What a beautiful day to spend at the RI seafood Fest. Its been a few years and it didn't…read moredisappoint. The entrance fee was reasonable and the gate keepers were very helpful, I could not find my prepurchase tickets in my email and they found my tickets in no time by looking up my name! The even runs for two days but I think everyone showed up on the first day due to a storm hitting on day two. The crowd was big and the vendors worked hard to keep the flow going. So many choices for food, lots a seating and a great view of the cove. I bought my food from Sunset farm, fish and chips, I forgot to take a photo! I started munching before my client got his food it was irresistible. Well fried crispy outside and tender inside. The fries took a back seat though. Lack of salt was a little annoying but that's a minor point. My client got a Brisket grilled cheese that looked vey good as well. Prices were high, that was expected and I came prepared. Well done Providence!

India Point is perfect for the annual RI Seafood Festival. The park is full of vendors, eateries,…read moreraffles and even free bags of kiwis! Only $12 entry fee comes with a cool stamp/tat! From the website I already knew what food I was going to eat. From Caribbean pineapple bowls full of jerk chicken or civieche to Scallop rolls, crazy spiral chips dipped with cheese sauce and bacon to Pretty In Pink lemonade and lobster nacho's everything was awesome.

I needed a few days to get my thoughts together. This was my final stop on my Rhode Island tour,…read moreand it was the one piece of the puzzle in which I did use AI to help me make plans for. What do I mean by that? I use the Kit feature on Spotify to make plans, critique music, hold the algorithm accountable whenever Discover Weekly or Release Radar come on, and even to roast my own taste of music. So when I brought back "The Weekender" to do an episode on my trip to Rhode Island, it suggested I come to this festival I didn't even know existed until that point. Bet! The festival is free, but you can buy a ticket to join their private inner circle, also known as the WaterFire Circle. On that topic, you can join for one night or even get a season pass. Season passes for that, by the way, start at like $1200. I opted to buy a ticket for that one night I was in Rhode Island, which was still $175 plus tax, and because I was in the Circle, my review will be based primarily on my experience in the Circle rather than the rest of the festival. Once you're in line and get in, they give you a wristband that allows to come and go as you please while the tent is open. It comes with complimentary food and libations, a front-row seat of sorts to a fire show, and you even get to sign up to be on one of the boats that go down the river and get you close to the fires. Guess what I did. So we need to start at the complimentary food because that was the first thing I did after signing up for a boat ride. I really like that they give a lot of options for food, allowing you to be able to taste everything they had to offer. There are potato wedges, bourbon-glazed grilled chicken on a stick, hor d'ouvres, asparagus, miniature slices of thin-crust pizza. You name it! And they have these cheesecake bites for dessert that range from key lime pie to one with berry toppings on it, and fruit on a stick you can drizzle chocolate all over. If you've even been to a food tasting event, it's assorted much like that, and there was more than enough for everyone to enjoy something. The chicken was not only really good, but also really popular. I had one stick, and before the fire show began, they were all finished up! The key lime bites were much more slept on, but equally as good. Asparagus was cooked perfectly too, and the cheese and crackers were a delight. Some of the cooked food did come out a little cold, particularly the pizza slices, but even that was not a big deal. They have a good array of drinks and libations too. I was able to eat by these fire lamps, and thank GOD for those because it was certainly starting to get chilly after the sun went down! Now, I did visit two attractions that weren't in the Circle, and I will talk about those right now. Firstly, there's various places where you can get info and merchandise. Considering the kind of event this was, I know I needed to get something in terms of souvenirs. I ended up getting a refrigerator magnet and this wooden medallion looking thingy to bring home. Right after that, I visited this one guy who does origami. He professionally creates a figure in the art, and oh boy is his craft just SO efficient! You can leave a tip or write a note and put it in a jar as a thanks for the token. So let's get to the fire show. So there's this blond woman who comes in and does several different acts with different objects, all of them carrying fire. The way she dances with these flames in her hands is elegant. Don't attempt that kind of thing at home folks! This kind of thing should only be done by professionals. Also, don't bring your kid to these unless they can understand the difference between right and wrong. This one family brought their 4-year-old son to this event, and I was sitting right next to this family when the fire show was taking place. Out of the blue, unprompted, this kid during one of the dances goes announcing that the fire dancer is "a hot girl". His words, not mine. I can only bet his parents had a talk with him about that when they got home that night. I tried to write about the boat ride, but what I had in store would have been too much to fit into this review. If you want to know more about that, I'd be more than happy to message anyone who reaches out for it. What I will say is that it was a worthwhile trip, even if it left me tired and too exhausted to do anything the next two days after.

