Dave Knows Portland

Portland Serbian Fest 2012

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Serbian Fest 2012The sixth annual Serbian Fest takes place Saturday and Sunday, September 15 and 16, 2012 at St. Stephen in Milwaukie (11447 SE 27th).

The fest features delicious serbian food: barbecue, roast pig and lamb, desserts and live music, National Dance, beer & wine, kids’ activities, and much more!

Entertainment includes a performance by The Krebsic Orkestar.

Admission is free and this festival is all ages. The fest runs Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Visit the Facebook page for more details and festival photos from previous years.

Portland Polish Festival 2012

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Polish FestivalThe 17th annual Portland Polish Festival, my favorite local cultural event, takes place on Saturday and Sunday, September 22 and 23, 2012.

The fest features non-stop music (much of it featuring accordions!) and dance performances, polka contests, and a can’t-miss Saturday night street dance. Enjoy Polish food like pierogies, kielbasa, gołąbki (cabbage rolls), placki ziemniaczane (potato pancakes), and other delectable options – and of course delicious Polish beer! In the vendor village, check out the jewelry, clothing, Polish pottery, and sundries for sale.

Below the masthead on the festival website are the words: the best kept secret of Portland, Oregon. This statement hasn’t been true for several years – the Polish Fest is the premier fall festival in the Portland area.

Entrance to the Polish Festival is free. Hours on Saturday are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. The fest takes place on North Failing street, on the east side of Interstate, between the St. Stanislaus Church and the Polish Library (3832 N. Interstate). Take the 4 – Fessenden to Mississippi and Failing and then take the Failing Street Pedestrian Bridge across the freeway and you are there. Or take the Yellow Line MAX to the Overlook Stop – Failing street is two blocks north up Interstate. Check out the festival website for more information, and follow @PDXPolishFest on Twitter!

Heather and I have blogged the festival the past few years:

Mile73.com

Dave Knows

Protip: arrive Saturday evening after sunset to avoid the bulk of the crowd, and the ridiculously long lines. (Read more tips here!)

Portland Weekend Amusements (September 7-9, 2012)

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September always treats Portlanders to the best summer-like weather of the year; perfect for the furious rush of street fairs and festivals! This weekend treat yourself to Baconfest, Widmer’s Oktoberfest, the Belmont Street Fair, and more!
Ongoing

Movies in ParksPortland Movies in the Park – last weekend!

Portland Parks and Recreation has released the 2012 summer schedule of Movies in the Park. From June 29 through September 18 sprawl out at one of Portland’s fine municipal parks several times a week for an evening of free entertainment.

Friday 9/7: Funny Face (1957) @ Director Park
Friday 9/7: Hugo @ Multnomah Arts Center
Saturday 9/8: Pee-wee’s Big Adventure @ Wallace Park [more]

Swift WatchChapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2012

Every September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts come to Portland. After spending their day eating bugs, the Swifts coalesce in Northwest Portland, flying in a giant undulating swirl in the sky above the school. Around sunset the swirl gets more compact, like a ground pepper tornado, and begins disappearing, measure by measure, down the chimney. On the lawn below hundreds of Portlanders stare mesmerized at the sky, from the comfort of lawn chairs and blankets. Boos erupt when opportunistic Peregrine falcons get lucky. [more]

Friday

Architectural Heritage CenterExhibit Opening: Streetcars Build a City

Streetcars Build a City, the new exhibit at the Architectural Heritage Center (701 SE Grand), opens Friday, September 7, 2012 with a free showing from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“In Portland, our urban neighborhoods are a product of the pre-automobile era.” [more]

Friday-Saturday

Widmer OktoberfestWidmer Oktoberfest

The eighth annual Widmer Brothers Brewing Oktoberfest expands to two days this year, taking place Friday and Saturday, September 7 and 8, 2012 at the brewery (929 N. Russell Street).

Widmer’s beers, brats, chicken schnitzel wraps, sauerkraut, and pretzels are available, and of course there will be accordions! [more]

Saturday

Belmont Street Fair

The 16th Annual Belmont Street Fair takes place Saturday, September 8, 2012 from noon until 7 p.m. The fair extends from 20th to 48th on Southeast Belmont, with car free blocks from 34th to 38th.

The fair features over 100 craft booths, two music stages, food vendors, and activities for the kids. There will be a beer garden at SE 33rd! [more]

PDX BaconfestPDX Baconfest

The fourth annual Portland Baconfest takes place Saturday, September 8, 2012 at 18th and East Burnside, adjacent to the East Burn (1800 E Burnside), from noon until 9 p.m. – it’s a giant street festival celebrating bacon!

Thousands of bacon lovers attended last year’s fest, thoroughly lubricating their cardiovascular system and contributing hundreds of pounds of food to the Oregon Food Bank. [more]

McMenaminsKennedy School Oktoberfest

When you imagine Oktoberfest, what comes to mind? Oom-pah bands, loads of beer, bratwurst and hamburgers and more! One and all are welcome to participate in the German celebration that is Oktoberfest! Begun as a wedding party for Germany’s Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese in 1810, today Oktoberfest is celebrated all over the world with music, singing, dancing, beer, food and revelry. [more]

For even more weekend events and activities, check out the Dave Knows Calendar, and visit Around the Sun, Blogging Portland on the Cheap, and Oregon Events at OregonLive.com.

Belmont Street Fair (September 8, 2012)

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Belmont Street FairThe 16th Annual Belmont Street Fair takes place Saturday, September 8, 2012 from noon until 7 p.m. The fair extends from 20th to 48th on Southeast Belmont, with car free blocks from 34th to 38th.

Sponsored by the Belmont Area Business Association and the Sunnyside Neighborhood Association, the fair features over 100 craft booths, two music stages, food vendors, and activities for the kids. There will be a beer garden at SE 33rd!

This is one of my favorite Portland street fairs. Car free streets make it more pleasant than the Hawthorne Street Fair. Most of the fair activities take place within a few car free blocks between SE 34th and 37th, so it’s easy to take in the whole thing. And the Belmont Street Fair is not nearly as crowded as the Mississippi Street Fair.

For a taste of what to expect, check out my reviews of the 2010 and 2009 fairs.

Widmer Oktoberfest (September 7-8, 2012)

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Widmer OktoberfestThe eighth annual Widmer Brothers Brewing Oktoberfest expands to two days this year, taking place Friday and Saturday, September 7 and 8, 2012 at the brewery (929 N. Russell Street).

Widmer’s beers, brats, chicken schnitzel wraps, sauerkraut, and pretzels are available, and of course there will be accordions!

The first Oktoberfest of the season, Widmer’s is not my favorite – the rock and roll bands are too loud [get off my lawn, and really, rock and roll bands at an Oktoberfest?], but the beer is good, the food is decent, and the crowds aren’t so thick that beer lines are arduous. Consider it a good warm up for the Fall festival season.

Admission is free to this 21 and over, cash only, event (buy a $6 commemorative stein to buy beer – or use a previous year’s stein if you have one!). The fest runs from 7 p.m. to Friday and 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday. Don’t drive – take the Yellow line MAX, get off at the Albina/Mississippi stop and you’re only a block away. Visit the Facebook event page for more fest details.