I may have romanticized this festival in my head. I imagined buying a strawberry balloon from a…read morestrawberry mascot... grabbing a strawberry infused lunch from a trendy and innovative food truck... eating a homemade (organic and fresh) strawberry shortcake dessert... Ok, I definitely romanticized it. We walked down a street with standard fair-food options (corn dogs, funnel cake, towering fried foods) before deciding to skip out on lunch. I caved and got the kids a snow cone. I didn't want to pump them full of Red 40, but I was committed to the theme and ordered strawberry syrup. They loved it. I passed several shortcake options but the cake portion was the yellow store-bought circle kind and the strawberries were more of a goop. I found a homemade strawberry shortcake from an adorable little downtown store and it was okay. Not bad, not impressive. It was $7 and I ate about $4.25 of it. The area set aside for families and younger kids was a hit with my 2 and 4 year olds. The green tractor racers was a huge hit and the turns were impressively long. It's a busy festival with lots of people but they have set up many side areas/venues so the crowds are dispersed (to take full advantage of his festival download a map and plan out the music or acts you want to see) Beside my disappointment in the level of strawberriness, it was a solid family outing and the weather was perfect. If you don't have other epic plans, I can't think of a good reason NOT to go.

Signed up for the Strawberry Stampede 10k to kick off our first time visiting the Annual Strawberry…read morefestival. Other than the race, I can't believe how big of a dissapointment it was. The festival was more of a small-scale alternative to the mid-state fair including the same fair vendors, fair food, cheap craft booths with clothing and jewelry from national brands and a few from Fresno. The festival closed down about 4 blocks of streets for vendors, entertainment, and a couple for rides and bounce houses/games. There were a few booths from the same company that offered strawberry lemonade, strawberries with whip cream, and strawberries with angelfood cake. There was another booth that had cheesecake on a stick with strawberries. It seriously the strawberries to non-local gimmicky booths was about 25:1. At least there were a few local vendors offering BBQ sandwiches, but event burrito and Greek vendors were from out of town. Here's how you can make it better: get local restaurants to commit to participating and making an amazing strawberry dish! Ex: strawberry glazed meats, strawberry vinegarette, strawberry pie, strawberry sangria, sooo many options! If you could have closer to a 5:1 ratio of random vendors tobstrawberry vendors and get more local input this event could be amazing. Alternative option: don't call it the strawberry festival.. call it the AG Annual Fair Looked like a lot of the kids had a decent time, but talking with other adults in the area who voiced a similar dissapoitment from years past with no plan to return.

One word to describe.... HEAVEN!!!…read more One entry fee, ALL YOU CAN EAT & DRINK! You can taste all the sample and try out all the beer & wine~ SWEET!!! If you like bacon... THIS IS YOUR EVENT! Bacon in all kinds of dishes, in salad, appetizer, sliders, etc. They give you a souvenir glass, you just go around the vendors and try out any beer/wine you like. We stayed there for hours! Basically eating 3 meals there already~ :D Great choices of local restaurants. Many different varieties. Live music, great crowd, fun day! Just one suggestion for the organizer.... we need more shades or umbrellas and table/chairs. Thank you. Will definitely attend the event again next time!

For what little there is to see and do, I'd really give this a 3, but the event could do with a bit…read moremore love. Also, it's arguably more for kids what with the bounce house and face-painting, but that didn't stop the fact that most of the costumed patrons were adults having a grand ol' time in sparkly wings and Renaissance faire garb. Why I feel it deserves a higher rating, though, is for their resident storyteller, True Thomas. I got to hear a good yarn about a drunk merman who kept the souls of dead sailors in his cabinet, while snacking on treats from Olsen's Bakery down the street. I was quite content. There were a few people who added a bit more to the experience. A man with a large, plush mallet ran about the festival chasing pixies to bonk them on the head, for instance. Truly, the fact that they held this event in Solvang was still a valid excuse for us to have made the drive. We had other places to run off to for Danish food since we weren't quite feeling up for tamales and pizza (the only food options at the faerie festival). It was also quite hot out (102 degrees when we checked), so heading further into town for butter cookies and aebleskivers was a good excuse to get into some A/C for a bit. The pictures on our camera are interspersed with fantasy costumes, windmills, jugglers, plates of meatballs and sausage with red cabbage, Brandon D. getting a dragon painted on his arm, and display cases of pastries. It was a typical visit to Solvang for us, with a bit more whimsy thrown in.

