A Weekend of Food and Drink Festivals
Fall is now well and truly upon us. And this being Philly, that means that our fair city is pretty much overrun with fall festivals.
I mean, Oktoberfests aside, there are still a bunch of different things to do. And one of them even involves drinking from a giant, 200 lb. pumpkin. And how cool is that?
Anyway, we just decided to throw everything together into a single, catch-all post so that those of you who haven’t made any plans yet would be able to see all the different good times available to you.
So let’s take a look, shall we?
Northeast Philly Fall Fest
This festival provides the opportunity to sample over 75 different ales, lagers, porters, stouts and ciders. The admission fee includes a souvenir tasting glass and there will also be both American and German food for sale.
When: Saturday October 8th, 1-5 p.m.
Where: Cannstatter Volkfest, 9130 Academy Road
Price: $35 for general admission, $225 for 10 group tickets, $45 for VIP (begins at 12 p.m.), $10 for designated driver, $45 at the door
9th Annual River City Festival
Running and beer might seem like contradictory elements, but this festival employs both of them. It starts with a 5K run through Fishtown, beginning and ending at Penn Treaty Park. Proceeds support The Fishtown Neighbors Association. The Fishtown Beer Runners, who strive to combine responsible running and consumption in the interest of science, will mark the course and hand out high-fives along it. Afterwards, those runners over 21 will head to the RiverCity Hospitality Tent with two free drink tokens to enjoy beverages from Philadelphia Brewing Company and St. Benjamin Brewing.
All registrants will get a Tech T-shirt and a swag bag from SnapKitchen, which include 25% off coupons to Honeygrow. Random Bags will also include prizes such as a $25 gift card to SnapKitchen and tickets to see Fortune Feimster at the Punch Line Comedy Club at the Fillmore on October 21st
When: Saturday October 8th, 12-6 p.m.
Where: Penn Treaty Park, 1199 N Delaware Avenue
Price: $30 for 21+, $20 for run without tokens
Armory Oktoberfest
The crew from Brauhaus Schmitz has decked out the Armory in Bavarian blue and white and brought in authentic festival tables and benches from Germany to transform the fortress-like structure into a Munich festival tent. Admission includes a traditional Bavarian buffet, a liter of beer, a 1 liter glass stein and entertainment by German Hungarian Dancers and accordion player Alex Meixner. Hofbräuhaus, however, will provide the real source of entertainment—beer. Attendees will have the opportunity to buy $3 raffle tickets to win a trip to the real Munich. Tickets get you into one of three separate four-hour sessions on Friday and Saturday or an all-day session on Sunday.
VIP access at each session includes priority entrance, reserved seating near the band and dance floor, table service and brotzeit (a meat and cheese board).
When: Friday, October 7th at 7pm, Saturday October 8th 1-5 p.m. or 7-11 p.m., Sunday October 9th 12-10 p.m.
Where: 22 S 23rd Street
Price: $45 for general admission, $65 for VIP
Okay, so this is the one with the giant pumpkin. City Tap House in University City is throwing their 6th annual Pumpkin smash event which celebrates all things pumpkin–from pumpkin beers to a pumpkin-themed brunch and the actual smashing of actual pumpkins with actual hammers (for a $25 donation to the Morris Animal Refuge).
When: Sunday, October 9 from 1pm-5pm
Where: City Tap House, University City
Price: Pay as you go
Pizzeria Stella 7th Birthday Party
This is kind of a bonus event because it’s happening on Monday (which is Colombus Day). But Pizzeria Stella is celebrating its birthday with a family-friendly block party. There will be food from Stella exec Shane Solomon, who’ll be doing several dishes including spiedini and gelato. There’ll be booze for the grownups (house sangria and Stella Artois from the Stella Airstream), a DJ, face painting, carnival games and pony rides for the kids.
When: Monday, October 10 from 2pm-9pm
Where: The Shambles at Headhouse Square
Price: Entry is free
