(e)merge art fair was a huge disappointment…read more.. First, I purchased the Gilt City VIP Party and Preview Tickets, for a $65 for a $5 savings... Frankly, I thought Gilt would have vetted this 'VIP party' ...There was NOTHING VIP about the VIP PARTY... perhaps I should have read the fine print more clearly --- no complimentary cocktail, canapes, blah blah blah....there would have been no difference from viewing this art show any other day or time. Speaking of cocktails, they had ONE bartender at the main bar. Then one outside by the pool...one on the second floor. Interestingly enough, I just paid $65 for this event and NOT one cocktail included. When I went to buy a beer by the pool, the sign said 'Domestic Beer $5, Imported Beer $6.' The woman asked me for $8, and I told her the sign in front of her said $6. She said the price was $8 for this event. Nice. Clearly, the high price of the VIP Party and just the $15 show fee are to subsidize the Capital Skyline because no one would come here otherwise... Second, this show was questionable for both quality and quantity. It was definitely quite sparse... As someone who attended last year, I am pretty confident in saying that there were far more exhibitors and far more international exhibitors last year. Whilst there were a few nice pieces here and there, the rest of the works reminded me of the Artomatic, which I greatly support as a wonderful effort in promoting the arts to the community at large but is not curated or presented as a professional art show. The (e)merge art fair is a big #FAIL... If they seek to survive in DC, they will need to do a better job of curating because no one is going to continue to pay this kind of entry fee to subsidize a motel. *(e)merge art fair, if you would like to hire me, I consult on business strategy including revenue strategy for cultural arts organizations, so ping me...

Great experience! This fair had a variety of international artists and also provided a great…read moreopportunity for local artists as well. My favorite part was the section in the garage that had different musical and performances art showings... The trapeze act was pretty awesome, too... The staff was super friendly and helpful, very willing to talk about the art.

I happen upon early bird tickets to the festival by chance and decided what the heck why not and…read morebought a 2-day pass. It was a wonderfully pleasant experience and overall well done for a first year, imo. Granted I've only been to a small handful of music festivals but this one will definitely be one on my short list for years to come. LOCATION Located in West Potomac Park by the Tidal Basin just outside of the MLK Memorial the music festival provided a very scenic route and plenty of picturesque places to stop and take in the music while taking a break between sets. Take a picture under the logo banner with the Washington Monument and one of the stages as your backdrop. Sit on a park bench and look across the Potomac River watching boats drift by or lay under a cherry tree and admire the Air Force Memorial in Arlington. While not pillowy pink like it is in the springtime for the immensely popular Cherry Blossom Festival, the park still retains a lot of its beauty in the autumn months. Now the down side...close proximity to Reagan National Airport so constant air planes going by, sometimes so loudly it drowned out some of the music. But not to the point where the party stops! Just a few patches here. MUSIC/LINEUP All in all, a good lineup I think. Rock, hip hop, folk, dance and more. It didn't skew towards one particular music genre and included bands new and established. Will it have something for everyone? Not this year. BUT!! I think in the years to come it'll only get better. TRANSPORTATION Since it's in a city you don't have to worry about being stranded in the woods of a podunk area. However, it being in West Potomac Park, don't expect any easy ways in and out of the park. This place is notorious for becoming a horrid display of notorious bumper-to-bumper traffic and too few parking spaces. If you're driving, don't try to park here. I repeat. DO. NOT. TRY. TO. PARK. HERE. Instead, leave the car at a parking garage in the city or at a metro stop with a parking garage (if you're from out of town go to wmata.com to look up lines/stations) and walk. Or better yet, rent a bike from one of the many Capital bikeshare stations and bike there. You can return it to the bikeshare station located near the main stage off of Ohio & West Basin Drive. If you choose to bike with your own wheels the festival has a separate bicycle parking lot. You also have the option of taking a Pedicap or walking up a little further away from the festival ground to catch a cab, Uber or Lyft. KIDS This festival is SUPER kid friendly! I mean, don't expect this to be a KidsBop fest but if you bring your little ones there's plenty things for them in mind to keep them rocking while you're two-stepping. There was a Kid Zone, cordoned off and designated JUST for kids and their parental guardian that included a hair styling section to get some bright temporary hair color, a music petting zoo where kids got to get one-on-one with different music instruments and learn more about them and a few other stations that made me want to try to tag along with a family just so I have an excuse to get in on some of the interactive stations. Le Sigh. Oh and in the inaugural year one child 10 and under got in free with one paid adult ticket! THE CAUSE From their website: "The Trust for the National Mall - an official partner of the National Park Service - is leading the charge to restore and improve the National Mall and honor its ideals for future generations through the new Landmark Campaign. Landmark Music Festival kicks off this monumental national campaign to bring awareness and funds to America's Front Yard - all in a single Festival weekend unlike any other." No, they didn't have PSAs constantly looping but the cause is clearly presented and interwoven with the festival experience and the picturesque scenes with different memorials all throughout really brings the message home. You can feel like you're chipping in towards a larger cause that'll benefit generations to come. OVERALL If you're in the DC area and your schedule/budget allow for it, GO! I mean it's a major music festival right in your metro area. DO IT! If you're from out of town it's still very worthwhile to consider checking it out.

