Confession my wife is 1/2 Greek and we had her mom along with us this year who was born in Greece…read more They both enjoyed the lamb shank and none of us could pass on the little donut balls that they bring around. My favorite and choice this year was Pastitsio which is a lasagne like dish but with wonderful spice seasoned into the meat. After filling up on the food and enjoying the live music we burned some calories walking through the shops, silent auction and garage sale in the basement. It's such a lively, warm community that you feel like an extension of it right away. Last piece of advice - try something outside your comfort zone maybe Dolmades or Spanikopita.

ANNUNCIATION IS CELEBRATING ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY!…read more The Annunciation Greek Festival is in its 58th year and is hosted by Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church of Akron. As I was reviewing information regarding local activities, this festival popped up. We all know that when we hear "Greek Festival", it is akin to ringing a dinner bell. The festival was scheduled to open up at 11 am and we arrived shortly before to get the "lay of the land". The one thing I really appreciated about this event is that it was free and parking was on site. I have never attended a "free" festival so this was a very nice surprise. There were two dining options available, (inside with a buffet style option and outside in the tent with individual items offered). We chose to eat under the tent although we would love to have been in a more open and airy space. We were "early birds" so we moved through the line with ease. We purchased gyros, salad, fries and beverages. The gyro was one of the best I have EVER tasted. The meat was fresh, had great texture and was appropriately seasoned. Those fries were perfectly prepared as they were cooked with the skin on and lightly seasoned. The salad was used to dress the gyro. Perfect! Most importantly, it wasn't overly salted and did not have that heavily processed taste. It was heavenly and I would love to return for dinner when the entertainment will be on and popping! Today's festival does not end until 11pm so you still have plenty of time to enjoy some great food, entertainment, and shopping. Don't just sit there, get moving!!

What a great event! Lots of homemade sausages as well as pierogis and pizza. Wash it all down with…read morea tasty craft beer! The scenery is gorgeous ...can't beat this for a fun fall weekend.

Great festival, live Celtic and Irish pub music, family friendly…read more Only complaint is there is not enough Irish inspired food. A lot of carnival food. Would like to see more authentic foods.

Here's how this festival works... $5/person for admission- kids under 8 are free. After you pay,…read morethen you have to buy tickets for food and drinks. Burgers range from $5-$9, drinks from $2-$6, plus there are fries, cupcakes, funnel cakes, gelato, etc. They were about to crown the winner of the Baby Burger contest so maybe that was fun for some. All of the jumpy things down on the field were probably fun for the kiddos. So, the vendors were supposed to have a healthy option amongst their greasy meat varieties. Don't get me wrong, I went for a greasy burger but I also wanted to take home a veggie option for my daughter. First three places I checked were "sold out" at 12:30! They had to have sold out last night or didn't really have any to offer. I think some vendors added the healthy option to comply, but I am skeptical on whether some of them really even had them to begin with. No, on to what we did have...We split one burger from Bob's and I am glad I can remove my bookmark for a future visit! It was boring and skimpy, especially for $5. We also split one from Smoke for $7. It had fried jalapeños which were delicious. The pinkness of it scared me, but it was very good, warm & smoky. We also had a root beer shaved ice from Main Street Soda worth every 400 pennies. We both suffered from brain freeze in the hot sun. I am glad all proceeds benefit Akron Children's Hospital. They have done a wonderful job of taking care of my kids for 16 years.

I won tickets through yelp to come here so I thought I would check it out today. I haven't been to…read moreAkron in years so I was excited to come! I got there right when they opened at noon, I wanted to beat the crowd. I got Parmesan fries from Leonas Twist food truck. Holy delish!! I got the Gilroy 5 cheese garlic burger from Smoke burger joint. This burger was the award winner from 2015. One of the best burgers I've had! There were so many options/restaurant stands to chose from. It was hard to decide but I'm very happy with my decisions. If you aren't a burger fan there are food trucks and stands that have different food options. I was tempted to get a veggie burger I saw but decided to get a real burger. This is such s great event to bring the kids friends and family There were going to be bands/ entertainment later in the day but I couldn't stay long. I'm so glad I went and plan to come next year. It's worth my 1 hour and a half drive! Thanks yelp for my tickets!!

