• Climate advocates say that the San Francisco Environment Department could be gutted under Mayor Daniel Lurie’s proposed plan for balancing the city’s budget. The plan would reduce the department’s city funding by 80%, and federal and state grant funding, which have historically accounted for a large portion of the department’s budget, have also dried up. [SF Examiner]
• The Tenderloin and Lower Nob Hill neighborhoods now have the highest number of Airbnbs in the city due to their proximity to downtown, beating out the Mission, which held the title for a decade. Perhaps this means heavy police presence in the area could potentially become a mainstay, as SFPD conducted at least one sweep Friday following the recent scuffle involving Mayor Daniel Lurie's security detail. [Chronicle/SFist]
• An Ebony Alert was issued for three teenagers, Kaliyah Jones, 17, London Scott, 15, and Xyer Thomas, 16, who were last seen in San Leandro, in the area of 163rd Avenue and East 14th Street, around 6:20 pm Friday, and it’s believed they’re on foot. [Bay Area News Group]
• Hundreds of thousands of spectators attended the Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco Saturday, and prior to the festivities, lion dancers made appearances across the city, including Green Apple Books and a protest against US involvement in the Middle East. [Chronicle]

• Two students at Berkeley High School tested positive for the mumps last month, and while there’s no evidence of an outbreak, public health officials sent out an alert about potential exposure at the school on February 19 and 20. [NBC Bay Area]
• Olympic figure skater and gold medalist Alysa Liu, who’s still getting accustomed to her newfound fame, says a fan followed her to her car at the airport when she returned to the Bay Area after the Olympics. [Chronicle]

Image: Leanne Maxwell/SFist

Local advocates are taking action to prevent the cancellation of SF’s popular long-running neighborhood street festival series, Sunday Streets, due to budget cuts, urging residents to sign their petition, contact local officials, and attend a rally at City Hall Monday.

As Streetsblog SF reports, the San Francisco Department of Public Health announced earlier in January the agency’s plan to cut funding for the city’s popular Sunday Streets program after a 17-year partnership in order to reallocate the funds toward covering department deficits. Per Streestsblog, the funds were originally appropriated for Sunday Streets by the SF Board of Supervisors through the health department's Equity & Promotion program.

Per the SF Bicycle Coalition, San Francisco is a healthier and more connected city because of Sunday Streets, which launched in 2008 and often serves neighborhoods with limited access to open space community events.

Livable City, the nonprofit that runs Sunday Streets, has created an advocacy toolkit for residents interested in pushing the city to keep the program going and find ways to stabilize it. The toolkit includes an email template for contacting officials, a petition urging SF Mayor Daniel Lurie and the Board of Supervisors to restore funding, and a guide to giving public comment at the Health Commission hearing, which is taking place  at 4 pm Monday in Room 408 at City Hall, preceded by a rally on the City Hall steps at 3 pm.

Per Streetsblog, the Department of Public Health is moving to cut $17 million in funding from community-based organizations, and Livable City receives a mere 1.3% of those funds for Sunday Streets — $215,758 per year.

Per Streetsblog, Sunday Streets is a hugely popular program that continually exceeds its metrics in providing the community with outlets for physical fitness and wellness each year, while offering a platform for more than 120 city and nonprofit groups to connect with the community through direct services, educational resources, and outreach.

Image: Sunday Streets, Excelsior; throgers/Flickr

Previous Sunday Streets coverage

With the start of May comes the kickoff of street festival and fair season, along with Bay to Breakers and plenty more fun to be had under the sun — when it decides to come out.

You've made it through another winter, San Francisco, and it's once again time to plan out your street fair season. Below, SFist brings you a comprehensive guide to the (mostly) free events and fairs happening just about every weekend between now and October.

MAY 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Downtown First Thursdays (Thursday, May 1)
It's a year-round thing now and will run through at least December, but the Civic Joy Fund's successful activation of Second Street on the first Thursday of every month helps us kick off festival season tonight. And the special guest performers tonight are electronic duo Snakehips, who'll be going on at 7:45 pm at the Howard Street main stage. Look for future Downtown First Thursdays on June 5, July 3, August 7, September 4, and October 2.

San Francisco International Arts Festival (Now Through May 11)
All across the Mission, in galleries, cafes, performance spaces and more, dozens of events are happening daily over the next 11 days, some ticketed and some free (see the full calendar here). The weekend of May 3-4 includes an OG Classic Mission Mural Walk tour with guides from Precita Eyes, jazz performances, and a tribute to Bob Marley. Festival passes can be found here.

Valencia LIVE! Night Market (Thursday, May 8)
The kickoff for this monthly night market, co-presented by the Civic Joy Fund, Into the Streets, and the Valencia Merchants Association, is on May 8, and it will recur on second Thursdays thereafter on Valencia between 16th and 19th streets. Expect happy hours and deals at local businesses, street vendors, and live music curated by Carnaval SF, Blondie's and The Chapel. RSVP here.

Castro Night Market (Friday, May 16)
The bustling Castro Night Market returns this month, closing down portions of 18th Street with vendors, a parking lot dance party, and more.

Bay to Breakers and Bay to Breakers Afterparties (Sunday, May 18)
Yes, there is an official afterparty at the Great Highway, and registered runners usually get a complimentary beer (but the beer usually runs out well before noon). There is also an unofficial gathering this year in the Panhandle, with the park being packed with wacky costumed revelers, and more-than-adequate porta-potties, unlike in years past.

SOMA Nights (Thursday, May 22)
SOMA's own night market of sorts happens the fourth Thursday of every month and presumably will go all summer long. It happens on Folsom between Seventh and Tenth streets, with most of the businesses around there participating, and there's a DJ dance party on Langton Street.

Carnaval (Saturday, May 24 and Sunday, May 25)
The annual, multicultural Mission District celebration Carnaval returns again Memorial Day Weekend, and the theme this year is AfroMundo: African Diaspora in the Americas. The two-day music festival on Harrison Street will feature headliners Wampi and Mexican Institute of Sound, both on Saturday at 5 pm at different stages. The Grand Parade is Sunday, with dozens of local music and dance troupes from around the world, parading from 24th & Bryant Street west to Mission Street then north to 15th Street, which generally goes from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and then more live music and dancing back at Harrison Street for the rest of the day.

Festa Italiana (Saturday, May 31 and Sunday, June 1)
The annual, free, family-friendly North Beach Italian festival, Festa Italiana, is not to be confused with the North Beach Festival that happens two weeks later. This festival promises "Non-stop live Italian music for two days!", a pizza dough-tossing contest with Tony Gemignani, wine tastings and more. Also, the 104th annual Statuto Race will be run on Sunday, commemorating the 1919 signing of the Italian Constitution (it wasn't run during WWII, so the 2021 race was the 100th).

