I have lived in Cleveland for 5 years now and have gone to the Lakewood Art Festival 4 out of those…read more5 years! It's one of my favorite art festivals and I look forward to it each year! This year, 2025, I brought my boyfriend with me and while he didn't buy any art, we did eat a vegan sandwich from Squash the Beef (service was a 0/10 but food was a 7/10) and I bought a tank top from a booth that sold Cleveland clothing. In the past years, I have definitely bought a lot more, including lawn art and gifts for friends and family, but maybe this was the year where I just wasn't woo-ed by anything in particular. I also have been trying to buy less and save more money, but still like supporting local artisans. If I could give a suggestion, I'd recommend providing maps/brochures at the ENDS of the festival and not just the middle. We started at the end and would have benefited from a map early on, especially since I didn't remember that they normally have food options sprinkled throughout the path of the fair and not just the half dozen trucks at the right edge of the fair, like I thought. We would have liked eating at somewhere other than squash the beef if we had known... Also, please invite more stationery artists! One of my favorites is Haley Morgenstern :)

A fun yearly festival to attend in Lakewood. It is held annually in downtown Lakewood along Detroit…read moreAvenue. Lots of culture presented with the addition of a Native American food truck from Columbus, Ohio. I attended the 47th Annual Lakewood Arts Festival which was held on Saturday, 3 August 2024 from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. I previously attended this festival either in 2023 or in 2022. I had fun with my friend Mallory during the 2024 festival. We walked around for over an hour looking at all the amazing vendors with some coming as far as Columbus. I did not purchase any art but I saw very nice items such as photo frames, cute mugs, watches, leather bags, belts, etc. FOOD -- There were about 6 food trucks that sold all sorts of lunch items and drinks. I was so happy to try food from Naicco Cuisine which I heard is Ohio's first Native American food truck business. NAICCO stands for the Native American Indian Center of Central Ohio. The food truck came from Columbus to be in attendance at the Lakewood Arts festival. The owner, Ty, who I met, is from a tribe in Oregon but moved to Ohio in the 1990's with his family. NAICCO is known for their fry bread which is topped with either butter or with wojapi, a Native American berry sauce. I ordered the NDN Taco Bowl ($12) which is ground beef and tomatoes in a bowl (I got mine without onions and without cheese) plus plain fry bread on the side. This was my first time having fry bread and it is so delicious. It is super soft and slightly sweet. The taco bowl tasted good just similar to any other ground beef bowl. I can't wait to order this fry bread again by visiting Columbus and locating the food truck's next destination (link - https://streetfoodfinder.com/NAICCO1975). SAFETY -- The Lakewood Police is stationed at the entrance of the festival and police officers patrol the area during the festival. This festival is a fun and family-friendly one that I recommend to Cleveland locals and visitors. **** GOAL of 150 reviews in 2024 - 82/150 total reviews in 2024 - 732 total overall Yelp reviews - Reviewed on 9 August 2024

New romance focused bookstore in the Cleveland area. Located in Kamms Corner, this cute and super…read moreorganized store has all the romance novels you could want. The owner is super nice too. I got a book from the local Cleveland author section, they support their local authors for sure.

Visiting town, I bought a last minute ticket, 10 min before show time, for the Back To The Future…read moreMusical. I didn't have much time to tour the venue but it's very pretty and once inside it seems there's a good view from anywhere, I was 2nd to last row at the top balcony. The lights, sound and view were all great. If you're wanting to catch a show here, it's a quality venue. The staff was also friendly and helpful.

This theater is simply beautiful. The architecture, wall and ceiling paintings, and inside decor…read moreare breath taking. There doesn't seem to be a bad seat in the theater as I have been here 4 times and have sit in multiple locations, and each time I can hear and see well. Highly recommend and will be back!

Mishi Lifestyle is a nice boutique located on a lively street in Lakewood. It has artfully arranged…read morewindow displays that draw you in. They sell a variety of beautiful items for around the home including: candles, fine jewelry, leather goods, serve- and drink ware, macrame, soaps, beard oils, pillows and more. The shop is small, moody, and thoughtfully arranged. It's a great place to stop by when gift shopping or looking to treat yourself. I recently purchased a small candle for a friend, which was beautifully wrapped and came with a complementary gift of matches in a small jar. I look forward to returning soon!

This will be my 12th 5K run in the US and I have to say this is a race to experience!…read more Not only are people dressed up they also encourage each other to do well throughout the race! Great race for walkers too! Even though I gave this 5 stars, this race still come with its cons. The line after the race to see the actual house is LONG! And the gift shop is awesome but also a very long line. The line to be bused back to the start line is also long. If you get cold easily...this is not a race for you. Cleveland this time of year is very cold. Make sure to dress warmly depending on the weather. Great race!!

