhelming, and if you get there early enough it's not yet crowded. There are a couple interesting highlights, with Steampunk sculptures from Steampunk Lighting to piggy banks with personalities from Three Wheel Studio. It's a fun, fairly quick step into the crafting world! Great ideas for gifting and those items to get someone who has "everything"! I'm very happy with my own purchases from Antrim Street Studio and Kommineni Art Glass.

The fact that I a. found a parking spot on the street and then b. got in for freezies with my Yelp…read morecheck-in totes made my day. The artists and artisans here are über talented, from all over the place, and very willing to tell you their stories and explain their methods. Inspiring. Awesome. Add to that Spindleworks, a nonprofit art center in Maine for people with disabilities, and Metalwerx, where I will be taking my next art metal class in Waltham (I hope), as well as displays by a woodworking cooperative and the Fuller Craft Museum, and we were happy campers. Prices range from totally do-able to going-to-have-to-save-up-but-will-do-so-willingly. So much cool stuff. I am a sucker for pottery and sparkly shiny jewelry and left totally satisfied and with a long wishlist. Well done! And thank you.

I've gone to the Ahts festival in Christopher Columbus park for the past 2 years and had a great…read moretime. (If you're not from here - the name is a joke on our accent. It's an arts festival.) There are lots of local artists selling their works in tents on the park. There are also glass blowing demonstrations from Diablo glass and music performances on a main stage. It's a wicked fun event to visit! This year Prince pasta was even there giving away free 1 pound boxes of pasta!

I cannot believe this place can run in such a rude manner. We have been calling and emailing this…read morehistorical place about some lost AirPods. They have not responded at all. We've searched for them and then got yelled at because we brought a lot of people to search for them. I found out anyone can simply reset them. I am very disgusted because they least they could do is email me or call me and say they have or have not seen them. They will not respond. I am starting to wonder if they found them and choosing to keep them. I do not know!

I got married here, so of course I am going to be somewhat biased about the place…read more As a wedding venue, it was perfect for a smallish wedding of about 90 guests. The grounds were fantastic for everyone to wander around, the foliage and landscaping actually made the need for us to spend half our budget on flowers unnecessary, and the interior was equally gorgeous, with hard wood everything, a grand staircase/foyer that was excellent for dancing and toasts and lots of rooms for a dessert buffet and a large dining area. It is however a historic estate, which means that there are limitations in terms of vendors you can use and decorations (eg, no lit candles indoors) however since we had a late summer wedding, we pretty much stayed outside the entire time so these weren't huge concerns. The event coordinator is -terrifying- but she knows what she is doing. She's very gruff, all business, but really, you're not there to make friends with her, so just smile and nod and everything will go ok. The price wasn't bad for the event, and there is a discount for Waltham residents (which we were not. boo)

Incredibly long lines. Too many people. Ran out of ice cream hours before closing time, vendors…read morewere leaving early. This is for charity so I don't feel great about leaving a negative review, but this was a poorly planned and poorly run event. The most expensive two tiny scoops of chocolate ice cream I've ever had. In past years this experience was much better. Typically lines were only a few people and you wouldn't have to wait very long, there were more vendors, and vendors did not run out of supply. The people in charge of the event this year should have limited the crowd size and better controlled the space. The lines were so long they crashed into each other and it was impossible to even determine what line you were in. Very negative experience. Cannot recommend.

So glad to finally join in on the Scooper Bowl. I've always seen and walked by the Scooper Bowl in…read morepast years and this time around I couldn't pass up the opportunity for Scooper Bowl at Night a 21+ event. I will say the lines were quite long and if they were to do it again I wish they'd expand the perimeter of the 21+ event. The ice cream was delicious and I got to try plenty of flavors. I decided to attend because Bart's one of my favorite ice cream places from western mass was serving the Purple Cow. I can't recommend that highly enough if you're ever in Amherst. I liked the options for drinks as well. While I was originally in line for wine, their portions probably wouldn't be considered generous. So I ended up with with harpoons pale ale which was very good and perfect for the nice weather since it had a hint of citrus. It was a better bang for the buck, my friends got the hard seltzer drinks and said they were very good.

I look forward to Japan festival Boston every year: fabulous food; Japanese, cultural…read moreentertainment; local Japanese exhibitors, and vendors. Only downside (not the festival's fault): for the first time this year, the college crowd has taken over with pushy, rude entitlement... The exact opposite of Japanese culture. THE DEAL: if you want to experience Japanese culture, right here at home, Boston's Japan festival is free and fabulous!

I volunteered at Japan Festival Boston. As a volunteer you can get T-shirt and quick pass. T-shirt…read morewas only large size: a bit disappointing. Most volunteers are Japanese, why is the T-shirt American large (equivalent to extra large in Japan) size? For food concession stands: there are many good stuff, okonomiyaki, takoyaki, ramen, udon, coffee, desert. A little expensive and very long line. There is room to improve. Probably to experience Japanese culture for non-Japanese people, it is a great opportunity.

Beautiful park in the middle of Boston! We almost skipped coming here but very glad we didn't…read more There are well-maintained walking paths and we came across a community garden where apparently people can rent plots of land to grow their own fruits and vegetables. We also saw turtles and lot of ducks/geese. Very peaceful park - I would come here often if I lived in Boston

" Like a movie scene" Walking the Fenway victory gardens is…read morelike walking a movie scene. A great ending to my walk around Fenway . It's such an honor to live so close to be able to walk this area on the regular. Thank you to all that keep this together. It's the little things that matter . Can't wait to cone again !