It’s Food Festival Season This Fall in Philly

CENTER CITY

UpToberfest Oktoberfest at Uptown Beer Garden is now a 2-day event September 24-25 with double the number of bars from last year. Admission is free. Pay as you go for local and imported lagers, pretzels, wurst, schnitzel and spaetzle.

This will be a big one. Philadelphia's First Annual Oktoberfest October 7-9 anticipates 7,500 beer lovers at the 23rd Street Armory that's getting transformed with Bavarian blue and white ceilings, authentic festival tables and benches imported from Germany, and a lofted stage area for musical acts. The team from Brauhaus Schmitz just returned from Germany on a research trip. Expect German dancing, food, entertainment, beer and more.

MIDTOWN VILLAGE

On October 1, Midtown Village hosts its Fall Festival. The massive 6-block party throughout the gayborhood includes beer gardens, food, live music, a kids corner and arts and crafts.

OLD CITY

More than 20 vendors will sell food and drink during October 9's Old City Fest, which attracts over 25,000 people, but the real star of the show is the art. Expect live street art performances, open houses at the city's oldest and most well-known art galleries, and an open-air runway show.

SOUTH STREET

Edible bugs are on the menu at the tri-state region's largest environmental festival, Greenfest, on September 11 at South Street and Headhouse Square. Also: live music all day, an eco beer garden, organic food samples, handmade and green shopping, a Kids Corner, a 25-foot rock wall, and vegetarian/vegan cooking demos with Revolution Taco and P'unk Burger.

For the 8th year in a row, Oktoberfest Street Festival by Brauhaus Schmitz takes over South Street on September 17. A can't-miss for beer lovers, look for ten German beers available on draft, German food, live Oom-pah music, face painting, flower crowns, and German dancers. A $115 VIP package includes no-wait bathrooms, a Bavarian buffet, six beer tickets, an official Brauhaus Oktoberfest t-shirt, and a glass liter stein filled with "Oktoberfest survival supplies" to take home. Otherwise, it's pay-as-you-go.

South Street's family friendly PumpkinFest rings in Halloween on October 29 with live music, seasonal bites and brews, a football bungee challenge, a straw bale maze, circus performances, horse and wagon hay rides, face painting and more. South Street businesses will open their doors for trick or treating (children 12 and under).

WEST PHILLY

This isn't your grandmother's ice cream social. After HoneyFest at Bartram's Garden on September 11, Little Baby's ice cream and Art in the Age are joining forces for to create boozy ice cream floats at their BUZZED Ice Cream Social. Sample the exclusive Bartram's Garden flavors from Little Baby's Ice Cream and enjoy new products from Art in the Age, including hard soda and a Bartram-inspired cocktail. All ages welcome. Ticket ($15) includes your first drink and first ice cream or float.

SOUTH PHILLY

Autumnal craft beer, sausages, and live music are on tap at South Philly Sausage Fest in Newbold/West Passyunk September 10. This year's festival offers food from ten restaurants, beer from ten local craft breweries, eight live music shows, arts & crafts vendors, and a kids' play area.

Five food trucks and five local brewers will pop-up outside of Taproom on 19th on October 16 for an all-day block party at Tappin' the Trucks: Brews n' Bites Block Party, with The Cow and the Curd, J'eet, Oink and Moo BBQ, Foolish Waffles, and Sweet Box. Special deals on craft draft beer. Children and pets are welcome.

SUBURBS

In the mushroom capital of the world, Kennett Square hosts one of the country's most random events: the annual Mushroom Festival. Go on September 10 and 11 for $3 admission, earthy food samples, local chef demos, the "national fried mushroom eating contest," the "cute-as-a-button (mushroom) baby photo contest," and more kitschy fun(gus).

It's always a sell-out crowd at King of Prussia's Beerfest Royale. On October 6 and 8, more than 3,000 people will enjoy over 100 craft and international beers, dishes from King of Prussia's most popular and newest restaurants, as well as live music. The exclusive beer for 2016, Noah Better Better, is the first French Saison brewed by Easton's Weyerbacher Brewing.