This weekend marks the 4th Annual Sacramento Banana Festival to celebrate the many ways that cultures across the globe, and right in Sacramento, incorporate this delicious fruit into their food, culture and art. Each year, the two-day event has continued to grow and include new and fun banana attractions for attendees.
The event kicks off on Saturday at 9 a.m. with a Banana Pancake Breakfast at William Land Park, for only $3 a person. There is a long list of bands and performers that are scheduled to perform throughout both the weekend on any one of the three stages at the event.
On Saturday, banana foodies can watch a Chef Challenge featuring cooking demonstrations from some of Sacramento’s most talented chefs. Some other events include a 5K Run/Walk, a Carmen Miranda Hat Contest, a Little Miss and Mr. Banana Pageant and even Banana Limbo to list a few. Click here to see a full list of events on Saturday and Sunday.
The banana menu includes everything from Banana Cobbler and Banana Licorice to Grilled Bananas and Banana Shish Kabobs!
The event is hosted by the Sojourner Truth Museum which works to provide health, education and wellness services to at-risk youth across the Sacramento region. Proceeds from this weekend’s festival will support this local organization’s youth-benefiting programs. Click here to buy tickets to the festival.
Location:
William Land Park (the area located on the corner of Freeport Blvd and Sutterville Road)
Festival Hours:
Saturday, August 10 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday, August 11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tickets:
Available online and at the gate for $5
Pancake Breakfast: $3 per person
Parking:
Available at the park and at Sacramento City College for $1.50
Fourth Annual Sacramento Bastille Day
Looking for something new to do this weekend? This Sunday, July 14 is the Fourth Annual Sacramento Bastille Day Waiters’ Race and Festival and if you’ve never been before, it’ll definitely be an event to remember! I’ve personally never attended a waiter’s footrace, so I’m looking forward to this totally unique French celebration.
The big day starts at 9 a.m. with a 50-mile bike race ending on L and 18th Streets and continues with a Waiters’ Race at noon.
The Waiters’ Race, inspired by a long-standing French tradition in Paris, will start on L Street in between 18th and 19th Streets. The footrace includes a street festival with French food, drinks and music that continues all day until 3 p.m. Any and all local waiters, waitresses and servers alike are encouraged to sign up to compete in what’s bound to be a race like no other—only 50 participants are allowed to participate so register quickly!
Racers will be required to balance a tray with one bottle of Perrier and two water glasses while essentially power walking (no running is allowed) two times around the block bounded by 18th and 19th Streets, and L Street and Capitol Avenue. The goal is to make it to the finish line without toppling over your tray. Of course, full Parisian-style garb is required! First, second and third place winners will each receive gift cards to local French restaurants ranging from $100 to $750 in value. The celebration and street festival ends at 3p.m.
Capital Beerfest and a Giveaway!
Last week, we shared all the details for Sacramento Beer Week, kicking off this Friday! The week will be jam-packed with beer-centric events and culminate with Capital Beerfest on Saturday, March 2 from 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. at Cal Expo. Attendees can sample from 100 breweries with proceeds benefiting the Runnin’ for Rhett foundation.
This is Capital Beerfest’s third annual event and will feature several local brewers including Black Dragon Brewery, Auburn Alehouse, New Helvetia Brewing Co., Hoppy Brewery, River City Brewing, Ruhstaller Beer and Track 7 Brewing. The event will also host craft breweries from across the country, including ones from Vermont to Hawaii and even places like Canada and Buvaria. Get the full list here.
These tasty beers can be used to wash down delicious eats from street food vendors through SactoMofo and a variety of restaurants participating in the Sacramento Beer Week events.
Sound like the perfect event for you? Lucky for our readers, you can win a pair of tickets! Comment on this post by 12 p.m. on Thursday 2/28 and let us know which brewery you want to try most, and you will be entered to win a pair of beer and food sampling tickets!
Must be 21 and over to win tickets.
California Photo Foodie Contest
There are three reasons why I love the month of January: the start of a New Year, my birthday, and California Restaurant Month – a month-long celebration of California’s incredible culinary scene.
To add some fun and friendly competition to California’s Restaurant Month, Visit California has launched a Facebook contest in search of the best, most creative photo of any dish you can capture.
The premise is simple, go out and eat at your favorite restaurant, take a picture of your beautifully presented dish and enter the photo on the Dine in CA Facebook Contest Page or simply Instagram your picture and tag with #DineinCA.
That’s right fellow foodies, you could win the ultimate 7-day California Foodie Vacation. This amazing vacation prize package features fabulous dining and wine tasting at some of California’s top foodie destinations and an exclusive lunch with an editor at Sunset Magazine headquarters near San Francisco!
The contest is open to citizens of the U.S. and Canada age 21 and over. Be sure to submit your photo before the end of January!
For official rules and details about the contest click here.