June festivals

Do other towns put on as many festivals as RVA? I would love to know, but I’m too busy attending festival after awesome festival to travel much…

May 31, 2013; 6:40 AM • by Ross Catrow

38th Annual Richmond Greek Festival

The granddaddy of them all! The Greek Festival has been serving up delicious honey-soaked pastries and other Greek delicacies long enough to own the domain greekfestival.com. If baklava isn’t your thing (which…inconceivable), then maybe you can enjoy the music, dancing, wine, and general sweet vibes (but what’s the point without baklava?).

• When: May 30th – June 2nd
• Where: Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral (30 Malvern Avenue)
• Price: Free! Food prices vary, but the baklava is $2.50

Psychic Festival

On your way over to the Greek Festival, maybe stop by the Psychic Festival? They’ve got tarot readers, clairvoyants, and palm readers on hand to unwrap the universe’s secrets. Maybe ask them how to go about avoiding the massive line at the baklava tent!

• When: Saturday, June 1st – Sunday, June 2nd
• Where: Aquarian Bookshop (3519 Ellwood Avenue)
• Price: Free! Prices vary for readings and such

Broad Appétit

Set smack dab in the middle of Broad Street (between Henry and Adams), Broad Appétit brings dozens of Richmond’s best chefs out from their tiny, dark kitchens and into the light of day! There they will serve you $3 morsels until you can morsel no more and must be removed from the scene by some sort of emergency personnel.

• When: Sunday, June 2nd • 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM
• Where: W. Broad Street (between Henry and Adams)
• Price: Free! Food is $3 a plate

7th Annual Stone Soul Music and Food Festival

GUYS! Bell Biv DeVoe! As they said in their 1990 hit “Poison”: “Never trust a big butt and a smile.” Which is just soooooo true. Head down to the Raceway and catch about a billion soul and R&B acts, Bell Biv DeVoe included.

• When: Saturday, June 1st • 12:00 – 8:00 PM
• Where: Brown’s Island
• Price: $35

Ashland Strawberry Faire

Journey to the Center of the Universe¹ to eat your weight in strawberries! While you’re in the Center of the Universe, there will be bands, local vendors, foodstuffs, and other family-friendly events. If you’ve got kids in tow, the odds are super high of catching a train from extremely close proximity as it makes its way through Ashland.

• When: Saturday, June 8th • 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
• Where: Randolph-Macon College • Ashland, Virginia
• Price: Free!

Beer, Bourbon, & BBQ Festival

Three things that start with the letter “B” that most people go bananas over! Your ticket gets you unlimited tasting of the aforementioned b-words, so you’re gonna want to set some ground rules for yourself. Remember: “Beer before liquor makes you quicker!” and “Liquour before beer, in the clear!” #ymmv

Also, the official festival slogan is “Brew it. Taste it. Sip it. Pork it.”

• When: Saturday, June 8th • 2:00 – 6:00 PM
• Where: Richmond Raceway Complex – Exhibition Hall (600 E. Laburnum Avenue)
• Price: $35 for regular admission ($45 for VIP tickets)

Richmond Bacon Festival

All you need to know: “Bacon food samples $3 each.”

• When: Sunday, June 9th • 12:00 – 5:00 PM
• Where: 17th Street Farmers Market
• Price: Free! Bacon bites $3, beers $6

Richmond Vegetarian Festival

A week after gorging yourself on “bacon food samples,” you can gorge on something plant-based in Bryan Park. I know vegetables don’t have bacon’s street cred, but they can still fatten you up with the best of the pork products.

• When: Saturday, June 15th • 12:00 – 6:00 PM
• Where: Azalea Gardens at Bryan Park
• Price: Free!

Uncorked Wine Festival

The Uncorked Wine Festival brings together three things that Richmond is particularly good at: food, wine, and history. If you’re not into any of those things, well, I’m sure someone will need a hungry, uneducated, designated driver?

• When: Saturday, June 15th • 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM
• Where: Virginia Historical Society (428 N. Boulevard)
• Price: $12 in advance ($15 at the door)

Arts and Culture Xpo

The Arts and Culture Xpo, blessedly renamed from the Cultsha Xpo, is a truly fantastic event that turns you, everyday schlub, into a patron of the arts! Upon entering the Xpo, you’re given a mystery amount of XpoBucks which are redeemable for membership, classes, donations, and more at local nonprofits. You get to support the arts while your bank account takes a vacation!

• When: Saturday, June 29th • 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
• Where: Greater Richmond Convention Center
• Price: Free!

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Photo by: Ben Husmann

May 31, 2013 6:40 AM 0