Union Street Festival (Saturday, May 31 and Sunday, June 1)
They’re rolling out the putt-putt turf on Union Street both Saturday and Sunday on the last weekend of May, as the Union Street Festival promises live music, food, and vendors on Union Street from Octavia to Fillmore.

JUNE 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Juneteenth (Saturday, June 14)
Juneteenth in the Fillmore features three music stages, a kids fun zone, and food vendors. Performers for this year haven't been announced yet, but Yolanda Adams was there last year!

North Beach Festival (Saturday, June 14 and Sunday, June 15)
The North Beach Festival is always a fine time, with over 200 vendors, lots of good food, live music, and free performances by the acrobats of Dear San Francisco at Club Fugazi. There is also an interactive arts and crafts area, a kids area, and each day at 1pm is the Blessing of the Animals, so you can bring your pets.

Circus Bella at Yerba Buena Gardens (Friday, June 20 and Saturday, June 21)
The dynamic, SF-born troupe of acrobats, aerialists, jugglers, and clowns known as Circus Bella, along with their six-piece band, will descend on Yerba Buena Gardens for free performances on June 20 (at noon) and June 21 (at noon and 2:15 pm).

Off the Grid Fort Mason Night Market (June 27)
The monthly markets are back at Fort Mason Center, and now along with the food truck array they come with a whole artists' and makers' market as well with 100+ craft vendors curated by West Coast Craft. Also, there will be cocktails from Rye on the Road, and beer and wine for sale too.

Pride Weekend (June 27-29)
Pride weekend this year will include, as always, the kickoff with the Trans March on Friday evening, the organizers of Dyke March are trying to drum up a bigger showing this year, and there's a new, queer-centric, one-day music festival called SoSF on Pier 80 featuring Kehlani and Kim Petras (which is not free). The festival in Civic Center on Saturday and Sunday is free as always, and, of course, there's the parade, which will wind its way up Market Street most of Sunday morning and afternoon — though with a bit less of a corporate presence than previous years.

JULY 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Fillmore Jazz Festival (July 5-6)
The Fillmore Jazz Festival will be back over July 4th weekend, thanks to a generous donation from Chris Larsen's Avenue Greenlight organization — after an announcement last month that the festival was deeply in debt from last year and unable to afford the event this year. But the 12-block-long festival, the largest free jazz festival on the West Coast, will be happening over two days along Fillmore Street, extening up toward Pacific Heights. Grab a funnel cake, and go listen to some good music.

Three-Legged Dog Picnic (Sunday, July 13)
The beloved tri-pawed picnic for differently abled dogs returns to Little Marina Green this year, and maybe it could top last year's Guinness record-breaking gathering of 94 three-legged pups. As always, there will also be a Three-Legged Dog Tricks contest.

Castro Night Market (Friday, July 18)
The monthly market returns on 18th Street, with over two weeks to recover from your Pride hangovers.

Sunday Streets Mission (Sunday, July 20)
It's the only time of year that Valencia Street gets closed down all the way from Duboce Avenue to 26th Street, and you can expect plenty of fun in the (hopefully) sun with live music, activities and more.

Up Your Alley Fair (Sunday, July 27)
The gayer, arguably even sluttier counterpart to Folsom Street Fair returns, and that weekend in July can sometimes be quite warm, though sometimes gets fogged in. The Stud, The Eagle, Powerhouse and Oasis will be the places to be as the day winds down.

AUGUST 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

23rd Annual Jerry Day (Saturday, August 2)
This year’s Jerry Day coincides with the 60th anniversary of the Grateful Dead, and the renaming of Jerry Garcia Street in the Excelsior District will be part of the celebration. Meanwhile, Melvin Seals & JGB and Stu Allen & Mars Hotel will be jamming out all day at Jerry Garcia Amphitheater in McLaren Park. And like last year, this will be followed by a “Jerry Nite” pub crawl through the Excelsior, with bands performing at each venue. (McLaren Park, 11 am)

Nihonmachi Street Fair (Saturday, August 2nd and Sunday, August 3rd)
The Nihonmachi Street Fair returns to Japantown for its 51st year, showcasing AAPI nonprofit organizations, Asian artisans, Asian food vendors, and more. Highlights include live music, Doggie World, Children’s World, and the annual Sounds of Thunder Car Show. (11:00 am - 6:00 pm both days)

Outside Lands (August 8-10)
We now know that the Outside Lands 2025 lineup features headliners Doja Cat, Hozier, and Tyler, the Creator, with a very impressive undercard that boasts Doechii, Ludacris, and Vampire Weekend. Three-day passes are currently available, with single-day passes likely on sale soon. Or if you’re on more of a budget, the Outside Lands' Night Shows will give you a chance to see individual artists at a local indoor venue at a much lower price point.

San Francisco Pizza, Bagel, and Beer Festival (Saturday, August 16)

After the runaway success of the last two SF Pizza, Bagel, and Beer Festivals, 13-time World Pizza Champion and restaurateur Tony Gemignani brings the annual event back to North Beach, this year with 65 local pizzerias, bagelries, and breweries. The event’s Instagram clarifies that this year’s third annual event will be Saturday, August 16, and tickets are already on sale. (12-4 pm, $90, tickets here)

Stern Grove Big Picnic featuring Diana Ross (Saturday, August 16 and Sunday, August 17)
The Stern Grove Festival goes every Sunday for much of the summer, but this grand finale “Big Picnic Weekend” weekend has Bob Marley’s kids Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley and Stephen Marley on Saturday, and the incomparable Diana Ross performing Sunday. The shows are free, though this year they’re rolling out a lottery ticket system. By the way, the first lottery starts on May 4 for the June 15 California Honeydrops show, so you’ll want to keep an eye on this schedule if you’re interested in those Sleater-Kinney or Girl Talk shows coming up.  