If you're looking for some end of summer fun, this is the event to come for! Plenty of fun for the…read morekids and kid in you! Bouncy houses, carnival games and carnival food galor. Venders of all types and tons of unique items for sale. Don't forget the fun that this is all named for - HOT AIR BALLONS!!! Those can be seen at Sun Beau Farms right down the street from Downtown Ravenna. Usually held during the 3rd Weekend in September and the best activities on that Saturday. Visit the City of Ravenna's website for more details as summer goes on!

220 Holiday party guests had amazing food and service. The food was hot and the double food line…read moremade for quick service. The room was decorated beautifully

The St. Paul Greek Orthodox Church in North Royalton has hosted this major fundraiser for over…read moretwenty years, and it is run like a well-(olive)oiled machine. Their large, air-conditioned main hall seats hundreds, while a massive outside tent offers covered festival space in their parking lot. A makeshift midway runs between the two, lined with food, clothing, jewelry and artwork vendors. We chose to dine in the main hall, which was set up cafeteria-style, with two separate service lines. The menu included a nice variety of Greek specialties, such as seasoned, roasted chicken, braised lamb shank, gyros, fish, moussaka, stuffed grape leaves and Grecian seasoned meatballs, accompanied by an a la carte selection of side dishes and beverages. Greek beers and wines were also available. The dessert area offers quick boxed baklava, but take time to walk through and linger over the divine selection of over a dozen varieties of sticky, fruity, chocolaty, honey-nutty homemade Greek pastries. Their volunteers are more than happy to help you make your selections. This is the real deal, if you appreciate authentic Hellenic cuisine and culture. Both indoor and outdoor areas featured live bands during the evening, with a large group of young adults engaged in a lively line dance outside. Parking is tight, but they have an overflow lot nearby with shuttle service all evening. Major credit cards accepted in the main dining hall, along with most of the vendors. Delicious food, awesome desserts, great entertainment and a fabulous venue combined to make for a wonderfully pleasant evening.

Oktoberfest was held in front of Treno and on Franklin Avenue. They had a small section blocked off…read morewith some tents set up for the different venues. There was a food truck parked and around four different food venues. The main tent sold $10 specialty beer mugs with a ticket and then $5 tickets after that. There were four different beer options. The ATMs were very busy as they did not accept card (the food venues did). There was a variety of German style foods to try. The prices ranged from $5 to $12. Some of the foods were small portions, while otherwise were a regular portion. They had a main stage that was filled with different entertainment as well as a dance group. The event was overall average. I wish there was more to do at the event. Once you grabbed some beer and food you could either listen to music or leave. Especially when the small blocked off area started to get more crowded.

German food and German beer. A good combo for a good time. Add to that people dressed in weird hats…read moreand skirts with suspenders. That always makes a guy feel more normal. The fact the sponsoring beer was Spaten Oktoberfest sealed the deal for me. This was the catalyst for​ me coming actually. I love me a good stein of Spaten! The good? The stein was $10 and came with a free beer ticket. Every ticket thereafter was $5. Not bad for a stein of beer. 6 choices of beer, ales, ​and ciders. I LOVED the Nitro Pumpkin Spice Latte Ale. WOW! And of course, the Spaten Oktoberfest was the bomb diggity. I love the area those chose to do this in. The architecture in that part of Kent is awesome and it is right off the main drag so we could go walk around when we finished. The brick road there really adds some design nostalgia to the age of the city of Kent. The bad? Gotta say Kent, I was not as impressed as I expected I would be. A VERY small event. The lines for tickets and beer trucks were CRAZY! Not many food truck options either. 4 porta-potties for the entire event? No bueno. Overall, I would say this event wasn't half bad. If Spaten sponsors again next year, I will be back. Otherwise, I would probably pass. Not a half bad experience though!

Lock 3 Park is a park in the heart of Akron. It has a cool cascade like steps. I visited the park…read moreon multiple occasions attending yoga fest and most recently Sakura festival. The park is gorgeous, has a very convenient and clean towpath. This is DORA area so you can enjoy beverages from nearby places. There is also a stage for performers. Bring a blanket or a chair for extra comfort during the shows, there is no permanent seating. Only the stage area is covered so bring an umbrella on rainy days. Parking is conveniently located by the Children's museum. Parking rates vary. There are multiple floors of parking in the enclosed garage with convenient elevator or stairs to descend directly to the park.

