This particular Chinatown International District event - which usually occurs around the time of…read morethe Moon Festival - has been around since 2006 though I've gone here starting back in 2011. Past night markets have spanned throughout King St starting from - but not including - 7th Ave all the way down to 5th Ave, spanning outwards on 5th, 6th and Maynard to the blocks touching both Weller and Jackson Streets. This year (and several other years before that) there were no fair contents on the stretch of Maynard touching Weller. Basically, there's 6 blocks of food and merchandise vendors for night market goers to enjoy, and there's less content year after year. Logistics wise, people come and go throughout the fair, though this day was particularly crowded because of two home games in both T-Mobile Park and Lumen Field occurring within the time frame of the night market. It gets very, very crowded the closer you get to the end as certain performances are scheduled within that time. I don't mind this though, since crowds where you're shoulder to shoulder with others is what night markets in this continent are all about. As with previous years after 2018 or so, the main stage is at Hing Hay Park instead of the parking lot at 6th and King close to Jolidaze and Oasis. I actually miss having the stage at its former location, but Hing Hay Park is definitely more aesthetically calming for big performances. If you want to watch performances, you should come here early to snag a spot, or hope people leave so you can get a spot where you can see better. Food wise, there's more local Seattle (or at least WA-state native) eateries than what was in this year's nonlocally diluted Bite of Seattle: - I started off getting spicy mango takoyaki from a stand very close to Bao Box (based in Covington, WA), though both stands share the same POS system to order from. Takoyaki is standard, and the spice hits hard but much later than you think. I wish I could have tasted more mango in the mango sauce, though. - The mango coconut smoothie from Mangosteen (which used to be in Chinatown) is pure heaven! It was relatively warm this year so this drink especially hit the spot. - I also got some pandan waffles from a Seattle-based stand called Dragonfly. They sell Vietnamese waffle mixes along with the waffles of those flavors themselves. I love pandan flavor on waffles, so this was a big hitter for me as well. Entertainment wise, I'm divided on this since I'm considering years of attending this event. The lion dances from Mak Fai are always fun to see year after year, and though I missed this year's Apex Diabolo performance in person I'm sure they were really mesmerizing to watch as they always are. Honestly, I would much prefer watching the dancing competitions from The Beacon back then instead of the K-pop random dance play event this year, both of which occur as the last performance of this event. I did, however, have some fun at the variety show and got to listen to some awesome local API artists sing their hearts out; it makes me miss more of the singing that used to take up slightly more time slots on entertainment in past years. Unlike the Bite of Seattle, I'm down to come back here year after year regardless of the lack of changes with the vendors. There's a ton of local eats, merch booths are very interesting, and we still have an eclectic set of performances to boot. This event isn't something worth staying the whole duration for, but you can enjoy yourself and the crowds very easily here.

Looking for summer fun, entertainment, eats, and getting smoked out by all the grilled eats?!…read more.. come to the ID during this festival! My friend and I were eager to try all the sweet and savory eats while being entertained by the on stage pop locking / breakdancing. Be prepared for the crowds! The space is limited to a few blocks leaving little room to move about and few places to find refuge. Wonderful smells from all the eats offers temptations, whilst the smoke from the grilled eats literally 'crowds' you :0/ thankfully industrial fans were about Overall a great experience! Hopefully next festival will offer more areas to escape

This is such a lively event! It's centered on Hing Hay Park, as from11 a.m. to 4 p.m. they have…read morecultural performances every hour or so there, including the lion dance and other cool demonstrations. This coincided with the $6 food walk that surrounding restaurants participated in, although there were also vendor booths selling food in addition to crafts and other goodies lined up along S King St. The festival was busier than I expected, but I had a great time and a stuffed belly. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for next year's festival!

I give this festival four stars more because it is was a new cultural experience for me and was a…read moregreat deal of fun seeing the Dragon and Lion dances. I could see coming here every year to be tiring though. The crowds in the neighborhood is tremendous and it is a serious effort to see the performers but with persistence you can probably get some good pictures and a view at some point but it isn't easy and can get exhausting. They have a $2 food walk but so many people are waiting in line it feels very overwhelming. Despite crowds and long waits the festival was still worth while going to.

