West Fest happens to be my favorite fest in Chicago. It is one of the smaller festivals with DJ's on the East Stage and Bands on the West Stage of Chicago Avenue. People who attend this fest seem to be all inclusive and not afraid to express themselves. Nice selection of retail and food vendors. The crowd, food, and music keep me coming back every year. read more

West Fest - Mexican Market - Local Flavor Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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One of my favorite fests! It's not huge. Between Damon & Wood on Chicago ave. 2 stages at either end. One has house music DJ's. Such a great vibe & people watching. The other end (Damon) is bands. They always have great ones. Model/Actress was so good. Good amount of food vendors. Lao peng You is great with their noodle dishes. Happy Lobster, Tola, classic corn dogs too. I miss the polish vendors with the classic polish plates. They haven't been here in a few years. Lots for kids & dogs too. Chicago T-shirt's, handmade jewelry. Fun to shop & grab a drink at the beer tent. read more

This year was my first time at west fest. I had an amazing time hanging with friends, listening to house music and perusing the vendors. I'll definitely be back. read more

Just down the block from my best friend's place, we decided to pop in this year for a lookski. To me, it's a pretty standard fest in the city. More seating is needed, saw some people shooting up, saw a few people passed out in doorways...at 2pm on Saturday. They have the regular 'donation' for entrance but it's only $5 which is totally manageable and they tell you exactly where 20% of it is going. The highlight for me as a beer chick, was Forbidden Root handing out some samples. Usually I'm stuck with crap beer at fests so that was a nice touch. We actually ended up going to Forbidden Root after the fest for drinks - they inspired us! Music was okay when we were there but it was just getting so crowded with nowhere to sit/go, we ended up rolling out. I'm sure I'll go again next year as my friend lives so close but call me Shania Twain - that don't impress me much. read more

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A truly local home fest! There is a lineup of bands all through afternoon to late evening, good music to be heard from a variety of local bands. You will see a lot of booths by local artists and artisans, some have very good collection of jewelry and clothes. Did not see much variety in food and drinks which was kinda disappointing. Nevertheless, it was a good event with lots of great vibes over good music and great crowd. read more

Reading about West Fest, it sounds like it has adapted in its 15 or so years of festing, as the neighborhood of West Town/East Ukranian Village has changed dramatically in that time. I can't believe this year was my first year attending! It won't be my last. West Fest takes place on Chicago Avenue, between Damen and Wood. It features bands chosen by Empty Bottle Presents, and lots of DJs! This year's entertainment featured headliners Tortoise and Derrick Carter (among others). I liked that West Fest wasn't like all the other fests, booking crappy annoying cover bands that draw the douchebags and trixies. Seemingly the location, good music and DJs, also drew an interesting crowd- even slightly different than Do Division. There were some hip and edgy vendors here (think Renegade), but I wouldn't mind seeing mo' better beer selections, and the same for food. Although my Bison chipotle sausage by Frontier was awesome. read more

West Fest is the definition of Chicago street fests. This is the icing on the cake. On the east stage, you have true CHICAGO house DJ sets all weekend, and on the west stage, you have a variety of local acts, and well known Chicago acts. In the middle of it all, you have many local restaurants and food trucks serving up their best flavor. Although other fests try and imitate, you can never duplicate the originality of WFest. read more

If there is one street festival you attend, West Fest is the only one that matters in my book. Given all of the festivals with booths, beer, grilled food, and live music, there is only one fest that will get me to go without fail. Last year was a different story, I sprained my ankle so badly I couldn't even walk and missed the greatest street festival in all of Chicago. Taste of Chicago? Try using your cell phone there. The clustermuck of the larger street fests renders street fest season to be a waste in most cases. West Fest has a lot going on - vintage shops, arts and crafts, random food. Frankly, at West Fest I barely bother eating anything, I usually load up on the beer (this year provided by Small Bar) and enjoy the two stages of rock and DJs. The music at West Fest is truly what separates it from every other street festival that Chicago has to offer. I broke my non-attendance / indifference to the Chicago street fest season because my favorite DJs were at West Fest. John Simmons manning the decks is like watching a master at work. The music keeps people dancing and when the sun is down all bets are off. This year heavy rain fell down and it was a kind relief from the oppressive heat. Derrick Carter eventually headlined Sunday night and the whole street fest was bumpin' to the nth degree. No one cared and everyone danced without smashing anyone else's toes. Drunk people eventually danced on the stage resulting in Derrick Carter having to stop. Five minutes later, Derrick Carter was back at it ready to finish out an hour and a half long set of Chicago house. It was everything I wanted to do on my Sunday even though the day started off with some 1:00pm World Cup. Viva West Fest! read more