Zach Bryan and Kings of Leon in Golden Gate Park (Friday, August 15)

That weekend after Outside Lands concert is technically called Golden Gate Park Concerts, and tickets are already on sale for this show with highly tattooed country star Zack Bryan, plus Kings of Leon, Turnpike Troubadours, and Noeline Hofmann. (3 pm)

Hungry Ghost Festival (Saturday, August 23)

Just as the Mission District celebrates Day of the Dead, Chinatown has been celebrating the Hungry Ghost Festival for now the third consecutive year, and streets will be packed with altars and interactive performances paying homage to those we've lost. The proceedings begin with the 14-foot-tall "Ghost King" parading through the streets, followed by live music and art activations throughout Chinatown. (4 pm, free)

Sunday Streets Bayview (Sunday, August 24)
While the 2025 Sunday Streets season runs throughout the summer and fall, Sunday Streets Bayview is on Sunday, August 24, bringing music, dance, and frivolity to some location in the Bayview/Dogpatch that has not yet been announced. (11 am - 4 pm)

Free Shakespeare in the Park, The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Saturday, August 30 - Monday, September 1)

The San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s California-fied interpretation of The Two Gentlemen of Verona also plays in Cupertino and Redwood City earlier in the summer, but comes to McLaren Park for Labor Day Weekend and the first weekend of September, and will also play at the Embarcadero’s Sue Bierman Park on September 13-14 and September 20 -21 (2 pm, Free)

SEPTEMBER 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Haight Street Fair (Sunday, September 7)
This year’s Main Stage performers have not yet been announced, but the Haight Street Fair has already announced its returning for its 46th year on Sunday, September 7, and they’ve also acknowledged they’ll have the traditional Haight Street Skate Jam at Belvedere Street, and a  Children’s Alley with the “San Francisco Rock Project Stage, Mobile Library & Jumpy House.” (11 am - 5:30 pm)

Duboce Park’s 125th Anniversary Celebration (Saturday, September 13)
The dog-gone fun at the off-leash destination Duboce Park has been going on for 125 years now, and the Friends of Duboce Park will celebrate with food trucks and historical displays, plus other activities like a dodgeball tournament, scavenger hunt, and of course the adorable pooches of Muttville. (11 am - 4 pm)

Flower Piano (September 12-21)
It's the ten-year anniversary of the beloved annual tradition of Flower Piano, in which more than a dozen pianos are scattered through the SF Botanical Garden for anyone to play — and with a bunch of scheduled performances as well — is returning for a full 10-day stint this September. (10 am to 6 pm daily)

Folsom Street Fair (Sunday, September 28)
The big daddy of all kink and fetish fairs, Folsom Street Fair, will be celebrating 42 years of bondage and perhaps a little scat play. The fair typically occupies all of Folsom between 8th and 12th streets, and runs from 11 am to 6 pm, but details for this year have not yet been released.

OCTOBER 2025 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass (Friday, October 3 - Sunday, October 5)
We can’t imagine eggs will really be only five cents at this year’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, but we do know it’s returning for the first weekend of October. The schedule generally starts dripping out in bits in August and September, so we’ll know the pickin’s around then.  

Castro Street Fair (Sunday, October 5)
"We get better with age!" declares the 51-year-old Castro Street Fair, which Harvey Milk first launched in 1974 to highlight gay-owned businesses in the neighborhood. The festival footprint grew a bit last fall to occupy part of 18th Street again, and the fair always includes a vendor marketplace down Castro Street, food vendors, and performance stages. (11 am to 6 pm)

SF Fleet Week (Friday, October 10 - Sunday, October 12)
Okay, so maybe there was a parachute accident that fractured a teen’s pelvis last year. Still, the Blue Angels and company will return, and the sonic booms will probably start Thursday afternoon and last through the weekend.

Bearrison Street Fair (Saturday, October 18)
The Bearrison Street Fair website does not say on what date this year’s street fair for gay bears and their admirers will be this year. But the fair’s vendor application is pretty clear that the event is returning for its fifth year on October 18, 2025. It usually spans about three blocks around 11th Street and Harrison, extending over to The Eagle Tavern on one side and Lone Star Saloon on the other. (12 pm - 6 pm)

Related: Castro Becomes SF’s Biggest Boozy 'Entertainment Zone’ Where Bars Can Sell To-Go Cocktails During Events [SFist]

Top image: Cheryl L. Guerrero via Hoodline

Jay Barmann also contributed to this list.

There are free, public street fairs and festivals in San Francisco pretty much every single weekend from now until well into October, and we’ve catalogued every single weekend’s mostly free-of-charge festivities for the next five months.

Your social calendar is booked solid every weekend for the next five months, you just might not realize it yet. It is now mid-May, and San Francisco is throwing a free public street fair or festival every weekend through mid-October. SFist has carefully sifted through the calendar, and there is a free and awesome outdoor festival somewhere in San Francisco most every weekend for the next 20 weekends in a row, in addition to big paid festivals and concerts like Outside Lands.

Below, we have a selection of festivals, many of which are free of charge to attend each weekend, though obviously some will ask for a “suggested donation” or attempt to hit you up for a contribution at the gate. Here are San Francisco street fairs, festivals, and gatherings for the next five months in a row.

MAY 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Sing-Along Selena in Dolores Park (Friday, May 17)

It’s this summer’s free movie night kick-off of the SF Parks Alliance’s outdoor movie night series, with a sing-along version of the 1997 Jennifer Lopez Selena biopic. The movies continue at various SF parks on several more Friday nights throughout the summer, with highlights including Bullitt at The Presidio (June 14), Labyrinth at Glen Park (July 12) and Barbie at the Ferry Building (Friday, August 2).

Bay to Breakers Afterparty in the Panhandle (Sunday, May 19)
Yes, there is an official afterparty at the Great Highway, and registered runners usually get a complimentary beer (but the beer usually runs out well before noon). There is also an unofficial gathering at the Panhandle, with the park being packed with wacky costumed revelers, and more than adequate porta-potties, unlike in years past.

Carnaval (Saturday May 25 & Sunday May 26)
The annual, multicultural Mission District celebration Carnaval returns again Memorial Day Weekend. There's a two-day music festival on Harrison Street with Saturday’s big headliners Noel Torres and Pirulo Y La Tribu. The Grand Parade is Sunday, with dozens of local music and dance troupes from around the world, parading from 24th & Bryant Street west to Mission Street then north to 15th Street, which generally goes from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the 28th, and then more live music and dancing back at Harrison Street for the rest of the day.

JUNE 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Union Street Festival (Saturday and Sunday, June 1-2)
They’re rolling out the putt-putt turf on Union Street both Saturday and Sunday on the first weekend in June, as the Union Street Festival promises live music, food, and vendors on Union Street from Octavia to Fillmore.

Downtown First Thursday (Thursday, June 6)
It will be the second-ever iteration of the brand new Downtown First Thursday , a mini street fair on Second Street between Market and Howard streets, plus along the adjacent alleyways on Jessie, Minna, and Natoma streets.  The 5-10 pm event also features performances curated by The Midway, Another Planet Entertainment, Noise Pop, KALW, OASIS Nightclub and Cabaret, Grace Towers, A Little x, and Yerba Buena Gardens Festival.

Juneteenth (Saturday June 15)
Fillmore Street gets shut down for Juneteenth every year, and the party extends through through the neighborhood between Geary Boulevard and Fulton Street. The Juneteenth event features carnival rides, live music, a car show, a hair and fashion show, and retail and food vendors from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

North Beach Festival (June 15-16)
It’s the 70th anniversary North Beach Festival on Saturday, June 15 and Sunday, June 16, at Columbus and Grant avenues. It will feature beer gardens, wine gardens, Italian art, spoken word, plenty of food, and the annual Blessing of the Animals. It runs both days from 11 am to 7 pm.

