Menlo Park Celebrates 24th Annual Mid-Summer Festival of the Arts July 17, 2010

July 17-18, 10am to 6pm both days; 'Saturday After-Hours Concert' featuring Pride & Joy is 5:30-8pm on July 17 in Fremont Park

Connoisseurs' Marketplace Showcases the Best of Summer.

It's summertime and the Bay Area's popular outdoor festival season is in full swing. Attend this sun-splashed weekend featuring world-class art by 250 of America's top artists, two days of great music, informative chefs' demos, fabulous food and drink, fun for kids, artisan specialty food purveyors, collector car show, home and garden exhibits, health and wellness displays and organic green product showcase.

Festivalgoers will find handcrafted sculpture, paintings, photography, glass, ceramics, textiles, jewelry... among the top art shows in the Bay Area. Vases, flatware, clocks, dishes, wall and table decorations...oil and watercolor paintings, beadwork, gold and silver jewelry, hats, wallets...among the one-of-a-kind items available.

Best of the Bay Area music scene with ten dynamite bands playing eclectic, fun-filled mix of soulful Motown classics, classic rock 'n roll, R&B groove, contemporary jazz, Caribbean steel drum and romantic Italian mandolin ballads.

Festival eateries serving up a world of flavorful, stroll-around fare - fresh roasted corn-on-the-cob, veggie and salmon burgers, chicken and sausage jambalaya, seafood gumbo, spicy crawfish etoufee, blackened shrimp, fried calamari with cilantro-lime sauce, barbecued oysters... shredded pork sandwiches, smoked bratwurst and Polish dogs, tamales, tacos, garlic chicken and pork kebobs, Italian ice and fresh-squeezed lemonade. Complementing the food will be exceptional wine, microbrews, refreshing margaritas and mojitos.

Makers of artisan specialty foods will be on-hand with balsamic vinegars and oils, Kona coffee, macadamia nuts, gourmet fudge, chocolate, mustard blends... pistachios and pecans, dessert sauces, and spices among the mouth-watering offerings to sample and buy.

The action-packed Kids' Fun Zone will fascinate youths with colorful wax hands art, virtual reality motion theater, climbing wall and a new interactive art area.

Official Website: http://www.miramarevents.com