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I'm a big fan of Chicago Street Fest's but rarely have an opportunity to attend, along with that, the weather often keeps me away. I'm not going to attend when it is crazy hot or pouring rain. I remember one street fair in particular from many years ago. It was on Lincoln Avenue, a steamy downpour of rain had just ended, the sun came back out and Joe Ely stepped onto the stage. Suffice it to say that was a memorable experience, Wow! Back to West Fest, I was looking for a fest and this one looked good, $5 donation vs. the usual $10 and an emphasis on the music convinced me to try this one. Glad I did, it was a wonderful Saturday afternoon into evening, very good crowd. The free beer sample from "Forbidden Root" was very good, later I noticed they have a brewery located on this very block. Got another free sample from "Soule", chicken spaghetti this time, it was wonderful! Like "Forbidden Root", "Soule" is also located on this block. A nice food selection at this fest, would have liked to try "Beat Kitchen" they were cooking up a storm (see photos). But decided to try a Croatian sausage from "Cevapcici", this turned out to be a very good decision. Two nicely cooked sausages on a toasted pita, quite manageable to consume while walking around. Very good and nice value at $8. I caught the last two musical performances, Shame and Make-up, not sure how to classify them, they were similar and somewhat punkish I guess? Both bands brought this insane energy to the stage as well as to the crowd, I very much enjoyed both shows. Not the type of music I would typically listen to but it sure was fun to enjoy live! read more

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Oh god, easily one of the best fests of the summer. The house music stage gets packed every time but that's part of the attraction. Partying in the street with others, dancing to the grooves, and drinking is one of the best feelings on a warm, summer night. read more

West Fest - Local Flavor Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Somehow I could have had a better time, Things somehow soured in the end. But the festival is still a positive event for the community. read more

I came during the early afternoon - big mistake. It was just balls out hot and difficult to enjoy very much. Not even the Jamieson whiskey flavored softserve ice cream helped. But, five dollars?! It was incredible, though. The starter bands were okay but nothing special. People seemed more interested in finding some nice shade than listening to anything on stage. I mean go for it but has anyone ever bought anything from the street vendors selling T-shirts, jewelry etc.? And, why does it seem almost every T-shirt has a peace sign or Native American symbol? Hey, what's up with those owners not cooling off their dogs? There was a good and eclectic mix of people there. But, hands down, the prize goes to that older guy dressed in that black pinstripe suit, with black leather shoes, black shirt, dark tie and black fedora or something. He looked like he was pulled right out of a 1950s jazz club. He was cool. It was a good time but I will make sure to check out the better bands next time. read more

Four stars because I do plan on going next year! I was a bit disappointed with the kids fest area (or lack there of). I think my little one would have had more fun in the pup fest area!!! She was able to ride a pony and enjoy the tunes on the three music stages. This was my first year going and was pleasantly surprised by how many vendors were there. I was able to try some of Dark Matter's iced coffee (which was delish) and also tried a deep fried snickers! Parking wasn't too bad as we found a metered spot about 2 blocks west of the fest area. Hopefully next year they make a better impression on me with a respectable kids area. read more

One of my favorite fests, not because it is the fanciest or the best bands or the best stores. It is just genuine, a still mostly unspoiled area with local stores, bars and a mix of people that are down to earth. It isn't as crowded as the other similar fests without all the posers, and the crowd is lively later in the night. I used to live closeby and I just like the vibe of old-school Chicago (at least as old as my 13 years here) read more

Absolutely love this fest. Not overly crowded on a Sunday afternoon but that probably had a lot to do w. the heat which was insufferable initially but overcast skies came soon enuf and turned out to be just plain hot. The food vendors were just ok and there are clearly other street fests which do a better job on that front but that was sort of an afterthought to an all around good time and vibe here. The kids section was brill and my son and his BFFL (that's pronounced "Biffle" for those in Rio Linda;) took full advantage everything they had to offer....his mohawk sprayed in neon green (courtesy of Mitchell Academy) was one highlight but the pony rides remain the stalwart fav of his. Oh, and they made bruchetta at the kids cooking station which was actually really good. The band that played on the West end stage around 3ish was stellar....and well, Derrick Carter manning the decks on the East Stage, that pretty much speaks for itself and needs no validation from me. All said, this fest pretty much sums up the ultimate Summer afternoon (and into the night) spent in Chicago. read more