This was a cool little surprise festival that my boy friend and I came across rolling into Solvang…read more There was live shows and entertainment, people were dressed up fairy style, there was food, unique gift booths, and music. I thought it was great for us as a couple to see and i know I saw a lot of families enjoying its as well. Great make believe idea love it.

Such a fun annual event! Nestled right in the heart of Buellton once a year on Avenue of the Flags…read more Easy to walk to from most anywhere in town. They block off a lot of the road, so there's a fair amount of space to maneuver. They've got drinks, rides, and tons of food vendors! It's a multi-day event. Great opportunity to gather with friends/family and enjoy the local community!

Great time had by all at Santa Maria Con. I loved seeing all the cosplay people had designed and…read morestrutted in. This was their first time having it in this location and everyone said they liked it there so much better. They had more room for vendors , voice actors and actors and food trucks. Luckily it was a cool day so I could cool down in my pleather. Santa Maria Con gets two thumbs up in Z formation. They let military, and first responders in for free. Other cons need to step it up. At least give a discount.

We LOVE this fair! It's small enough to get around to see the whole thing…read more We especially love the quilt raffle! I won a quilt with the Nemo fish on it. We also enjoy the craft works and art. There is nothing like an $11 corn dog and an $18 funnel cake! We went on Wednesday and waited an hour to get in for a $1. Good times!

"When life gives you lemons...head to Goleta!" The Goleta…read moreLemon Festival is the 'biggest' celebration in our small town. Goleta hosts this festival to showcase its rich agricultural history when it became a highly prominent lemon growing center with a thriving packing industry. Visit the Stowe House and Rancho Patera to learn more about this. If you glance into the surrounding foothills, you'll see many short trees with the perfectly round and fragrant yellow fruit. Here at the festival you can purchase all things lemon or lemon-flavored including: beer, pie, churros, bundt cakes, pie, lemonade and more. This family-friendly festival takes place in Goleta's Girsh Park usually the last week in September. Parking can be a bit tricky but if you're comfortable walking, park at the nearby strip malls. There are a lot (around 80) of local businesses and vendors selling merchandise and a classic car show. Cash is great to have on hand. A large kids activity area and carnival rides are also available. For adults, there is a beer tent near a stage for live bands. The end of September is the perfect time for an outdoor festival under the sun. Personally, I prefer Carpinteria's Avocado Festival. Shh!

My friends and I had a great time! (We insist on having fun when we go out!!) We drank beer... ate…read morefood, and danced. The weather was great. (A bit windy on Sunday) For sure they could of had more lemon themed foods, but the food that we ate was good. Some of it was typical food that you find at a fair... funnel cake... deep fried items, etc. They also had a great local gourmet ice cream! (Rori's) My friend's kid had a great time. We will be back next year for more beer... food... dancing... and fun.