Three-Legged Dog Picnic (Sunday, June 23)
This year’s annual Tri-Pawed Picnic is going for the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of three-legged dogs ever in one place, and as such, will be moving to the larger park of Little Marina Green, with the three-legged pups holding court from 11 am to 2 pm.

Pride Weekend (June 28-30)
SF Pride returns in full for 2024, with the annual Trans March on Friday, Dyke March on Saturday with the huge gathering in Dolores Park, and a Pride Parade up Market Street Sunday, and Billy Porter headlining the Main Stage Sunday afternoon.

JULY 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Fillmore Jazz Festival (July 6-7)
After the fireworks settle (sort of) on your four-day July 4 weekend, the Fillmore Jazz Festival celebrates the largely gone but not forgotten jazz heritage of the “Harlem of the West.” This multi-block event extends along Fillmore Street, from Jackson to Eddy streets, with seven venues and a bunch of vendor booths on Saturday July 6 and Sunday, 7, 2024. This year's fest will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both days.

SF Free Folk Festival (July 13)
This free gathering of folk musicians and fans is the 48th annual edition on Saturday, July 13, honoring SF's long tradition of folk music fandom. This fest is at the Golden Gate Park Music Concourse Bandshell. Look for further details and a schedule here, as they become available.

Sunday Streets Excelsior (July 21)
While the 2024 Sunday Streets season runs throughout the summer and fall, Sunday Streets Excelsior is on Sunday, July 21, bringing music, dance, and frivolity to Mission Street between Theresa and Avalon Streets to Geneva Avenue, from 11 am-4 pm.

Up Your Alley Fair (Sunday, July 28)
The Dore Alley Fair, otherwise known as Up Your Alley, returns in all its dirty, very gay sluttiness in SoMa — and this fair is well known to be more gay and male than, say, the more inclusive Folsom Street Fair, though all are welcome. The fair occupies a smaller footprint along Dore Alley and Folsom Street, usually just including stages between 9th and 11th streets.

AUGUST 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

50th Annual Nihonmachi Street Fair (Saturday and Sunday, August 3-4)
The Nihonmachi Street Fair returns for a big milestone in Japantown this year, showcasing AAPI nonprofit organizations, Asian artisans, Asian food vendors, and more. Highlights include live music, Doggie World, Children’s World, and the annual Sounds of Thunder Car Show, which this year will span both days. (11:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. both days)

22nd Annual Jerry Day (August 3)
In honor of Jerry Garcia’s 82nd heavenly birthday, there will once again be a Jerry Day celebration at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater in McLaren Park. Like last year, this will likely be followed by a “Jerry Nite” pub crawl through the Excelsior, with bands performing at each venue. (McLaren Park, 11 am)

Outside Lands (Friday, August 9 to Sunday, August 11)
Three-day tickets are still on sale for this year’s star-studded Outside Lands, with single-day tickets likely going on sale soon. Headliners include Grace Jones, The Postal Service, Kaytranada, The Killers, and Tyler, the Creator. Grammy Award winner for Best New Artist Victoria Monet will be there, so will Chappell Roan, and so will Post Malone doing a special country music set. Also, the SoMa dance tent is becoming the SoMa dance area this year and is all outdoors, because everybody always wants to dance.

‘King of the Streets’ Lowrider Fest (Saturday, August 17)
The Lowrider Council’s annual convention of souped-up lowriders and car-hopping contest is happening this year at the Palace of Fine Arts — but it is usually followed by a cruise of the Mission District by a parade of lowriders around 5 pm. (3601 Lyon Street, starting at 9 am)

System of a Down and Deftones in Golden Gate Park (August 17)
This year’s first-of-its-kind, weekend-after-Outside Lands concert on the Polo Field in Golden Gate Park is an alt-metal fest featuring System of a Down and the Sacramento-born Deftones, along with The Mars Volta, Viagra Boys, and VOWWS. The show sold out in 90 minutes when tickets went on sale in April, but you’ll likely be able to score some on the secondary market.

Stern Grove Festival Big Picnic Weekend (August 24-25)
For the first time, the Stern Grove Festival is doing two days of Big Picnic fundraisers, with two different headliners. On Saturday, August 24, it will be Poolside — who hail originally from SF. And on August 25, it’s the legendary Chaka Khan. Assuming you’re not spending thousands to reserve a picnic table, you’ll need to set a reminder to snag free tickets at 2 pm on July 25.

Civic Center Carnival?
Last year, the city put on a four-day carnival, with rides and funnel cakes and such, in Civic Center the last weekend of August. This hasn’t yet been announced for 2024, but keep an eye out.

SEPTEMBER 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

SF Shakespeare Festival Does The Tempest (August 31 through September 8)
Back at Jerry Garcia Amphitheater in McLaren Park this Labor Day weekend, and the weekend after, will be the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival doing a new production of The Tempest. Admission, as always is free.

Flower Piano (September 13 to September 22)
The beloved annual tradition of Flower Piano, in which a dozen pianos are scattered through the SF Botanical Garden for anyone to play — and with a bunch of scheduled performances as well — is returning for a full 10-day stint this September, after being truncated to just one long weekend last year. (10 am to 6 pm daily)

Portola Festival (September 28-29)
The lineup just dropped for this electronic music extravaganza on Pier 80, and tickets go on sale Thursday, May 16 for everyone who’s bought tickets before (it’s a presale), and May 17 for everyone else. This year’s headliners include Disclosure, Rufus Du Sol, M.I.A., Fisher, Justice, Jamie XX, and Jessie Ware.

Folsom Street Fair (Sunday, September 29)
The big daddy of all kink and fetish fairs, Folsom Street Fair, will be celebrating 41 years of bondage and piss play this year. The Fair typically occupies all of Folsom between 8th and 12th streets, and runs from 11 am to 6 pm, but details for this year have not yet been released.

OCTOBER 2024 SF STREET FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass (October 4-6)
Everyone’s favorite bluegrass-and-then-some free music festival in Golden Gate Park will return without the rude noise pollution of the Fleet Week Air Show, which is happening the following weekend this year. The lineup for Hardly Strictly will start getting teased in August.

Castro Street Fair (Sunday, October 6)
This will be the 50th anniversary of the Castro Street Fair, which Harvey Milk first launched in 1974 to highlight gay-owned businesses in the neighborhood. The festival footprint grew a bit last fall to occupy part of 18th Street again, and the fair always includes a vendor marketplace down Castro Street, food vendors, and performance stages. (11 am to 6 pm)

Fleet Week Air Show (October 11-13)
Expect some loud zooming military jets starting around October 9 or 10 as the U.S. Navy Blue Angels return for their performative flights over SF, and the weekend of air shows — which include the only appearance at an air show in the U.S. by a commercial jet, a Boeing 777 operated by United that will swoop over the Bay.

