The Scottsdale Family ArtsFest is a free festival that runs for two days in the Scottsdale Civic…read moreCenter. It features performing arts by K-12 so it's actually more catered to kids. There's performances and various booths. What I found very lacking was their food choices. The theater's first floor features a variety of art done by kids which I thought was neat. Otherwise, this isn't all that special unless you're a kid.

What a nice small museum. It gives you a great prospective of early Mesa. It goes into RAF at…read morefalcon field to the earliest settlement. Takes about 2 hours to see it. Worth a visit

What a gem! I have lived here for 8 years and never visited the museum. Mesa has such a rich…read morehistory. The rooms were well organized by theme which change often, and right now there is a Falcon Field and the Royal Air Force display as well as Kachina dolls. Lots to learn about the Hohokam, the canals and Mesa origins. The gift shop is super cute too.

What an amazing event sponsored by the Herberger theater in Downtown Phoenix. There was food,…read morevendors, informational booths on art charities around town. Great entertainment all day long. I hope you can all make it next year.

Highly recommend We go every year and see the Christmas lights at the Mesa Temple in downtown Mesa.read more

"Merry and bright like Christmas lights in the night"…read more I have been wanting to visit massive displays of Christmas lights and be drowned by its dazzles and glitters. I was not disappointed to visit the impressive display at the Mesa Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The temple grounds is transformed into a festive brilliance, adorned with an enchanting display of Christmas lights that illuminated the surroundings with a warm and joyous glow. Trees were wrapped in glitters and lights took the shape of camels, adding a whimsical touch. Apart from the vibrant lights, one thing I really love is the display of the Nativity story, the poignant centerpiece which embodies the true meaning of Christmas. The statues are remarkably human-like and beautifully carved. They depicted the Holy Family in the manger beneath the brightest star. This artistic portrayal of the birth of Christ added a touch of reverence to the celebration, offering a unique blend of joy and reflection. With the many people that I have seen that evening, I can tell there are numerous visitors who flocked this place as kids, families, and people from all walks of life will surely love and enjoy walking, taking pictures, and reading the Bible verses exhibits. This is undoubtedly a must-visit during this holiday season. The temple grounds is open to the public, free of charge. We found a perfect spot to park on the roadside.

ZooBrew is one of the largest fundraisers for the Phoenix Zoo. It's held in April of each year and…read morefeatures live music, beverage sampling, some food offerings, and various activities. Although I do some volunteer work at the Zoo (disclaimer), this was the first year I attended. So here's the scoop: Tickets were $85 ($75 for members) and that included a punch card for sampling. The punch card was for 12 samples, and most vendors were punching (actually I think it was Zoo volunteers). I thought there were plenty of beverage choices. Mostly beer but also wine, vodka, tequila, and bourbon were spotted (or imbibed). The food choices were limited and of the three vendors, two charged. Kudos to Albertson's for offering prawns and sausage for free as well as giving away reusable bags. We actually left ZooBrew to have dinner, and returned later. This worked out well because the drink lines were much shorter halfway into it. The music was great. This year the Go-Go' were the headliner:) There's a silent auction every year, and there are really some great things to bid on...luxury suites at sporting events, wine tasting parties, behind the scenes Zoo tours, etc. We went cheap and came away winning a bottle of Port. There's also caricaturist, a treasure hunt, and you can ride the carousel! Don't expect to see the animals, however. Much of the Zoo is off limits. How would you feel if you looked outside and saw a few thousand gorillas partying in your back yard? Well, maybe you'd like it. But anyway, they're locked up for the evening. They did have a few Program animals greeting guests as you come in, however. Would I go back? Definitely. Should you go expecting you'll drink more than the price of your ticket? No, it's a fundraiser! And whether you love zoos or hate them, the animals didn't ask to be there and this is a way we can help make their lives better! (end spiel)

This event is now called Rock the Zoo and it's awesome! I go to this event every year with about…read more10-15 friends. If you plan ahead for this you can usually score some discounted tickets too; I only paid $25 per ticket for this past event. Also, become a member of the zoo's mailing list and they have one-day deals to events like this. So this event benefits the zoo and it's a blast. They have live bands playing, a silent auction, wine/beer/liquor vendors (you get 10-12 tastes) and some food places to purchase from as well. How do you get there... you can walk from the light rail. It's not too far; about a mile I think. You may get a little tipsy so be smart and plan ahead so you can go again the next year.