Such a great event hosted by Uwajimaya every summer! Great opportunity to grab snacks because they…read moreusually have a sale with the vendors who come out in-store and then outside with all of the booths a wonderful way to try local businesses and Japanese eats Depending on the time, they have cosplay and performances. Some fun kids games and other great things to check out! It gets pretty busy. We were in the area closer to the end of the event.

This was a spur of the moment thing for us. We went to Uwajimaya on Friday for some grocery…read moreshopping, and saw them setting up the street booths and the banner advertising the festival. So we decided to come back the next day to check it out. What a fun little festival. The whole festival is situated on only one block with about 15 or so booths, and an entertainment stage. We literally walked the whole event 4 times in 1 hour, and that included stopping to eat at several booths. My wife and I sampled the Okonomiyaki ($5), the Kalbi plate ($7 without a drink), and a vanilla shave ice with condensed milk ($5.50). The Okonomiyaki was without a doubt the most popular dish and had a line each time we walked past. I'm sure you can google what it is but it essentially looks like a yakisoba pancake with various ingredients. It has a lot of flavor and is very rich. I definitely enjoyed it, but the two of us couldn't finish one order as it was too rich. The kalbi was delicious as always-- it's hard to screw up kalbi. $7 might seem expensive but it's always expensive and at least they gave us 3 good size strips. Our only complaint was that one strip wasn't fully cooked (pink on the inside). The shave ice was good-- nothing special--- but refreshing on a hotter day. We enjoyed our time here. It's cool just people watching as the gals wearing kimonos are very pretty. Everybody was laid back, friendly, and having a great time. Do yourself a favor and stop by for some good food and enjoyment.

Ukrainian food is in short supply so I look forward to this yearly festival. This festival is…read morerelatively new as this year will be its fourth year. It takes place in late August/early September. The next one being this weekend (Saturday). While this event is for the Ukrainian community, all are welcome. The event take up a good chunk of Crossroads Park where it is held annually. Dancing, music and family activities are some of the offerings. For me though I come here for the food. There are a bunch of vendors with similar menus, so choose the one that looks the most appealing to you. My particular favorite is to get some pork kebabs with either some plov or salad. They also have a baked goods table if you want dessert. If you are looking for something to do this weekend on the Eastside, this is a decent festival to check out. Particularly for their food offerings.

The Festival was great this year and very professionaly organized. Especially I want to express my…read moreappreciation for parking guys who worked so tirelessly and helped me to find spot to park my car whe it seems impossible. Thank you!

A lively annual Japanese festival that started in 2017! It is open to the public for the Saturday…read morepacked with a variety of activities to learn about the culture. The event is suited for families, but also enjoyable for adults. Workshops and performances are generally thirty minutes to an hour long. I attended the Furoshiki Wrapping Workshop (a hands-on class wrapping cloth around various items) as well as the Dango Cooking Workshop (a session to make and eat sweet Japanese dumplings). Performances and demos include dances, music, tea ceremonies, flower arrangements, and much more. The School of TAIKO show was really fun to watch! It was also interesting to watch martial arts demonstrations, such as kendo up against naginata. In between events, you can check out the flea market, cultural booths, karaoke, exhibits, or even photo opportunities. Free WiFi is offered at the campus, and food catered for the festival is available for purchase.

The best way to describe a night at upstream music fest is an art adventure in an outdoor museum…read more It seems like the majority of people I talked to only recognized One or two of the performers. But there's something magical in that mystery that leads to a serendipitous evening. Each stage was like stepping into a new world curated by a different team for a different purpose. We watched a stop motion film with live music scoring, then caught a Hawaiian guy playing solos off his ukelele, the can can showcasing their new dance routine femme fatale, and at the main stage of course humbling vibes and feel good music from Miguel. Overall pioneer square was never crowded, and the people who were here were very friendly and open to be influenced by their surroundings. The staff was well organized and prevalent. If I were to make some changes, it would probably be to have more food present or list food destinations on the map. Also, some advice for myself next year; research the artists!

