Weekend brims with festivals featuring beer, Italian fare, crafts

Head to South Philly for the annual Italian Market Festival.
Credit: R. Kennedy for GPTMC

Warm weather is finally here, and the weekends are filling up with plans faster than you can burn through a festive little sparkler. We wish, more than ever, that we could be in two places at once, soaking up all the neighborhood events. But we’ll just have to make a few tough choices. This weekend there will be festivals around the city, each suitable for a different taste.

For arts and crafts and family fun:

Brewerytown Spring Festival
The fiesta began four years ago under the title Art plus Soul Food. But “the next year it became more avenue- and business-based. So for the last two years it’s been the Brewerytown Spring Festival, which really brands the neighborhood,” says Tim McAdams, president of the Fairmount CDC. Along with about 20 food trucks on the scene, there will be arts and craft vendors, home-brewing demonstrations, kids craft make and takes, and live music.
Saturday, noon-5 p.m.
The 2700-2800 blocks of West Girard Avenue

For beer and barbecue:

Wheat Beer Fest at South Philly Tap Room
“This isn’t a beer tasting where you pay $50 to get in, wait in long lines and people are chugging tiny samples of beer and wearing beads,” assures SPTR’s bar manager, Kathryn Wiggins. Instead, it’s a slow-burning block party that showcases 35 wheat beers, served in full-sized pint glasses for a mere $3 each. Hang out in the street and chow down on barbecue from Chef Scott Schroeder. Add in four local bands, and you’ve got yourself a quintessential South Philly block party.
Saturday, noon-8 p.m.
1509 Mifflin St.

For old-world charm and drool-worthy food:

Italian Market Festival
Join in the tradition of one of the proudest, most celebrated neighborhoods in the city with the annual Italian Market Festival. The streets will be brimming with food, face-painting for the little ones, a DJ, a magician and the Procession of the Saints. “The tradition is so important because of the market’s commitment to the community,” says festival producer Michele Gambino. “Current neighbors plan parties and open houses around the festival. People who have moved come back to celebrate, and visitors are treated like family.”
Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Ninth St., between Fitzwater and Federal streets