I think this was one of the most enjoyable evening events I have attended in a long time. My wife…read moreand I loved it so much that after spending a few hours here we grabbed some dinner and headed back to our hotel but then ended up coming back out for at least another hour or so. This is a totally free event where they light bonfires in the waterway and have live music, art installations and light shows. There were a lot of people but there was plenty of space so we didn't feel crowded. It starts around sunset and goes for hours. There are boats that travel along the waterway and tent to the fires, adding wood and making sure everything is safe and stays burning. They also offer gondola rides but you should book those in advance. It was very peaceful and romantic. It's completely outdoors so we brought our dog and many of the restaurants have outdoor seating where you can eat and enjoy the sights. There is also a street fair area adjacent to the waterway that offers food, art, jewelry,etc. We saw a glass blowing demonstration and music acts. That section was quite busy and we did feel a little crowded there. I had never really experienced anything like this before and I enjoyed it. I wish we had something like this where I am and if you're in the area and you see this event, you should definitely stop and check it out.

First of all, it's way overpriced. How how can a festival charge $15 for meatball sandwich the food…read moreis horrible. It's not even a huge selection of Italian food. No dessert??? This is more of a Block Party I'm not sure how they can call it an Italian feast!!! i'll go to Saint Rocco's way better prices and food

HORRIBLE!!!! Italian Festival??? Where was all the Italian…read morefood and music? What a joke. We went on Wednesday night, the first night. Only a few booths and the food was ridiculously high. We thought there would be more Italian food. Not even close to an Italian Festival! The food was terrible. Nothing but a BLOCK PARTY with a bunch of trouble makers walking around. Young teens looking to hook up. How can you call this an Italian Festival! By Saturday night it got even worse. Fighting and gun shots and several arrests. We will stick to the North End in Boston where they have authentic Italian food, desserts, cappuccino stations, oh.....and Italian music. Disgusted in Cranston

Great choices of food Trucks. Boston, Providence and NYC trucks…read more Loved the Empanadas from Nuchas and the Bulgogi from Big D's Grub. The lines for the Sweet waffles at Waffles and Dinges were always long !! Most of the choices were sandwiches, fries, empanadas or sweets. Overall a very well attended event. Jessica S was manning the Yelp booth, letting others know about our site and benefits... :-)

Beautiful day for the Food Truck Bash! Radish's empanadas were slammin' good and a deal for only…read more$2! I also enjoyed the waffles....mmmm! Sadly the event didn't live up to my expectations overall... I thought here would be many more trucks given we paid $8 to get in. There were only 8! Less of a bash and more of a soirée.

Definitely one of the most fun annual festivals in Providence, if you have the day free, come spend…read moreit at the block party of all block parties. Free entry, live music, fun vendors and awesome giveaways -- it's the perfect combination for a great time, especially with 'Gansett putting the entire thing together. You can score everything from cool threads to vintage vinyl while you sip your beer, and learn about awesome local businesses while you stroll the block. I've been to this event three years in a row now, and can honestly say it's one of my most favorite local events. Not to be missed, especially if you love 'Gansett!

A day sporting an expertly mixed cocktail of my favorite ingredients - good music, good food, good…read morefolks, and (of course) great brews. Beer trucks galore! No one knows how to typify RI locality like the dudes and dudettes from 'Gansett beer. I'm personally a fall beer addict, and the Fest autumn brew was in full flow this day. There was also a good surplus of the Del's Shandy being dished out for those who just couldn't get enough. I coupled the copious liquid lunch with a delicious caesar wrap from Z Food truck and quickly found myself in some damn fine bliss. A quick stroll down the street (beer in hand I might add - the perks of a block party) and we found party part 2 kickin' on at the E&O Tap - a great local dive. The music selection was an amazing local variety, culminating with the amazing antics of a street marching band that struck a nostalgic cord with my inner band geek. Events like these typify the amazing Providence community that is comprised of so many crosswinds in the cultural sphere. Kudos to all those involved - let's keep 'em comin'.