Year number 2 of running the Christmas Story Race. If you live in Cleveland (like me), be smart and…read morelook at their website at least a week and a half before the race to see when the early bib pick ups are so you don't have to fight the crowds on race day. I was stupid and didn't check to see that the running store 10 minutes away from me had bib pick up the monday before the race. Whoops. Parking day of: Got a spot in a lot close to the start. Not my fault the dude collecting the money wasn't there for the first half of us who parked. Pick up: at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Cleveland. Fairly flawless but the bib and the timing chip that went on my shoe were different. The number was random for whatever reason The start: behind the towers shopping facility (different this year than last year). Also the site of the finish this year. The course: goes through downtown Cleveland, through Treamont and to the Christmas Story House. The 10K runners circled pack and headed back towards the start of the race where the old Higbees used to be. The course is a fairly flat course. Some hills, primarily when crossing the bridge downtown across from Progressive field and Horseshoe casino. When you crossed the finish, you get the obligatory bananas, bagels and water. They have Ovaltine hot chocolate at the end as well. Be ready to get your medals (though this year, slight glitch with not enough medals due to shipping errors). Shirts: long sleeved which is a nice break from from the tech shirts Be ready to look for people dressed up as bunnies, a one legged lamp, fragile boxes and whatever else floats the Christmas Story Movie boat. Also be sure to visit the Christmas Story House afterwards. Your bib gets you into the House for Free!

Getting into the arena for an event is easy and expedited well. I usually don't have to wait long…read morein line to get through the security check and ticket line. There is a variety of seating and food stations spread throughout the arena. Getting your food doesn't take long and is quick. The availability of staff to help is abundant. Leg room in the seats is less in the upper bowl than the lower bowl. I'm 5'9" and in the upper bowl I have just enough room. They can improve by adding more escalators to and from the upper bowl. When leaving a Cavaliers game at the end of the game a long line forms to ride the escalators down. There are other ways down. The elevators are as crowded as. The stairs lead to outside and so those heading to Tower City via the walking bridge need to take the escalators unless they take the stairs, go outside, and then come back in the entrance by the stairs leading to the walking bridge. Also, the escalator that goes from the walking bridge to the arena is broken down a lot.

The good: the lines are great - you can wait inside the atrium an hour before doors open. The…read moreclimate control is good. The bad: -lots of smoke? Not sure where from? Was there fire? Should I evacuate? Eyes burning. Throat dry. Can't see. Can't breathe. Help. -Was having a moderately mild severe allergic reaction. In desperate need of caffeine. No coffee to be seen. Makes me sad. Cannot function without coffee. -the woman at ticketing, we'll name her "wildabeast" to keep her information confidential, but she was really mean. Like angry lunch lady mean. -the water. It's a no bottle facility, but they don't have faucets, so you have to buy a bottle of water for $7, only for them to dump into cup. Seems wasteful. Lots of plastic waste. It's like they want us to be microplastic humans. And then you're at risk of someone spiking your water. Beware of creeps. -You may need to take out a loan to purchase food here. Swensons - $25 for a burger? What the helli? I could drive to the farm and go get my own burger for cheaper. -the ticket "gatekeepers" will not move. They will block your view. They're unhinged.

Oh how I love baseball, from Jacob's Field to the transition Progressive Field, the park is…read moreamazing. The food scene is local, with so much to choose from, tacos, burgers, pasta, fries, pretzels and the basics of hot dogs, what is not to love. Clearly there are plenty of food choices, but the upgraded seating, from club seats, the kids zone, the bleachers or up in section 500, no view is bad. There are plenty of places to explore if you don't want to be tied to your seat between innings. I love baseball, love the roar of the crowd, the sound of Tom Hamilton is the best sound a girl could ask for!

Typically I go to a few Gaurdians games a year. This is my 2nd visit this year. We sit in the…read morebleachers. This time we sat in 180 in around the 4th row. Love these seats! Mostly the people around us were super fun. Decent view. We ate before we went so we wouldn't be too hungry. Concessions are pretty ridiculous in price. But what are you going to do. They do have lots of variety. The more exotic the offering the more you're going to pay. You can get a cheap beer at the Dads beer stand. Otherwise it's going to cost you. The one beef I have is that they didn't have a lot of guys selling stuff when we were in our seats. 1 beer guy. That's it. I wanted a hot dog and no one ever came. Popcorn, cotton candy, nothing. Last year they came to the bleachers but not so much this year. They have a gluten free stand which is good. They probably need more options there too. The view is good. The entertainment value is good. Even though we lost. Lots of good Gaurds gear and merch. I do have to say the main merch store is smaller and not as good. I did like it when they had the wall of hats and the memorabilia like signed balls and locker tags. They are organized and helpful. Lots of fun to take in a game.

I am not an artist but have loved seeing the local talent decorate the Art Museum sidewalk yearly…read morefor the past 5 years of this festival.

Drawing on sidewalks…read more Kids. Pros. For 17 years each September, kids young and old get to share a really great fall weekend in the Land of Cleves. I am a big fan of anything colorful. Colorful sidewalks? Chalk is involved? Count me in. There's even live music. Featured artists. Kids crawling all over the lawn covered in chalk. Now that's a way to spend a weekend.