Definitely a good time but there were about as many people there as have written reviews about it..... Don't get me wrong, I absolutely despise overcrowded street festival but this, while fun, was more like a community block party than a street "festival". The band line up was decent. Djs were cool as well. Beer was surprisingly cheap for a fest - thanks Small Bar. I'll be back next year. With a group of folks, getting the party started. read more

The sun was beaming. Music blasting (good music too, A+). Hot people everywhere (and dancing, hooray)! Food looked amazeballs (though I didn't try their eats). Good drinks. One of the cleanest fests I've been to. Will def return next year! :) read more

In the summer of 2013 I attended many fests in the Chicago area: Blues fest, Wicker fest, Burger fest, Rib fest etc. However, West fest, among them all was the most fun!!!! The food, artists, and two stages(one of which plays house- oh chea!) are phenomenal. The atmosphere is that great, that you forget about everything else. Give it a try, you won't regret the fun. read more

PIT BULL FEST! No, no, no. Not the Calle Ocho Ai Papi Pitbull. The less scary variety. Let's play West Fest Bingo, shall we? 10 points for every pit bull. 10 points for every Soft Butch woman. 30 points for every Soft Butch woman walking a pit bull. 10 points for every awesome DJ at the BBP Stage. -20 points for every piece of shite band at that other stage. -10 points for Q101. Just in general. Is there anyone left listening to this station? Yes? Are you 15? Yes? Are you from Mont Clare? 10 points for cute toddlers dancing to house music. 10 points for good eats. Yahtzee. So I'm not really a street fest person truth be told but I had a nice time today and the lineup at the BBP stage was great. I would have stayed much longer were it not balls hot out today. Can't really fault West Fest for that one. read more

This is our third year visiting West Fest because it's a great street festival. It's held on Chicago Avenue within walking distance from Ukrainian Village. Two stages flank the festival, with one being live music, and the other hosting DJs. There is a kids area on one of the short streets in the middle. There is a good block of food trucks, so be sure to bring your appetite and $$. There were two beer booths, but all the choices were boring domestics, so I opted for sangria. Next year may I recommend bringing in some local brew flavors! read more

This is the only fest where I don't go for the food or the sponsors, I strictly go for the dancing. Yeah you heard me, dancing! DJ stage fun. This was my second year attending this and I pretty much danced in the street for four hours. It was better than a night club and even though it was hot as hell, I had a blast! read more

I was excited about this fest since I had heard such good things but I wasn't overly impressed. There were quite a few booths to check out but it was hard to walk around since they had music going at both stages and people were everywhere. They had the typical food options of any other fest and I wasn't familiar with any of the musical acts but they did appear to be quite popular. I was impressed with the type of beer they carried. We came at around 7:00 on the last day just to walk around. There wasn't a lot of shade and there weren't many places for people to sit down and relax. I'm not sure if I would come back again, I'll save my energy and cab fare for another fest. read more

Great house music and totally dog-friendly! It's probably my favorite fest in Chicago. I would give it 5-stars if there were more food and beer options. Square Roots in Lincoln Square has awesome craft beer and food, but the music wins at West Fest! read more

Definitely the BEST street fest in Chicago!

Came to hang out and had a fun time. It wasn't super packed and the music was good and people were friendly :) lots of fun booths to check out and there was no particular 'group' that this festival caters to which is nice. Overall it's a nice laid back festival to go to. read more

The music is the draw here. A bit small. Its ok by chicago street fest standards.

great, great fest. came on a sunday and stayed for a few hours. great vendors and great people. awesome food vendors, too. my fave food/street meet vendor, cevapcici stood fright in front of roots. the best street meet vendor, ever. anyway, smoke daddy, mana food bar, were some notables. maybe i'm a little biased, but i always feel like the fests in this area are the best. oh. there was a side street (that was part of the fest) we walked down, which was a bit scary. it's like we all of a sudden walked into the ghetto. do me a solid and avoid that street. read more

WestFest is the Best Fest in the city every summer. Great food and great DJ's. I always make it a point to go every year. Sundays are usually the best there as far as the DJs go. Highly recommended. read more