BaconFest is arguably the most glorious of all festivals in Atlanta. In fact, anyone who contends…read moreotherwise should be tried for crimes against humanity. Quite simply, any individual who doesn't enjoy engorging themselves on excess amounts of bacon while joining in an inebriated chorus of "I've got two tickets to Porkadise" is no friend of mine. Now in its 12th year, BaconFest is an annual festival orchestrated by the genius folks at Dad's Garage Theatre Company in Inman Park. The festival continues to grow each year, but recurring highlights include hoards of bacon (1,200+ lbs from Vortex and DBA Barbecue), plenty of beer (PBA), live entertainment, hilarious carnival games (e.g. wheelchair obstacle course, insult booth, Hobo wine tasting), and a silent auction with enough variety to please almost anyone with a pulse. In fact, the festival has garnered such a strong following that even Kevin Bacon made a cameo appearance in 2012. The festival is typically held on a Saturday at the end of March, with festivities commencing at 1PM and ending around 6PM. Various levels of tickets are available, which include Portioned Porking ($25 online/$35 door), Bottomless Bacon ($45 online/$55 door), and Whole Hog ($85 online/$95 door). The Portioned Porking option includes admission, 5 carnival game tickets, and 3 cups of bacon or beer. The Bottomless Bacon option includes unlimited bacon/beer/games, while the Whole Hog option affords you the opportunity to enjoy a whole roasted pig (P'Cheen), a free BaconFest t-shirt, and unlimited bacon, games, and premium beer (Ale Yeah!). Although tickets are advertised as being available at the door, they typically sell-out online well before the event, so make sure to snag yours before someone else gets their greasy little snout on them. First time festival goers should know that BaconFest is restricted to adults only (ID required at door), no pets are allowed, and is held rain or shine (no refunds). Parking can be problematic, so you'd be wise to either carpool or take MARTA (Inman Park Station). It's also important to note that this event is a fundraiser for Dad's Garage, which is a non-profit theatre company with some incredibly commendable talent. As such, you should rest assured that all funds you spend at the festival are going toward a worthwhile cause.

First I want to explain what my expectations were of what a baconfest should be: it should be a…read morefoodie Mecca for bacon overs, there should be many food companies there with everything from bacon ice-cream sundaes, bacon crepes, bacon candy, bacon chips, Mac n cheese with bacon, bacon ravioli, bacon wrapped dates, bacon/pork cookies, different styles of just bacon like thick pepper spiced bacon, bacon jam on crackers, bacon on a stick, etc. I was also expecting bacon inspired drinks like vodka infused bacon shots, bloody Mary's with bacon, not even ciders that go well with bacon by the way. Instead, there were only a handful of vendors there and the one or two who had just bacon, the bacon was standard affair Oscar myer. The only reason I would even give this festival 1 star is because my favorite restaurant Barcelona was there serving up the most delicious pork belly with cherry caramel sauce. They were the only saving grace. And the festival had other vendors there charging for food. What the heck did I pay for?? Unacceptable! For the price should be all inclusive and upgrades should have access to quicker wait times. The other disappoint was that there was very little drink varieties. 3 plain beers and 3 plain wines. The other disappointment was that I upgraded my ticket to bottomless bacon and beer thinking that would get me into a quicker line but for the price of $125 for 2 people we still waited with the regular ticket holders with limited coupons. For the 2 hours we wasted, we only got to try 4 vendors and 2 beers. As a foodie, this is unacceptable. I paid for a food experience, not a carnival spectacle. If this was family focused then I could possibly see the value but as an adult with no kids to saw no value. I wish I could get a refund, totally wasted my day and left utterly disappointed and famished as I didn't get my share of food. We ended up at Woodys enjoying the most delicious Phillys with bacon added lol Please please rename this to Bacon Carnival Spectacle or Pig Farm Fair not Baconfest when it clearly missed the food focus. I won't be going back unless it improves and even then I will need convincing

It was awesome that they played the original batman movie! Me and my friends had a great time. The…read moreworkers at concessions were extremely friendly and quick, specifically Neil was very helpful and even topped up our popcorn without us asking! Overall I had a great experience and would highly recommend this place!

It's 97 degrees outside, and feels like 105 degrees, with a heat advisory. Either the air isn't…read moreworking inside this theatre or they aren't turning it on. There's zero AC in our theatre and everyone is sweating. Not the experience you expect at a movie theatre. It's miserable in here. Staff don't seem to care. Noticed other reviews going back to a couple of months ago say the same thing.

Had a great experience at GTC Merchants Walk Cinemas! I recently moved to the area and took my…read more4-year-old to see the new Toy Story movie, and we had a great time. The theater was very clean, the staff was friendly, and everything was a smooth and enjoyable experience. Definitely glad we found this theater. We'll absolutely be back!