Bearrison Street Fair (October 19)
This newish street fair for gay bears and their admirers, which began in 2021, is back for its fourth big, hairy outing this year. Co-sponsored by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and Bears of San Francisco, the event spans about three blocks around 11th Street and Harrison, extending over to The Eagle Tavern on one side and Lone Star Saloon on the other. (noon to 6 pm)

15,000 people are marked as ‘Interested’ on Facebook, with about 850 people marked as ‘Going,’ as the Ocean Beach Music + Art Festival gets ready to rock the Outer Sunset.

Our litany of San Francisco street fairs is winding into its final month, with Folsom Street Fair, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and the Castro Street Fair still on the horizon. A lesser-known but cult-hit fair called the Ocean Beach Music + Arts Festival has not yet updated its website with a 2019 lineup, but The Bay Bridged has obtained and published the official flyer for the event — which we now know is scheduled for Saturday, October 12 — to provide some way-out-west respite from the Fleet Week Blue Angels flying overhead that weekend.

Held at Noriega Street and 45th Avenue, the music acts listed for this year’s Ocean Beach Music + Arts Festival include LA GENTE SF, The Inciters, Soul Ska, Sandy's, and a handful of other live acts and DJs. BayBridged’s report mentions beer and wine tents, along with craft vendors, food trucks, and a pumpkin patch.

This free and family-friendly festival has had a few names over the years, and this appears to be its ninth iteration. Organized by the Outer Noriega Merchants Association, it has gone by the name Noriega Street Block Party (2011), Noriega Street Fair (2012), Outer Noriega Street Fair (2013) before adopting the current name Ocean Beach Music + Arts Festival in 2014.

The festival has attracted more than 15,000 ‘Interested’ responses on Facebook in just three days, so the event clearly some citywide pull. If you’re a food or craft vendor, that invite also has contact info so you can hawk your awesome things.

Related: All-You-Can-Eat Taco Fest In San Jose Runs Out Of Tacos, Chaos Ensues [SFist]

Image: obmusicfestival.com

The big annual food festival known as Eat Drink SF is now in its 11th year, and this time around it's switching up the venue and paring down to one day — Saturday, August 24.

The festival began a decade ago in Union Square as SF Chefs Food Wine, and this 11th iteration is moving out of Fort Mason, where it's spent the last few years, to The Midway in Dogpatch. Unlike the majority of food festivals out there — including the much ballyhoo'd Pebble Beach Food & Wine in April — Eat Drink SF has always been heavily focused on the food, and SF's world-class array of restaurants. (Pebble Beach, in particular, feels heavily weighted toward the wine, and to chichi wine tasting events.) This year will feature day and night sessions of the Grand Tasting on August 24, with different chefs and bites at each — about 20 per session. And while there will be some cooking demos, the festival no longer includes several days of breakout events as it once did.

So, think of it as a very elaborate cocktail party, with enough food to make dinner out of it, and plenty of booze of every kind at the ready.

The Saturday afternoon tasting already sold out of general-admission tickets, but VIP is still available, and both GA and VIP are still available for Saturday evening (which runs from 7:45 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.).

There's a presenting sponsor this year, JetBlue, and some extras being offered in the VIP lounge including caviar, and a special cigar lounge sponsored by Oliva Cigar. Also, a special pizza oven is bring brought in, and there's going to be a Backyard Bites and Bourbon area with food from Hollow Cow and a Bulleit-sponsored installation involving "3D printed cocktails" (whatever those are!).

The Saturday evening roster of participating restaurants includes Ayala, M.Y. China, Absinthe, Barcino, Bellota, Comstock Saloon, Serpentine, Mission Bowling Club, Rambler, and the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay. Saturday's VIP lounge includes Alexander’s Steak House, Ozumo Santana Row, PABU & The Ramen Bar, Perbacco, and Spruce. (See the full list here.)

And note that in addition to the food, there is always an array of interesting cocktails for the taking, and plenty of wine and beer being poured — participating brands include Wines of Germany, Magnolia Brewing Co., Guinness, Lillet, The Botanist gin, Don Julio, and Ketel One.

GA tickets for Saturday evening are $129, with VIP going for $229.

Photo: Andrew Herrold - Gamma Nine // g9 Event Photography

As is tradition, organizers of this year's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival have begun teasing out the lineup with a mystery medley, and so we now know who a few of the performers will be.

"See if you can guess without using Shazam/Soundhound/etc!" the organizers say.

Welp, we did it for you. The medley includes the song "Father Mountain," a collaboration between Calexico and Iron & Wine — so it's unclear if they'll be performing together or separately, or both — as well as songs by Bettye LaVette, Steve Earle & the Dukes, The Milk Carton Kids, Margo Price, The Meat Puppets, Jackie Greene, Hayes Carll, and The Waterboys.

This is just the first batch. More medleys will be popping up on the Hardly Strictly site in the next couple weeks until the full and final lineup announcement arrives. And there are likely to be some more big names. (Last year's fest featured

The free three-day music festival happens in almost the same footprint of space in Golden Gate Park as Outside Lands, just two months later. This year's Hardly Strictly will be October 4 to 6, and as usual, it will likely be quite sunny and crowded.

Below, a few selections for you to check out from the lineup as we know it so far.

Beware promises of things that sound too good to be true! An apparently poorly organized taco and beer festival in the South Bay on Saturday promised unlimited tacos and beer tastings, but for the second time (!) vendors ran out of food and beer and it was just a whole lot of line-standing.

The Bay Area Taco and Beer Festival just happened at San Jose's Municipal Stadium on Saturday, and for the second time in nine months, festival-goers left angry and unsatisfied. Taco vendors ran out of food, in some cases within 90 minutes, and breweries ran out of beer an hour before the festival was supposed to end. The fiasco prompted a litany of complaints on Reddit, refunds from Eventbrite, and a dreaded "7 On Your Side" investigation by ABC 7.

One attendee, Joanne Kindel, tells ABC 7 that she was at the fest with friends celebrating her birthday, and it turned out to be a dismal celebration waiting in line for one free taco that she never got — she says that word spread in the line she was in that the vendor began charging $2.50 per taco, and then ran out before she got to the front.

Other attendees complain on Reddit about breweries that were letting people fill multiple cups for friends in other lines, and then having the kegs run dry before others in line got a taste.