BUBBLES BY THE SEA... My childhood memories of Pismo Beach…read moreis that of riding ATVs (all terrain vehicles) along the beautiful beige and sandy dunes of this beach lined city. What a pleasant surprise to find myself back in Pismo, not with sand in my face, but in heels, a dress and bubblies in hand! What an absolutely fabulous time we had! Thanks to Yelp, my husband and I enjoyed an amazing getaway which happened to coincide with our anniversary weekend! At Bubblyfest By the Sea, we enjoyed endless pours of this "liquid gold" in an array of colors ranging from porcelain, alabaster, chiffon, golden, honey, blush and rose. With over 60 vendors and growers from near and far, it was the perfect venue in discovering so much that is out there. This second annual event took place at the SeaCrest Oceanfront Hotel. Being guests at this lovely hotel made parking for the event easy and convenient. We parked, checked in and off we went, to splurge and overindulge in food and bubbly. Our day started on the rooftop patio of the hotel, exclusive for VIP ticket holders. This very intimate setting with great views and comfortable lounge seating had a nice selection of reserve bubblies just for us. As with wine tasting, we started off with pours of dry bubblies, then ventured to a sweeter variety. Our hostess made sure we had everything we needed and had lunch delivered to us. After lunch, a DJ spun some tunes and champagne buckets lay in front of us, completely at our disposal and for our pure enjoyment. But wait! This VIP pass wasn't all of it. Behold a plethora of vendors downstairs! Yes, the rooftop patio was exclusive and serene, but it was time to venture out into the masses! Adjacent to the pool and in the garden area of the hotel were tents set up housing all of these wonderful food and bubbly vendors. Some of the unique bubblies we sampled were infused with almond and peach/mango...delicious! The samplings of food included farm to table caterers who provided fresh strawberries, an assortment of cheeses, ceviche, olive tapenade, mac and cheese, brownies, cookies, Muffin Goddess muffins and pink cake pops. If you enjoy sparkling wine, or would like to experience bubbly overload, mark your calendar for October 6-8, next year. If you can't wait an entire year, plan to attend one of their upcoming pop-up events: San Francisco on, April 9, and in Los Angeles on, June 2, 2016. Our objective for the weekend was definitely to have a great time, and with that, having discovered new tastes and blends, made for the perfect weekend, marked with great memories. As a result of the numerous and very generous pours, I found my favorite bubbly du jour...IVY from France. A light, slightly sweet sparkling wine made from the Muscat grape.

This was the first time I heard about such an event. Thanks to Yelp and my wife, who won the…read moretickets, we spent an absolutely perfect weekend in Pismo Beach. Let me summarize by saying that if you love the bubbly drink, you have to come to this event. I have never seen so many vendors of local, national and oversea growers/vendors gathered at one place to let us sample their finest. We were privileged to partake of the VIP Grand Tasting. We started off with a private tasting of four vendors with pretty much unlimited pours of their bubbly in a private roof top area, an hour before the main event. We were then treated to a catered lunch of chef salad and BLT with homemade potato chips. The main event was held in the grassy patio area of the hotel facing the Pacific Ocean. With 60 growers/vendors, there was enough alcohol to give everyone a very happy bubbly buzz! But lest not forget the growers/winemakers who poured and answered questions about their products. We were introduced to a few who we will be buying from in the very near future! On top of the bubbly, Field to Table was there feeding us cheeses and delicious appetizers. The weather was perfect, the alcohol was flowing, the people were friendly and everyone was having a great time. The event was well organized. We will be back next year!

If you're ever in Lompoc, this is a must stop. Lavender farm with nice color, aroma and…read moreopportunity for beautiful photos. Has a little shop where you can find lots of lavender products..

A beautiful family farm run by people who are truly passionate about making the very best products…read more The setting is gorgeous, the lavender fields were picture perfect, the flowers were stunning, and Lucas was so generous with his time and knowledge. Highly recommend.

This was a super fun event! I believe this is the first year for the event (2022) and it was so…read moregreat to see the small community of Buellton offer more activities. Attending this right at the beginning of December really helped get me into the holiday spirit! Lots of people were there. The park had activities, including pictures with Santa, roasting marshmallows, hot chocolate for purchase, a beer garden, and food trucks! Lots of kids running around and families creating memories. It seemed a bit pricey for $25/ticket for 13y/o and up, but they did a great job with the lights and it made for several photo opportunities!

It was a cozy event, wasn't too bad to walk in heels! Great for a date night or a fun little trip…read morewith the family. There were opportunities for photo ops throughout, a couple food trucks, cotton candy booth, hot chocolate station and fires to sit down/warm up near. The field of lit up flowers and the lights that made it look like a river flowing was my favorite part of the walk!