SATURDAY, AUG. 27 2016: South Sound events + craft beer …
Hilltop Street Fair + Parkway Tavern IPA Festival = Tacoma
The Grand Cinema + Wine & Stein = fantasy
Destiny City Film Festival = unusual honeymoon
HILLTOP STREET FAIR
There are a string of good reasons to lay your head in Tacoma. It’s friendly. It’s unpretentious. It’s affordable. It’s full of great neighborhoods. It’s full of great people. It’s surprisingly hip in its own odd way. Tacoma shines today at the Hilltop Street Fair from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Come see the best of Hilltop with five music stages, the Hilltop fashion show, Hilltop Film Competition, street dancing, free health and wellness checks, car show, Buffalo Soldiers, food trucks and much more. Stretching over three city blocks, this summer’s Hilltop Street Fair is Tacoma.
PREFUNK: South Sound craft beer lovers are pretty spoiled. They have an ever-expanding array of hop-soaked IPAs available to them, and at the annual Parkway Tavern IPA Festival the Tacoma’s Northslope neighborhood, 34 India Pales Ales will flow, beginning at noon. If you haven’t attended the Parkway’s IPA Fest, we have a few tips. Get there early. Duh. No, really. Get there early. If you score a bar stool, you can sell it for $500. You’ll have a ringside seat to the staff’s mosh pit of craziness. If you feel as if you’re being ignored, glance back at the line out the door. I’ll guarantee you’ll be served faster sitting at the bar. Know the IPA list before entering the line. There is often a beer list printout floating around. Snap a photo with your phone if need be. When your waist hits the bar, it’s go time. If you stutter, you’ll be thrown in IPA Jail. If someone spaces and steps in front of you, don’t freak out. There’s plenty of time and plenty of beer. Then, take your beers for a stroll down the side walkway to the backyard beer garden, and chill out with friends.
WEIRD ELEPHANT DOES SCI-FI
The Grand Cinema’s Weird Elephant wacky film screening goes big this time around. The EMP Museum and Seattle International Film Festival folks are riding the Weird Elephant presenting an encore screening of the 11th annual Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival at 9:09 p.m. in The Grand. The annual juried festival showcasing animated and live-action science fiction, fantasy, and horror-tinged short films from around the globe will be paired with Wingman Brewers beers.
PREFUNK: Come sip to support the Junior League of Tacoma at their second annual Wine & Stein fundraiser from 2-6 p.m. at the Freighthouse Square. There will be wine, craft beer and spirits available for tastings, along with live music and a raffle. Expect to drink goods from Ambiqua Wine Vineyard, Stina’s Cellars, Gig Harbor Brewing Co., Silver City Brewery, Heritage Distilling Co. and others. Bring a new pair of socks to donate to JLT’s community partners, for youth experiencing homelessness and receive an extra tasting.
BONUS: The Destiny City Film Festival continues at the Blue Mouse Theatre featuring thought-provoking documentaries such as Left On Purpose and The Other Kids, free family films at 11:30 a.m. (with free donuts!), collection of international short films and closing with a 7 p.m. special presentation of the award-winning film, Buddymoon, an offbeat comedy about David, who has recently been dumped by his fiancé and decides takes his excitable German best man Flula on the honeymoon instead: a backcountry trek in the remote mountains of Oregon.