"Such a terrible event!!" writes Redditor ksaesee. "Basically a scam and rip off! $45 ticket got us one taco each and a few refills of our tiny cup." This person adds, "My friend paid $78 cus he bought it last minute before it was sold out... Plus they sent out an email giving 50% discount for the next event; bbq and beer fest. That will be a heck no for me."

ABC 7 tried to track down promoter Brandon Mozley of Live Free Events to no avail. But it's true that this outfit appears to be organizing another, similar beer-and-food fest at the same San Jose venue in November called the Bay Area BBQ & Beer Fest on November 2, and Eventbrite is still offering tickets despite having to issue refunds for this one, per ABC 7.

Eventbrite issued a statement saying, "In the rare instance that an event significantly under-delivers on what was advertised, we work with all parties to reach a fair outcome. In this case, we've been working with the organizer to issue refunds to attendees who have requested them."

The Reddit thread for the event suggests that the organizers have stopped issuing refunds, though that is not confirmed.

And this apparently isn't such a "rare instance"! A quick search for the November iteration of the Bay Area Taco & Beer Fest at the same venue yields a Yelp page with a litany of the same exact complaints.

"This was a terrible event," wrote Daniel P. last November. "Lines [were] extremely too long and not organized at all.  It was okay for beer samples but the event advertised unlimited tacos and closer to the end some of the vendors started charging." Similarly, Sally D. writes, "This event was not worth the $40. Like every[one] said, the line is ridiculous — we were able to get 3 tacos and waited in line for a total of almost 3 hours."

Not all festivals are created equal, to be sure, but certainly sometime in this century people will figure out that festivals are a numbers game that nearly always benefit the promoters more than they do the attendees — and there will almost always be ridiculous lines. The San Francisco Beer Week opening gala, which is one of the better organized of the region's festivals, nonetheless involves a lot of line-standing for the most popular breweries — and if you don't buy tickets for the VIP hour, you will be standing in a lot of lines for a lot of beers, albeit usually short ones of less than 10 minutes. Food is a little easier to come by at Outside Lands with a whole bevy of vendors in several locations, but it's still for a price and not without big lines at prime meal times and in between big sets.

And anything promising all-you-can-eat tacos had better come with some kind of disclaimer — it's fairly clear that the taco vendors in this fest had a cap for how many "free" tacos they'd been paid for by the promoters, and once that cap was reached they had to start charging or else lose money.

Stay tuned for more if and when that BBQ fest occurs.

Related: How The VIP Experiences Compare At BottleRock, Clusterfest, and Outside Lands

Fillmore Street is bopping and grooving this weekend with the sounds of the Fillmore Jazz Festival — a two-day affair with multiple stages between Eddy and Jackson Streets.

The festival is in its 36th year, celebrating the now mostly absent, historic jazz heritage of the Fillmore District. While many in the neighborhood bore witness to the wounds incurred by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency four and five decades ago — which sent thousands of residents packing and ultimately killed off the jazz culture that had been nurtured in the neighborhood since early in the last century — this annual festival serves as a reminder and a musical touchstone for the community.

Performances on Saturday, July 6 continue from 10:30 a.m. until 6 p.m., and include the David Parker Sextet, Paula West, and Kim Nalley. Sunday, the schedule is the same, but with some different performers including the Element Brass Band, and the Marcus Shelby Orchestra featuring Tiffany Austin.

The dozen blocks of Fillmore Street are also lined with beer gardens and multiple food and craft vendors, and there's a kids' play area as well. And in addition to the three main stages, performers will set up on the sidewalk at different points along the street as well.

The festival draws around 100,000 people annually.

Photo: Fillmore Jazz Fest/Facebook

A new multi-disciplinary, eclectic new cultural festival kicks off tonight at the Exploratorium, but there are multiple events happening at venues across the city all weekend.

It's called MAX — short for Media Art Xploration — and it's the brainchild of Harvard professor and theater director Kay Matschullat. She tells the Chronicle's Datebook that the fest grew out of an interdisciplinary piece she was working on about the 1969 moon landing, which involved both engineers and performers.

As Matschullat says in a statement, "At this time of speed-of-light scientific innovation, we thought it time to bring together artists, humanists, scientists and artist-engineers to engage the public and ignite the imagination around these advances, and in doing so, take some to time to ask the question: ‘What kind of new Space Age is this?’"

She adds, "There is no better city for such a meeting of the minds and the machines than San Francisco."

The festival begins with the Exploratorium's After Dark program this evening, beginning with a playful talk and movie montage led by local artist and writer Sarah Hotchkiss, titled Space Travel Sci-Fi Style. (The program will be repeated Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m.)

Also being performed at the Exploratorium this evening is a human-robot dance collaboration called “Pas de Deux,” created by roboticist Alexander Reben and dancer-choreographer Alice Sheppard. Sheppard's movements in the piece are tracked by some software created by Reben, and then translated into paintbrush and pen marks by a robotic arm.

Friday afternoon at the California Academy of Sciences there's an "Outta This World Poetry Slam," outside in the Piazza.

Friday night at the Exploratorium, the Grammy Award-winning Kronos Quartet will be performing its 2017 eclipse-inspired piece "233rd Day, before and after Totality." And at 10 p.m. at Z Space, there's an "extraterrestrial" space-themed drag show.

On Saturday, there's an educational program in the Academy of Sciences called "Star Stories," featuring interactive exhibits and presentations including photomurals created by Lakota youth to express their connection to the cosmos.

Also Saturday there's a jazz cabaret at Z Space called "The Outer Space," along with a closing night party.

There are individual event tickets as well as a weekend Max Pass you can purchase here. The individual events range in price (some are free), and the Max Pass is $99.

Top Image: Christine Zuercher

It's a first-of-its-kind three-day comedy festival in San Francisco, and we've been talking about it for months now, but it's now here, starting Friday, June 2: Colossal Clusterfest. A lot of Bay Area locals probably haven't figured out that this is even happening yet unless they're die-hard Comedy Central or Broad City fans and follow them on Insta or whatever — or unless they're regular readers of SFist, ahem. And because this is a new festival in its first, unproven year, there are still tickets available. But today I got a brief preview of the festival grounds in SF's Civic Center Plaza, which includes all of Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, and for comedy fans this should be a pretty exciting thing.

The festival, which if all goes well could be an annual thing in San Francisco, is being put on by Comedy Central, who partnered with Bonaroo producer Superfly and Another Planet Entertainment. Kent Alterman, president of Comedy Central says, "We've been a part of a lot of festivals, and we've curated stages at festivals like Bonaroo, but this is the first time that there's been a truly fan-centric, comedy-driven festival on this scale." Alterman says that multiple cities were discussed in the early planning stages of Clusterfest, but "quickly San Francisco became the obvious choice, not just because comedians love to perform here and we've filmed a bunch of specials here because of that, but also because of this city's great history of nurturing comic talent."

