'A celebration of the community': Stockton Flavor Fest returns for 3rd year Friday

Stockton Flavor Fest returns to the Weber Point Events Center in downtown Stockton for a third year this weekend.

The three-day event is hosted by the nonprofit Visit Stockton, with the support of the city of Stockton. It will take place at the Weber Point Events Center at 221 N. Center St. in Stockton starting at 11 a.m. on Friday, May 17 through Sunday, May 19.

"Stockton Flavor Fest for us is a celebration of the community, the culture and the cuisine that make the Central Valley and Stockton so unique. This festival really came as a response to Stockton being called the most diverse city in the nation," said Amy Alpers, director of Marketing and Communications for Vist Stockton and producer of Stockton Flavor Fest.

There will be "over 40 food vendors," she added.

Food vendors participating in the festival listed on their website include Bubble Hive, El Parcero Empanadas Colombianas, Grajedas Mexican Grill, Panda's Smoke Shack, Saucey Oysters, The Drunken Dumpling, and more.

Alpers said they expect around 20,000 people at the festival this weekend.

"One way that we believe is an easy way for folks to experience other cultures is through food," Alpers said. "This is a food festival first."

There will also be entertainment at the Michelob Ultra Main Stage at 2:45 p.m. on Friday with American singer-songwriter and musician Michelle Lambert. The punk band Radical Times will play at 6 p.m. Saturday, and at 5 p.m. Sunday, the mariachi band The Outlaw Mariachi will take the stage.

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Throughout the weekend art workshops will be presented by the Stockton Arts Commission including bracelet making, canvas tote decorating, and a painting workshop. There will also be live art demos and art installations around the festival.

A variety of vendors from Above the Brim, Makers Made, Serenity Permanent Jewelry, and others will be at the festival too, their website states.

"Once you're in, everything's free, the art workshops are free. The kitchen demonstrations, there's no upcharge once you're in there to kind of do all the main entertainment stuff," Alpers said. "It's an easy way to have a fun weekend."

Local non-profit organizations that volunteer will benefit from the festival's proceeds.

"We take all the proceeds at the end of the festival and divide it up based on the hours of the volunteer work and give them back to those organizations," Alpers said. "It really is a way for us to highlight these organizations in our community. We're just a big community celebration."

'A more elevated experience'

Aside from food, entertainment, and workshops there will be cooking demos with Fat City Brew & BBQ, The Kitchen at Stonebrier, and Terra Coffee among others.

All their vendors and participants had to apply and were hand-selected for the event, Alpers said.

"We want to give the people of this area a more elevated experience," Alpers said. "We're hoping that that also brings people from outside the area to come in and be like, 'Oh, wow, what's this thing that Stockton's doing?'"

For those 21 and over, there will be craft beer, margaritas, entertainment and games at Tia Linda's Margarita's Back Porch.

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"We just want to celebrate what makes Stockton unique," Alpers said. "The vendors that are at the festival, we have tons of arts vendors, we have a ton of food vendors...it's both local vendors as well as some regional vendors."

This year, organizers are introducing $5 foodie plates, a scavenger hunt, more music, and a wizards challenge for the kids, Alpers said.

The drag brunch scheduled for Sunday was canceled for this year for lack of interest, Alpers said.

'Lead by example'

The Stockton Flavor Fest is earth-friendly.

"We're trying to lead by example, for other events in the area and whatnot too," Alpers said. "This should be the new norm moving forward."

Alpers said they encourage those attending to take their reusable water bottles as they will have water refill stations. They will have water for purchase but in aluminum cans.

They encourage vendors to use compostable serveware as well, she said. Festival goers will also notice the three streams' trash receptacles: recycling, landfill, and composite bin.

"I think people will be very pleasantly surprised when they come to this event," Alpers said.

If you attend

What: Stockton Flavor Fest

Where: Weber Point Events Center in downtown Stockton

When: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, May 17; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, May 18, 12 p.m.-7 p.m. Sunday, May 19

Tickets: Stockton Flavor Fest tickets start at $5 for general admission on Friday, $12 for general admission on Saturday and Sunday ($10 online), children 6-17 years old are $5, and children 5 years old and younger enter free (a ticket is required.) There will be a three-day pass for $17. On Friday, there will also be $5 food deals, beers and seltzers. There is a clear bag policy, according to the Visit Stockton website.

Information: stocktonflavorfest.com.

Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton Flavor Fest