Review for Saturday only…read more I came across this festival because a band (daughter) I was going to see in NYC added a show in DC at the Landmark Music Festival (LMF). The price for one day was fair ($105), but the price for 2 days was a steal ($150)!! I knew it would be difficult navigating downtown DC since the Pope just left, but honestly, it wasn't that bad. I ended up parking near the Pennsylvania building, north of the African American Museum, and walked to the site--about 20 minute walk . Parking was pretty cheap too, $15 all day. I should've brought my bike since they offered bike parking near the site. I got to the festival around 1pm. The crowds weren't large. It was pretty nice setup, the staff and security were friendly. The overall vibe when I entered was super chill and everyone was enjoying the decent weather. I filled my camelback at the water filling station. And browsed the layout. 4-5 stages, 3-4 bars, 2-3 main food areas, kids section, art installation, bathrooms etc. I heard DC Eats was gonna be representing and I noticed some familiar names since I keep up with popular food trends in major cities. The prices for food and beer were fair and reasonable--the best bang for buck I thought was the falafel sandwich, pretty amazing in fact. $8! Beer was $8. I was using cash despite LMF offered "cashless bracelets" but I don't' wanna deal with mix ups if there was an issue with that payment. Another festival goer and I agreed that Tokio Underground kinda dropped the ball! We both got in line thinking it would be faster than tacos, but they only had 1 person making bao's at a time! AND they ran out of vegetarian (Which LMF did offer A LOT of vegetarian options overall). The taco, shake shack, falafel, fries vendors had like 10 people working! Being the inaugural concert, I was truly amazed at how nice it was! The vibe was just amazing for the early parts. Festival goers brought kids and everyone was having a good time. It wasn't a rowdy concert. I felt that most people were here for the music which was refreshing. The crowds were "small" early in the day 1pm-3:30pm. When I laid down a few minutes before Daughter came on, there was a small'ish crowd. But when they got on stage, I turned around and it was completely packed! Wha!??!? Where did you guys come from? They are a fairly small unknown band in America, so it was nice seeing people enjoy their indie/folk music. some were younger than me... There were some hiccups. As the day went on, the crowds grew and grew!!! I couldn't believe the difference between 1pm and 5pm. It was literally 10-15x larger or something! Overcrowded! But again, not a rowdy crowd so not the biggest issue. This created a horrible wait for food and beer. the lines were ridiculous. Then the bathroom situation was even more ridiculous! I dont' think they anticipated that many people were attending??? Or their logistics were off. This was definitely a turn off but it is expected for an event this size and for their first year. Personal hiccup - while watching Daughter, two young girls decide to slide and stand RIGHT in front of me 3 songs in. WTF? Then they proceed to talk almost none-stop during the set..I really dont' care what that cryptic text from Jason means and how you should reply! Just leave and go watch Wale already. PS, you had way too much eye makeup. I do hope they keep LMF prices the same for the upcoming years! I came from Philadelphia and would love to make the trip for both days if the lineups were good! Definitely a nice festival and would totally recommend for those looking for a chill vibe.