The festival has a music component as well — check out the full daily schedules here — with acts like Ice Cube, Chromeo, and Tegan & Sara being the biggest. But primarily the festivals five stages will feature three nights and two days of wall to wall stand-up and comedy-driven programming, with headliners Kevin Hart (Friday), Bill Burr (Saturday), and Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld), and other Comedy Central celebs including the ladies of Broad City doing a live reading of Wayne's World with help from the likes of Tig Notaro.

There are some highly Instagrammable "activations" now being built in Civic Center as well, including the South Park Experience, highlighting 14 iconic episodes of the show (including a human-sized jar of member berries)...

... and an exact replica of Jerry's apartment from Seinfeld, built with the help of Warner Brothers' prop archive, including a Festivus pole where grievances will be aired, and a vintage Apple 2e ...

Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

... and Paddy's Pub from It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, which will serve as a full-service bar and restaurant inside of Bill Graham, in addition to having activities on the stage all weekend like It's Always Sunny trivia, and, of course, Flip-adelphia. They've also got TV screens in there where they'll be showing the Warriors' game on Sunday.

Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Charlie Work! Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Upstairs in Bill Graham in Room 415 — where Robin Williams famously performed during a Grateful Dead show once — Comedy Central is hosting an intimate, small-scale stage for up-and-coming comic talent. There's also a smaller stage they're calling the Larkin Comedy Club where podcast talent from 2 Dope Queens and How Did This Get Made? will be on stage.

In between, attendees will be treated to food from local vendors, a wine tent featuring mostly Napa Valley wines (and Claypool Cellars champagne being served out of the back of a vintage 1969 El Camino), as well as themed food booths including replicas of the Soup Nazi (the actor who played him will actually be serving soup) and Tom's Restaurant from Seinfeld, and tongue-in-cheek versions of South Park restaurants like Casa Bonita (with actual Mexican food from Tacolicious), and Whistlin' Willy's pizzeria/arcade.

Tom's Restaurant replica, and the Soup Nazi's soup shop. Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

The main stage. Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Jonathan Mayer of Superfly explains that the name, Colossal Clusterfest, was meant to be fun and of course call to mind the "clusterf***" of different kinds of entertainment — but hopefully, for the crowds attending, it won't be a cluster of an experience. "There were a lot of names we rejected," he says.

They still can't say how many people will be in attendance — the main stage is set up with plenty of room to spread out on Civic Center Plaza, and Bill Graham, with seating set up on the main floor, can hold 6,000 at a time. But suffice it to say that word's going to get around about this thing if it hasn't already.

Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist

Related: Ilana & Abbi From 'Broad City' Will Play Wayne & Garth In 'Wayne's World' Dramatic Reading In SF

Comedy Central has a willing guinea pig in San Francisco for its big foray into the festival game with Colossal Clusterfest here on June 2-4. The 30,000 ticket, 50 comedian festival organized with partners Another Planet and Superfly, the groups behind Outside Lands and Bonnaroo wasannounced in November, and a lineup including Jerry Seinfeld, Sarah Silverman, Bob Odenkirk, Hannibal Buress, and Broad City stars Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer, was released in late February.

The three-day festival has since added more acts including TJ Miller of Silicon Valley fame, and promises to be a colossus of comedy, with five stages set up in Civic Center including the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. The laughs also comes at the not insubstantial price tag of $250 for a full festival pass.

Today, though, Clusterfest put out its daily lineups, so if its just musical acts like Chromeo and a live reading of Wayne's World by Jacobson and Glazer you're after, you now know to buy a Saturday ticket. You've got a day to suss out the lineup — day tickets go on sale tomorrow, Wednesday April 19, at 10 a.m, for $99. The whole lineup, from Ice Cube to Fred Armisen to Chris Hardwick, is here.

Previously: New Comedy Central 'Clusterfest' Brings Jerry Seinfeld, Kevin Hart, Broad City, And More To Civic Center In June

Presidential hopeful cum recently-axed Macy's clothing "designer"/reality television star Donald Trump has been cordially invited to a huge San Francisco celebration that kicks off next week. But will the billionaire be interested in an event intended to showcase "the best performing arts, culture and ideas from Mexico"?

As you know because you have access to the internet, Trump made headlines earlier this month after releasing a three page, 881 word statement containing remarks like "tremendous infectious disease is pouring across the border. The United States has become a dumping ground for Mexico and, in fact, for many other parts of the world."

Trump turned his focus to San Francisco just a few days after that, when a man who'd been deported from the US to Mexico five times shot and killed Kate Steinle at Pier 14. In a statement, Trump said "This senseless and totally preventable act of violence committed by an illegal immigrant is yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately."

SF Mayor Ed Lee's office shot back at the real estate magnate swiftly, saying "A woman's life was tragically taken away, and right now Mayor Lee is focused on understanding the circumstances and facts around this tragedy and this man's release...Mr. Trump's opportunism and offensive anti-immigrant rhetoric have nothing to contribute to that effort."

However, Andrés Isaac Roemer Slomianski, Mexico's consul general in San Francisco, thinks his event, the MEX I AM festival, might have something to contribute to Trump.

No, not money — though, with a reported personal fortune of over $10 billion, it's not like Trump needs any more cash for his campaign. Roemer (who is also "a political analyst, attorney, economist, think tank founder, author of 16 books and two award-winning plays," per a 2014 report from the Chron) says that he believes attendance at the fest will turn Trump's perception of the Mexican people around.

According to the MEX I AM website, the fest will feature "some of the best performers from various genres and traditions, as well as presentations from some of the most influential Mexicans in their fields of expertise around the world."

Trump, Roemer told ABC7, is "more than invited" to the event, which runs from July 19-16.

(And hey, if Trump came, maybe he could finally contact Kate Steinle's family, too?)

While SFist's attempts to reach any Trump campaign spokespeople to see if Trump would accept the invite to the fest were unsuccessful, Roemer sounds so hopeful that we almost don't want to burst his bubble.

"We are just bringing a sample of creativity, bringing the best of Mexico which is its people, its flavors, its colors, all around the world," Roemer says.

"I would love that he comes."

Related: Scott Wiener: 'Fox News Is A Fringe Propaganda Machine'

This post is a collaboration between Expedia and Gothamist staff.

San Francisco is a meeting ground for music, food, ethnic and cultural background, you name it. It only makes sense we should have such a great variety of festivals every year, all focused on getting everything out of the community we're lucky to have.

Each event isn't just about its subject matter, either; it's about seeing the city, it's about the neighborhood it's held in, the people who attend, what its proceeds go to. In short, it's about San Francisco.