The BEST kelt secret in Atlanta!! Clean bathroom…read more Friendly team members ‍ Cost effective I was brought here to watch a movie and never knew this theater was there. They have plenty of seats that recline, the bathroom are spotless, they have lots of food options and the staff is great! The movie theater was not crowded so you have lots of options for seating. If you want to support a Georgia business, this is your place instead of a chain. I sure will be bacm!

Cool concept with the design and menu to complement it. I love that they have versatility...there's…read morethe mini golf & play area, an indoor playground area for the smaller kids to play in the sand while the adults relax in massage chairs, a separate dining area that accommodates a variety of party styles, conference rooms and entertainment areas, a bar, and the food was actually good! I typically don't have high expectations for food in venues where you can dine and play but these smash burgers were on point! The tequeños have a tasty garlic sauce for the garlic lovers. The Mango Moon Margarita and Red Planet Margaritas were tasty and refreshing. We would return here! Full video review on Instagram @sh3_3ats.

As a Mom of 5 when i choose to go somewhere i am pretty picky! Its always exciting when there is…read moresomething new to try i came here last night i though the decor, service , drinks and food overall were good! The mini golf is perfect for kids to play after a bite! I will definitely be back!

Such a great time! The good food is to be expected, but for some reason I'm still pleasantly…read moresurprised. Every one who volunteers here is happy to be here and committed to making sure you have a great time. We were only able to stay for a short while but we thoroughly enjoyed the music, ambience and the baklava especially!

This is an annual event for us! Love the culture and the food always…read more And what a fabulous set up for parking with golf cart shuttles, handicap parking and pull through for food that can be ordered ahead! Brilliant organization. The vendors were scarce this year, but our favs were there. That Greek Girl, Towel Chic, And the Israeli couple with the bohemian clothes and jewelry! We went earlier in the day to also take in in the church tour this year and it was well worth the time! Proceeds from the festival are going to the building of the multiuser parish center, church, and outreach facilities.

What a great place to come for a fun night out with friends! They have a nice selection of beers,…read morea full bar, and pretty good bar food. We loved the pork sliders and the pretzel bites. The seats are so comfortable and the elevation is good for everyone, even when they're vertically challenged like me! This would be a great place to rent for a private party for either adults or kiddos. The owner is amazing and really gives back to the community. He's a big supporter of CURE and gives a percentage of profits to the group to fight childhood cancer. Come support this great locally owned business!

Love this newly renovated neighborhood theater. We use to frequent Phipps but this is our favorite…read morenow.They have reclining chairs, nice bar and is great for family or date night