Thank you so much, Sydney and Jollof Festival, for allowing me to participate in this event!…read more There was a bit of a confusion in terms of how to redeem our tickets and the check-in process - it seemed a bit disorganized, as there was a line to 'enter' the festival on one side of the festival, but people were coming through the other side. The security seemed to be overwhelmed with the questions from the patrons and how to get their waistbands, since the event planners didn't seem to relay any of the protocol, procedures, and how to check people in... With persistence, we were able to get our wristbands and our tickets - the front staff didn't explain what the tickets were for... we did find out that the 'meal ticket' is to gain entry to the 'Orange Ticket Holder' area to sample various vendors' jollof rice, and the Yelp red tickets were to use to cast votes at the vendors that were located outdoors. We were able to check out: +Fly Chef +Hajara's Kitchen +Yvoni's There was a DJ playing some beats, vendors who were selling jewelry/accessories and clothing, and a bar located in the middle to order beverages. The hubs and I had a great time sampling the jollof rice and speaking with the business owners! Definitely a packed event! Street and lot parking can be found in the area. Thank you for a fun Saturday! +jollof tasting & contest +friendly vendors +music +local businesses +at Union Market

Ticket made possible through Yelp Elite Squad…read more First introduction to the Jollof Festival was unorganized. With 2 entrances open for guests to arrive, only 1 was designated for ticketing which was unmarked. Signage had directions for way-finding only for the festival itself rather than the ticketing portion. This made for getting into the festival a longer (even if you arrived close to opening time there was a minimum of 1 hour wait in peak DC summer heat) excursion. With not being able to properly check in, no designated between VIP or general ticket holders, a wristband shortage, a line down the block, and abundance of under trained staff, and increasingly agitated guests, it was visibly rough for everyone there. For tickets above general entry that included a Jollof Rice Tasting, visitors had to stand along to the Union Market garbages for their 5 (realistically 4 samples due to shortages) of jollof. The option to taste the samples in the venue itself was open to visitors, but had no tables or chairs to accommodate so folks were eating a box of jollof either standing or on the concrete ledges only at the edge of the interior building. Despite this, the festival itself was lively with all the external contractors independant to the festival really carrying the enjoyment factor. The Dj was well placed in the center and had festival goers moving. The bar was also centrally placed with more access to alcohol and beverages. Food vendors brought BBQ pits, making jollof fresh, and added a modern twist to these familiar food palettes. We spoke to some of the chefs and they are incredibly proud of the food they're sharing. Mascot was on point! Jewelry vendors were fair and approachable.

This year the event was even bigger than last, it covered more blocks than the last I thought. I…read morevisited a few bars especially at the Granville Moore said hello to our friends there and to Smith Commons where there were Ommegang sponsored beer tents. It was a great event with lots of people coming out to support H St. I even had bought a BBQ turkey leg from the Biergarten Haus, it weighed about 2 lbs! And a locally made pickled jar of jalapeno peppers from Gordy's.

The biggest street fair I have ever seen (and I've been to several in NYC). Fun and definite must…read moredo for next year.

I really enjoyed this event for a person who doesn't like beer, haha! I bought the general…read moreadmission ticket which allowed for samples from every beer vendor. The environment was nice and I loved being at Nat's park during non-baseball hours. They had tasty food truck and other cool vendors. I think there could have been even more local businesses or restaurants included. While I enjoyed the samples, I don't know that this event was worth the pricey ticket. I enjoyed finding a new brewery to support!