For a look at what's coming up, we've partnered up with travel experts Expedia for a rundown of some can't-miss Bay Area festivals in 2015. Whether you're a native or a traveler looking to round out your plans, check it out!

via Facebook.

Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival, April 11-12 & 18-19. Every year, 200,000 people come to this festival in one of the biggest celebrations of Asian culture on the West Coast. It's unsurprising the event's gotten so big in its 48 years; San Francisco has a long, rich history of Japanese culture. Come to Japantown itself and celebrate with food, music, martial arts displays, the Queen Program, and of course, the Grand Parade. Post Street, Japantown.

via Facebook.

San Francisco International Beer Festival, May 9. "Good beer and good times for a great cause, since 1984." This massive beer festival is produced entirely by the parents of students at the Telegraph Hill Cooperative Nursery School, which in turn benefits from all the festival's proceeds. It's easy to do your part in supporting the school: sample hundreds of beers from the best craft breweries in the world, meet the brewers, and eat pizza, sausages and oysters until you can't move anymore. You can do it, we believe in you. Fort Mason Center, Marina District.

via Facebook.

Fillmore Jazz Festival, July 4-5. This is the largest free jazz festival on the West Coast, drawing over 100,000 visitors over the July 4th weekend. Groove to the sounds of live music from multiple stages and browse the arts, crafts, food and beverage spanning 12 blocks of one of SF's coolest neighborhoods. Fillmore Street, Pacific Heights.

via Facebook.

Gilroy Garlic Festival, July 25-26. This is the holy grail of food festivals, and one of the largest in the United States. Founded in 1979 by an Italian-American doctor on a mission to upstage a town in France as the "Garlic Capital of the World." Here we are today with a gigantic gathering of people from all over set on sampling garlic in every form and function. There's also a well-known cook-off at the festival, featuring finalists from a contestant pool formed in May. Maybe you've got what it takes! Gilroy.

via Outside Lands.

Outside Lands, August 7-9. Quickly becoming one of the best music festivals in all the land, this event brings together singer-songwriters, DJs, jazz acts, indie up-and-comers, visual artists, and talented food and wine vendors. Watch it all in a park that needs no introduction; no backdrop is better than that gorgeous bridge against the Bay. Golden Gate Park.

via Facebook.

San Francisco Street Food Festival, August 15-16. Having outgrown its original home of Folsom Street, the festival moves this summer to newer, bigger digs at Pier 70. The event acts as a fundraiser for La Cocina, a non-profit incubator focused on helping low-income food entrepreneurs in the Bay Area. Come down and support the cause by loading up on pupusas, taquitos, dumplings, churrasco sandwiches, and lots, lots more. Pier 70, Potrero Point.

via Facebook.

Oktoberfest by the Bay, September 25-27. This is one of the top ten Oktoberfests in the US. Come for the best in German food and drink, stay for the music, singing and dancing. This year's event will be headlined by the 21-piece Chico Bavarian Band, because why not? It's Oktoberfest for a reason. Pier 48, SoMa.

via Facebook.

Treasure Island, likely October. I mean, this festival is awesome. It's getting bigger and bigger headliners, features a mix of acts (hip hop and electronica on Day 1, rock and indie on day 2) and it all takes place on Treasure Island. Being later in the year on an island in the Bay, the weather can be wild, but it's come to be part of the mystique of the whole deal. The crowd and performers become one solid unit as they battle through sets in the elements, united by music and community. You'll come out of it a different person. Treasure Island, San Francisco Bay.

via Facebook.

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Likely October. Another new Golden Gate Park classic, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is a massive free celebration drawing the equivalent of SF's entire population over three days. Once strictly bluegrass, it's now hardly strictly, so expect to see acts from Earl Scruggs to Emmylou Harris to New Orleans brass band ensembles. Golden Gate Park.

Sure, Treasure Island may be happening this weekend, but so is LitCrawl, and throughout the week there are dozens of small events around the city for the literarily inclined.

LitQuake, for those unfamiliar, is the annual festival of the writing arts, including fiction, non-fiction, journalism, and poetry, which takes place around town this here third week in October, culminating in the marathon of boozy events on Saturday night that is LitCrawl. There are readings, there are talks with famous writers, and there is much witty merriment in this city that dearly loves its bookstores.

Things actually kicked off over the weekend, but now we bring you some highlights from the schedule beginning tonight.

Tuesday, October 15

6pm - Radar Reading Series with Holly Hughes and Jerry Stahl - Michelle Tea's well curated series at the SF Public Library has a couple of pretty big names this eve: Jerry Stahl (Permanent Midnight) and performance artist Holly Hughes (World Without End, O Solo Homo).

7pm - Original Shorts - Six well known short story writers (including Peter Orner and Tom Barbash) take over the Glass Door Gallery in North Beach and read from stories around the theme "sitting in the catbird seat."

8pm - Delia Ephron - New York writer Delia Ephron, who co-wrote a number of things with her famous sister Nora and also recently wrote The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, is appearing in conversation with Ellen Sussman at Z Space, discussing her new memoir Sister, Mother, Husband, Dog. $26-$30 admission includes a copy of the book.

Wednesday, October 16

7 pm - GoodReads LitQuiz at the Make-Out Room - It's a pub quiz for book nerds that should be a lot of fun. Bring a team, or join one when you arrive.

Thursday, October 17

6:30 p.m. ZZ Packer - The acclaimed author will be reading from her novel Thousands, about the Buffalo Soldiers, and then taking questions at the Museum of the African Diaspora. $10

6:30 pm - Writing Between Worlds - Novelists Andrew Sean Greer and Helene Wecker read and talk about "a history where mystic creatures and time-travel prevail." At the Contemporary Jewish Museum.

7 pm - A Flight of Poets - A reading of poetry paired with six different wines at the Hotel Rex. $15

Friday, October 18

6:30 pm - Writing Between Worlds - Novelists Andrew Sean Greer and Helene Wecker read and talk about "a history where mystic creatures and time-travel prevail."">7pm - Mary Gaitskill - The acclaimed author, whose story was adapted into the film Secretary, will be reading at CCA and taking questions.

8pm - Gum-Chewing Angel: An Evening With T.C. Boyle - The author will be reading, signing books, and hob-nobbing at Z Space, and if you're a big fan, you can shell out $100 to attend the VIP reception.

Saturday, October 19

6pm to 9:30 pm - LitCrawl - You may think books are dying, but you may think again when you see the Mission light up and fill up with fans of literature, poetry, and alcohol at this annual lit-nerd convention. The events happen in quick succession in three phases, and it's hard to trek too far to catch everything you want, because the fun stuff at the bars definitely fills up. See the full schedule here, and make a plan. Highlights will include this Flannery O'Conner Short Story Prize alumni reading, and the annual reading by the Rumpus crew at the Make-Out Room.