Last night Scottsdale Stadium in Old Town was transformed into burger nirvana! The Culinary…read moreFestival had their first annual Burger Battle and I was so thrilled to be in attendance. My girlfriend and I were excited to try all of the local burger joints at the event, especially since most of them were places we have never been to before. For a first year event we were thoroughly impressed with how smoothly everything was run. From the burger tents, Leinenkugel's Beer, live music, and even desserts, everything was topnotch! Here's my rundown on the 2012 Culinary Festival Burger Battle: The Best Burgers: El Hefe: One of the first burgers we tried and surprisingly, probably the best. Most people we spoke to felt the same way. Winner of the best burger voted by the people. Zinburger: Another crowd favorite. A great sloppy burger! Judge's choice for best burger. Lenny's: This is a family owned burger joint and the family was in attendance last night. We even got to meet and speak with Lenny himself! Really nice people and we had to give this place our vote. Modern Burger: Another great one, very unique with lobster and bacon on the burger. The Very Goods: La Grande Orange: I dug this one which had green chili on their great English Muffins. Omaha Steakhouse: Surprisingly good and spicy! The Decents: Bourbon Steak: This was definitely the most photogenic burger of the night. It looked amazing, but it had a million toppings on it and was just too rich. Cold Beers and Burgers: My girlfriend was a big fan of this one, but I wasn't crazy about it. I thought the burger meat was a bit too dense and had some weird flavoring. Maybe it was the cheese. Capital Grille: Again was expecting a lot from this one. It was good, but didn't wow me. And The Not So Greats: Bueno Burger: Heard good things, but was disappointed with this one. RnR: No surprise here. I have never been a fan of this place. Old Town Whiskey: Forgettable. Chelsea's Kitchen: Was expecting a lot from this one since I have heard such great things about this place. The onions were too overpowering and the bread was too doughy. I still want to go to this restaurant and try one of their other dishes though. The only burger I didn't get to try was Indulge Burger. I had them before and thought they were decent. I just couldn't eat one more bite of burger that night. Drinks: I have been a fan of Leinenkugal's beer so I was happy to try some of their brews that I never had before. I tried their wheat beer and a berry beer. Not my typical choices, but they were both good. I had to switch over to wine with my last drink ticket since I didn't wanna fill up too much on beer. Free Dasani water was a life saver after consuming all those salty burgers! Desserts: Whoopie Baking Company: These were some damn tasty whoopie pies! I wanted more, but they ran out and I can see why! Peterson's Old Fashion Ice Cream: Really good Chicago based ice cream. The guys working their tent said they'll be opening up a shop in Old Town soon. Check it out when they do! It is easy to give this event five stars! A job well done by everyone involved. This is an event that every burger lover should attend at least once in their lifetime!

This was my first time attending this event. Burger Battle is one of the many events that kick off…read moreScottsdale Culinary Festival week. I've always heard from others that it is the best one of all the events. I thought it was great! Tickets run about $65 and it is all-you-can-eat. Around 20 restaurants cook up and present their best burger for patrons to sample. Majority of the samples were the size of sliders. The location was the Scottsdale Waterfront where the competitors each had their own tent to showcase their culinary talents. The crowd was nice and spread out in front of the stage where they had live music and beverages. The one complaint I had was that they squeezed in about ten tents on the bridge overlooking the canal. The view was gorgeous but it made it very difficult to move around in that small space. The competitors really brought out their A game. Not only did they put out some great burgers, they made it fun. Caveman Burgers had people dressed up as cavemen to hand out their burgers. Aioli Burger handed out gifts like burger stress relievers and bottle opener spinners. AZ Wilderness Brewing Co had all types of fun with the crowd with their fun personalities. Some places even offered fries with their burger samples. We were able to vote for our favorite burger via voting boxes. My favorites were Aioli's Hawaiian Burger and Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co.'s Jalapeno and Peanut Butter Burger. Hopdoddy's poblano burger was also a standout for me. The problem I had was that I got full after seven samples and wasn't able to try them all - boo! Sedona's Mariposa - Latin Inspired Grill took home the prize for the evening. Overall this was a well-organized event that made for a fun night out with friends.