This year's event was focused on double meaning words and puns, celebrities and Sci-Fi characters…read more As always, the beautifully carved pumpkins lit the trail right at eye level as well as up on many tall trees. It was a relaxing event where we loved seeing well known carvings such as Dolly Parton, Freddie Mercury, Rocky, Albert Einstein and more. Our walk lasted about an hour and it was $20 for a weekday adult ticket.

Always a fun outing! We had a lovely little picnic in the car, did some serious people-watching &…read moreenjoyed the incredible pumpkins at the Roger Williams Park Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular. The displays were absolutely outstanding! So many imaginative carvings, clever details & gorgeous glowing scenes to take in as you slowly make your way through the Zoo. We lucked out with spectacular fall weather, which made the whole evening even better! NOTE: Oh My Gourd! The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular Story features the extraordinary artistic feat that takes place at Roger Williams Park Zoo every October. With more than 5,000 carved pumpkins on display & an average of 110,000 - 140,000 visitors from all over the world each season, this is not your average pumpkin show! Watch Oh My Gourd! here: https://youtu.be/WqUQALKnHPU?si=vYT8UgxxFZCFWGR2

What a great venue to show off all of the local arts and crafts. The place was packed full of…read moreunique items and colorful folks. This was a great event sponsored in part by Yelp. I am really glad to have participated. I do have to agree with the other review on the prices. They were a little on the up side for some of the booths...but there were barges to be had. And, as I found out, some were willing to negotiate. But in the end, it is the free market. If they are not finding buyers, they will lower their pricing expectations. --Down side alert--- So I must make my other comments though. They do charge 3$/person to go in. Of course they tell you it is a donation, but you are not getting in with out paying. So it is going to a good cause I am sure I hear you saying. Maybe, but it is also money you can no longer spend inside with the people selling their wares and crafts. And when you have to pay for a family of 4 or 5, it eats into the out flow. Lastly, this is a great venue and a wonderful opportunity to gussy up that side of Garden City. Rumor had it though that they are about to tear down the building and put up a new Walmart. Say it isn't so....!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is bad enough that this state is not business friendly, but the businesses it is friendly to (or can afford to be friendly) are not really the ones we want.

Unfortunately I was working this event so I didn't get to look around too much. I heard about all…read morethe nice, quality things that were there. Can't wait for next year!

I go every year and the food is just amazon people are so super friendly and kids games are old…read moreschool but super fun for the kids will keep on going .

I'm not polish, but I am always up for some authentic food, music, art, and culture, so I decided…read moreto check this festival out. The festival runs every year at the beginning of September: this year was the weekend of the 7th-9th. When I first pulled up, I was excited. I saw about 20 tents lined up around the outside of a parking lot and I saw a dance floor in the middle. I was hoping to come upon traditional polish food, a live band, and some dancing. When I entered the area, I soon realized that there was a tent with some homemade treats and a tent serving greasy American food and almost all the other tents were games for both children and adults and the music was just a DJ, no live band. Still, I decided to give it a chance so I picked up a beer (they serve beer and wine) and made my rounds. Games included plinko, the wine wheel, popping balloons, among others. I joined in at the wine wheel, but was only able to celebrate 2 other people winning. Still, it was fun and all the games were cheap, so I enjoyed the experience. I was just about to leave to get dinner, when I noticed all these people coming and going out of the building across the street, so I decided to check it out. It was the food! Now I was excited. In the end, the food was exactly what I was hoping for. Homemade traditional polish food: perogies, stuffed cabbage, cabbage and tripe soup, kielbasa sandwiches, etc. So while I was a little disappointed with the lack of live music and dancing, the food was definitely worth the visit.

Nice street festival in Cranston…read more Rolfe Square was closed for about 10 blocks and there was a large number of arts and crafts, food trucks, face painting, moonwalk for the kids, etc. There were booths from the Police and the Coast Guard to educate festival goers about their profession and also to give information to those who wanted some. There was a good size Beer Garden in front of the food truck area and it was well attended. The majority of the crafts were homemade stuff like candles, paintings, clothing, etc. I really enjoyed walking around and seeing the locals partake on a nice Spring festival.