I had way more fun than I thought I would at upstream!!!! It's like.. music fest and bar hopping…read moreAND eating!!! I can see this being way more popular in the coming years. Miguel headlined last night and he was amazing! I feel blessed to have seen him live and in the flesh! lol. Got in a little late right about 9:30pm when Miguel just started.. it's really easy to maneuver around/ get to and from the different venues (we rode bikes for portions of the night). And my favorite part is how intimate all the spaces are! One venue we were got drinks, on to the next venue and we got bean dip and chips, another venue we were jumping around! So happy I got to experience this.

Was it faith that work brought me to Seattle so that I could experience my heritage celebration? I…read morehad forgotten that June 12 is Philippine Independence (1898) from Spain. I caught the tail end of a tribal Philippines dance, and I was even able to practice my Tagalog and two other dialect to share the "Pinoy" Pride with local vendors and spectators. It was also nice to see local Seattle Pinoy having a great time with their friends and family, truly enjoying and immersing themselves both with the traditions from the Philippines while embracing the the American Filipino heritage. Until then, be kind to one another and Cheers! ~ :p

Wandering around Seattle Center this afternoon, looking for a good lunch spot, I stumbled across…read moreThe Pagdiriwang Philippine Festival! Lucky me! I made a loop through the food booths and trucks first then through the Armory before settling in on my lunch choice: the combo #3 from ESPI Foods! Very nice combination of soft and savory pancit, bbq chicken (aka meat on a stick as my family calls it) and pork lumpia! Don't forget to order a cup of mango lemonade to go with! You'll be glad you did! I found a nice spot to eat on the Fisher Green in the sunshine where I could watch the International Fountain and still hear the music. Lovely! A do not miss at this Festival is the Armory main stage! This is where traditional music and dance of the Philippines is really shining this weekend! Lively music, beautiful dancing and gorgeous dancers! It's a feast for the senses! It's nice and cool inside the Armory with the A/C cranked up too! The Pagdiriwang Philippine Festival is definitely on the smaller side compared to other weekend festivals here at Seattle Center in the Summer. But that is definitely a big part of its charm for me! Though there were several thousand people here on a Sunday afternoon, the Festival didn't feel crowded. It was just a nice gathering of happy people that enjoy sunshine, good food and music from one of our Pacific Rim neighbors! Great family friendly event! The pace is perfect- casual and comfortable. I had a good time walking around admiring the festival booths and also it was nice to just find a sunny spot to just sit in the grass and listen- enjoying the festival sights and sounds around me. We'll be back for sure!

The Greater Seattle area hosts many neighborhood pride fests. (Woot!) The biggest neighborhood…read morepride fest remains to be PrideFest in Capitol Hill. It is also my favorite, even more than the Seattle Center one. This event has a great vibe with festivities in Cal Anderson Park, E Denny Way, and on Broadway. Community booths, non-profits, and businesses hand out swags. Craft vendors sell everything pride (and not-pride) related. Performances, drag shows, and music of Cher, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, and more fill the streets. Eat, drink, and be merry. Support the LGBTG+ community by shopping from the artists vendors who support them, too. Every year, we come to this event on the Saturday, acquiring more swags and be rainbow-decked out for the Pride Parade and Seattle Center PrideFest on the Sunday. It is a happy, jolly, ally pride and proud weekend.

Where else to celebrate PrideFest other than the neighborhood that welcomes and is home probably…read morethe largest group of LGBT communities in Seattle! :) The PrideFest is lively...and diversity is truly celebrated over the weekend...starting from all the booths and cafes that open up to support the LGBT communities. I've been to PrideFest quite a few times now over the past years in CapHill and the scenes are still as lively as I remembered during my first year in CapHill. You can feel people are happy to be out there, to support one another, and generally having a good time! :) It's fun to people watch, to walk around and enjoy all the booths/info that are out there..and just all the activities that happen throughout Pike/Pine corridors, along Broadway as well as Cal Anderson Park! :) If you are in Seattle, look no further than CapHill, if you are looking to see where else beyond the parade downtown that opens up the whole neighborhood to support LGBT communities. ;)