This is the wine festival by which all other wine festivals will be measured for me going forward…read more Admittedly this is more expensive than other wine events held here in the valley (between $55-$75/person depending on when you buy tickets). But what you get for the money far exceeds any wine festival I've experienced here in the valley. It didn't hurt that this year's Grape Arizona Wine Event was held on a crystal clear 70 degree day, but this is truly the biggest and best wine event I've been to anywhere in the Phoenix area. My only criticism would be that this event should be held on a Saturday (rather than Sunday) to maximize exposure for the event and its vendors. Other than that, I have almost nothing but positive things to say for this fantastic event. I bought my ticket about a month in advance so I only had to pay $55 (rather than the door price of $75). With that ticket came a goody bag containing a wine glass, event program, 20 wine tasting tickets (that's not a typo) and 10 food tasting tickets. I counted 15 Arizona wineries at this event and 7 restaurants offering food tastings. Most of the wineries this year hailed from southern Arizona (particularly the Willcox and Sonoita areas) but also with a few from the Verde Valley area as well. Restaurants participating in this year's event included Beckett's Table, Thirteennorth, Match, Leona's Foccacia, Herb Box, Modern Round, and Vincent's Bistro. Additionally there were miscellaneous vendors selling everything to chocolate, to wine glass charms, to olive oil, to home decor. With so many tickets to use, I wanted to make sure I made use of them all. So I employed a balanced strategy. 2 wine tastings, then 1 food item, then 2 more wine tastings, then another food item, then...well, you get the picture. Thankfully a number of the food vendors had some hearty food samples to help soak up all of that wine. From Beckett's muffuleta sandwich, to Modern Round's beef sliders, to Thirteennorth's turducken meatloaf, and even Vincent's roast beef slider. Though I have to admit my favorite of the food offerings at this event was Leona's cannoli. It was so good I got two helpings. As for the wines, most the wineries were here earlier in the month at the Grand Arizona Wine Festival so I was somewhat familiar with the offerings. Alcantera (my favorite from the Grand AZ Fest) was unfortunately not one of the wineries on hand this time around. That said I still found plenty of wine varieties to love. My favorite this time around was probably from Carlson Creek (a Willcox winery with a tasting room in Scottsdale). Their Rule Of Three wine is a perfectly well balanced mix of Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvedre. A full bodied but smooth wine that went perfectly with all those food bites. The crowd at this event, while impressive, was smaller than the Grand Arizona Wine Festival earlier in the month. No doubt in part because this event was more expensive and because this event was on a Sunday rather than a Saturday. But for me that was a good thing as I had room to move about the wine and food booths quite easily and there was plenty of tables and chairs to station myself at any given time. And unlike the Grand AZ Festival, there was an abundance of food offerings to help balance out all the alcohol. The entry price may not be cheap, but what you get for the money is truly worth every penny. I was able to make use of all my tickets in just over two hours, though I could have easily spent more time here if I were hanging out with a big group. Fantastic event showcasing both Arizona's growing selection of wineries as well as some of the Phoenix area's diverse culinary treasures. Hoping to see even more offerings the next time this event comes around as there's plenty of room for even more vendors should they decide to come to this event next year. A quick note that a portion of the proceeds from this event also goto the Phoenix Rotary 100 Club. So to recap: Drink wine, eat good food, support a good cause. Any questions?

A fun, affordable event with a bounty of local AZ beer tasting. As a first timer to this annual…read moreevent, I expected more food truck vendors and beer tents to be present. None-the-less plenty of tasting tickets were provided (many more than we could use - NO complaints there). We enjoyed ourselves.