This park is in downtown Akron, Ohio. It is located on King James Way (also known as South Main…read moreStreet). It is right on the same lot as the Akron Children's Museum. I visited Lock 3 park over a weekend (20-21 July 2019) for the 38th annual African American Festival & Parade. I was working at a booth at the festival. I wish more advertisement was done for the festival because it wasn't that busy on Saturday but way more people came on Sunday. Apparently though, Saturdays tend to be a quieter day according to one of the festival organizers. There was no rain during the time I was there and so it was a warm day to be outside (it was actually very hot). The festival organisers had my team and another vendor under a big tent so I was happy to be under some shade even though it was still very hot. LOCK 3 PARK -- This is a family friendly outdoor park that hosts events as well. There is a stage where different performers entertain. The park is a medium sized park so it isn't big. There are some benches to sit at around the park. A canal lock is used to raise and lower boats. Lock 3 sots on the Ohio-Erie Canal which is the waterway that flows into to Lake Erie. I don't known if this lock device is used anymore but I have a photo of the canal in my attached pictures. LOCATION -- As I stated earlier, this park is in downtown Akron. There is currently so much construction happening on S. Main Street that parking and finding a way to enter the park can be challenging especially if you don't live in Akron. Thankfully, I was dropped off both on Saturday and Sunday. Overall, this is a nice outdoor space. Swings and maybe a small playground would be a nice addition for kids. Also, a shaded canopy or covering would be great for hot days outside. **** - 98 total reviews in 2019 - 307 total Yelp reviews - Reviewed on 22 July 2019

While the inaugural lighting was held on Friday, December 6, 2013, this display is a work in…read moreprogress and expands every year. You can view the house beginning at 7pm the Friday after Thanksgiving through January 1, from 5-11PM. This display stays true to the movie. The house is covered with 250 stands of lights; 100 bulbs per strand; for a grand total of 25,000 imported Chinese twinkle lights. They also have Santa, the eight tiny reindeer, and the Merry Christmas sign, Uncle Eddie's RV, the pool model and a pile of "trash" with remnants of the Griswold's festivities (the charred chair, the shredded sled, the burnt tree). They even have a radio station (102.3 FM) that plays songs and sound clips from the movie. It is free to view the display but they accept donations. All the donations go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Great Strides Walk in Akron, which they have participate in each May (Team name is: The Griswolds). Visitors can donate at a drop box in their front yard. Or if you don't have any cash, there is a QR code on the sign at the display that you can scan and it will also take you directly to the donation website. It does not take much time to go through the display and contrary to what you may see online, the display is only outdoors. There is no indoor portion. You want spend much time at the house, but it is still an amazing site. I love the "ditto" lights on the neighbors house. We spent about 20 minutes there. We were thorough. Some people just do a drive-by, but since we came all the way from Indianapolis, we made the party last a bit longer. Please keep in mind that their neighbors must be really cool, but be courteous and do not park in, turn around in or block their drive ways. Also turn your lights off when you approach the house. This is a great thing, operated by great people, for a great cause. I highly recommend stopping by and getting some of the Christmas spirit, even if you are not familiar with the movie.

Great coffee that is reasonably priced - I appreciate being able to get an iced latte that's not…read more$7. I got the iced coconut raspberry latte, which was deliciously not too sweet. The baristas were super friendly. Lots of space for meeting up with a friend or working solo. One wall is mostly just windows. Background music is a random mix of indie folk guitar stuff. I am not annoyed, which is 45% of what I'm asking for in most coffee shops. For those who are looking for a coffee shop that stays open after 3 pm on the weekends, this is your spot because they close at 7 pm. Lots of things that I like in a coffee shop. I'd be happy to come back and try another drink! Bonus: there is a spacious picturesque park with a lake is a couple blocks down from the coffee shop. This would be a great date or hanging out spot - get coffee from Kavé and then go walk around and sit on a bench.

Went to this place solely for the coffee flights and they unfortunately don't do them in the…read morewinter! Got a chai latte instead, it was fine but nothing noteworthy. They did have a good menu that wasn't over priced and a good variety of bagels/cream cheeses. Ample seating for all sizes of parties. There's not much else around here, so wouldn't go out of my way to go here. But if you're driving by, may as well stop.