Atlanta Eats Live! is a new annual food tasting festival that takes place at the Verizon Wireless…read moreAmphitheatre at Encore Park in Alpharetta. I attended this year's event on Sunday evening, October 5, 2014. I believe this was only the event's second year in existence. It's organized and produced by the folks behind the Atlanta Eats TV show, hosted by Steak Shapiro and Mara Davis. Both Steak and Mara made appearances at the event. Atlanta Eats Live! is the best non-Yelp-related food tasting event I've been to locally. I think it's marginally better than Taste of Atlanta for the following reasons: 1. Your ticket includes unlimited tastes from every vendor. At Taste of Atlanta, you must buy additional tastes. 2. Free parking. 3. Vendors are mostly high quality restaurants. There aren't nearly as many non-food vendors or sponsors, like Xfinity or American Family Insurance, trying to advertise or sell you their stuff. It's very food focused. 4. The event is nicely laid out in a contained space and the lines - even the long ones - flow well. 5. Related to #4 above, the Atlanta Eats event is smaller, so it feels more "intimate" and less crowded and chaotic. In 2014, tickets started at $45 per person, not including ticket fees which bumped the cost up to about $56-57 per ticket. Like Taste of Atlanta and other food tasting events, VIP tickets were available for $100+ each. VIP tickets allowed access to a roped off club section with a few additional tents such as one belonging to Woodfire Grill. VIP tickets also included complimentary drinks and a special parking section. At a minimum of nearly $60 per person, not including extra beverage costs, plus the drive up to Alpharetta for the non-North Fulton folks, I'm just not sure Atlanta Eats Live! is completely worth the price of admission. Though I do have to admit, there was plenty of good food and I stuffed myself silly. Beverage costs were $9 for draft beer, $7 for single wine, $13 for double wine, and $4 for bottled water. The event ran from 5pm to 10pm. Food was served from 5pm to 8pm. Some vendors ran out of food as early as about 6:15pm, but the majority of vendors were well stocked. Advice: Go early. Live music was performed on-stage from 8pm to 10pm. Yacht Rock Schooner was the band for the night and they performed some great covers of 80s songs such as "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" by Hall & Oates. Along with food and live music, there were supposedly cooking demonstrations by local Atlanta chefs, but I didn't see any. Over 40 restaurants were "hand-picked" for the event. Most of the restaurants have already been featured on the Atlanta Eats TV show or web site. I was impressed by the restaurant lineup. They got some good ones from all over town. It's nearly impossible to try food from every restaurant unless you just take one bite from each restaurant and throw the rest of the dish away (#firstworldproblems - I did not do this). You really have to pace yourself. I tapped out maybe two-thirds of the way through all the tents. I physically couldn't put more food or drink into my body. It also didn't help that I'd indulged in a brunch buffet just hours earlier. Here's a list of most of the vendors I visited and the foods I tried: 4th & Swift - Fall Vegetable Minestrone with Crispy Pork Shank Takorea - Gogi Nachos (pork and beef) Crawfish Shack Seafood: Cajun Infused Poached Scallops and Andouille Sausage Sugo - Meatball al Sugo Double Zero Napoletana - Butternut Squash Fritelle Cooks & Soldiers - Bikini - truffled, Iberico grilled Mahon cheese sandwich Muss & Turner's, Local Three, Common Quarter - Meat Butter - chicken liver, foie gras, cherry, cola St. Cecilia - Smoked Trout Roe & Harissa Seed Kitchen & Bar - Fall Mushroom Crostini and Tres Leches Cake Alma Cocina - Butternut Squash and Pork Cheek Posole Canoe - Slow Braised Southern Family Farms Pork Belly and Flavored Pops Kimball House - Pate a Choux - chicken liver mousse, jam Gu's Bistro - Chengdu Cold Noodles Heirloom Market BBQ and Sobban - BBQ pulled pork, scallion potato salad Villains Wicked Heroes - Nick the Pig Cuban Sandwich Lottafrutta - Miniature Cuban Coffee Ovations Food Services - Avocado Mac & Cheese Bite, Espresso Pumpkin Cheesecake, Ginger Apple Lime Soda The Ice Cream Bar - various spiked ice cream samples (e.g. bourbon, mojito) In general, the food was pretty good. My favorites included the Butternut Squash Fritelle from Double Zero, the "Meat Butter" chicken liver and foie gras spread from Muss & Turner's, Local Three, Common Quarter, the Tres Leches Cake from Seed, the Chengdu Cold Noodles from Gu's, and BBQ and sides from Heirloom and Sobban, the plate of which was big enough to almost be an entree all its own. I like how the restaurants didn't hold back in terms of the dishes and ingredients they served. An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 people attended. Overall, I had a good time.

This is my first food festival/event. We got there a little after 5 and it wasn't too crowded yet…read more There was still PLENTY of food and almost no lines. I tried one of each thing and my friend had probably 3 servings of the pork belly. The selection of beers was actually surprising big, and bottled waters and small bottles of coke and diet coke also came with the ticket. As the night went on, it got more and more crowded and lines took 10-15 min for the highly sought after restaurants. I quit caring because my tummy was so bloated (I really can't eat as much as I used to haha). I went back to get some water, and the line took upwards of 15 min. (and they ran out of water). By that time though (7ish), the sky had darkened and it started to rain pretty hard. We hadn't even gotten to the last section yet. Rathbun's and a few others had run out of food and I was bummed. Towards the end, I could only pick and choose and take bites of some dishes since I was so incredibly full and wet. So I guess the purpose of this event--getting my belly full to the brim with yumminess--was served. Overall, they have to know the attendance of the event and they shouldn't have run out of food only halfway through the event. I found a coupon code and paid $65 or so for the GA ticket, so I'd say it was alright for the price. I would not have paid full price though.

Wonderful venue to spend time with friends while listening to great music! Get there early to get…read morethe best seats.

ROSWELL ARTS IN THE PARK…read more Arts in the park is an annual event that takes place in September. It is held at Town Center in Roswell. Although I have attended other art event, (Mother's Day weekend), at this location, I somehow expected this event to be different but it wasn't. This venue is so small and so crowded, that there was simply not enough room for me to even take out my wallet. We lasted about 20 minutes before it just got to be too much. This is probably the perfect venue for someone who just wants to go in, purchase a piece of art and go home. I like to tend events to actually purchase, jewelry, home decor and clothing items and so I tend to frequent very large festivals that involves the entire town, (Moonshine, Duluth Fall Festival, Gold Rush). I love having tons of artists using various mediums and I really like being able to find interesting and unique foods to eat. With the larger events, we enjoy spending the entire day listening to music and watching performers. After 49 years, I would think that this event would be much bigger and have a more suitable space. Although we did not make a purchase today, we can say that there were some beautiful displays of art: phenomenal water colors, pottery, hand carved items, and so much more. I really felt that the vendors are at a disadvantage when they are crowded into such tight quarters because some people just need space, (physical and mental) to shop. I know I do! The great news is that you don't have to fight with parking. Simply park at City Hall and ride the festival shuttle. The drivers are always on time and very polite.