They don't let you use the restrooms. You have to leave and find a business willing to let you pee…read more Its disgusting.

All the Bun B and Big Krit fans stand up! Trill Grill was…read morereal trill in the 100 degree weather on stadium asphalt. I waited for the temps to cool before going and I'm so glad I did. I made it before the sun set and the sun was blazing with no reprieve! There were some tables and benches under covering, but definitely not enough for the space and amount of people that were there. Driving there was convenient with lots of parking but the fee was $15. Performances and DJ's were on stage, 6 food trucks, drinks, a bouncy house for adults and a bull to ride. Drinks were available with drink tickets after purchase. The VIP was separated from the rest of the crowd with crowd gates. There seemed to be two tables set up for premium drinks, but I didn't feel left out. The festival was a summer time event for the masses, but long lines on a parking lot (no trees) or area to rest (people posted up at the tables and stayed because it was crippling hot) was a a lot to handle. The cool down was a lot better to enjoy the concert. Bun B, baby! Tickets won from a Yelp giveaway.

I got tickets to the Downtown Countdown as part of the Yelp Elite. The location couldn't have been…read moremore convenient (I live near Adams Morgan). The venue is a nice one, but the execution, not so much. First we had to go down a hall, show our ID and tickets and get our wristbands in a room. Then we had to go back down the hall to find the escalators to the ballrooms. There was a coat check, but I didn't want to check my coat, and it's a good thing I didn't, as it was very cold in the hotel. I wondered how some of the women in sleeveless dresses and no hose were faring. My boyfriend and I checked out the comedy show in one of the ballrooms. However, the comedians just weren't that funny. One young man had excellent timing, but his material was awful. And one woman kept saying "like", which gets, like, really annoying. And that it was in a very dark room took away from the experience. Part of watching comedy is seeing the expressions on the performer's face, not to mention his/her body language. There didn't seem to be much to do--see a band, see another band, go to the DJ ballroom. After the comedy show, we checked out the Pat McGee band, who we quite enjoyed, and then stayed in the (very dark) room for the countdown. We'd been in there before to check out the dinner buffet, but we couldn't even read the signs near the food. After ringing in the new year with a balloon drop, we decided to head on home. I probably won't go to another Downtown Countdown. Maybe it's the execution of the event, maybe I'm getting too old for stuff like this, or maybe it's a combination of both.

Awful event. Tickets were oversold and it was impossible to get drinks, bar lines were…read moreuncontrolled, and bartenders seemed to play favorites to those who cut in line and gave a bigger tip. The drinks were small and would have been worth the ticket cost if you could get to the multiple bars they had. In addition, the DJ was mediocre; music was not suitable to dance which made the dance floor a crowded mess of people just standing around. The only redeeming factor would be the food which was pretty good, but it was taken away two hours into the event. Would definitely not recommend this event.

One of my favorite things about living in DC is that there's always a film festival going on: the…read moremagic of SilverDocs, the Asian Pacific Islander film festival, the Shorts, and so on. This was my first year attending the Jewish Film Festival (though it's their 23rd year in existence!) -- the films are screened at venues across the city including the Atlas, the downtown JCC, the Rockville JCC, the AFI, and the Avalon - and everything we have seen so far has been absolutely breathtaking (with extra points to A Bottle in the Gaza Sea which we saw last night). Part of what I love about these festivals is you get to explore venues that might not always be part of your repertoire - I regularly go to the AFI and the Avalon, I don't get to the Atlas that much, and I had never been to the Rockville JCC. The only caveat is that the movies tend to get super-crowded, so get there early (especially if you're going to the Rockville JCC - we were there at 6:50 for a 7:30 movie and, seriously, there were at least 50 people ahead of us in line). And buy your tickets ahead of time - the website is pretty user friendly, and you'll save yourself the long box office line. It's $11/movie, and, get this: $30 festival pass for the 30 and younger set.