Weekend fests: Grape-stomping, hot rods
Late summer means another weekend packed with festival choices. This time it’s classic cars and hot rods, pasta and grape stomps, arts and wine, and chocolate and chalk. Here are the highlights:
Italian Family Festa: Mangia! mangia! Italian chef cooking demonstrations and food booths will dominate the 38th annual San Jose festival put on by the Italian American Heritage Foundation. Between bites, you can listen to live music, learn Italian card games or participate in the fun and messy grape stomp. Details: 11 a.m.8 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday; History Park, San Jose; free; italianfamilyfestasj.org
Palo Alto Festival of the Arts: The huge arts fest along University Avenue, with about 300 artisans, will have an Italian flair too. Sixty Italian street painters will join the Italian Street Painting Expo on Tasso Street. Details: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; free; mlaproductions.com
Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival: Create chalk art and eat chocolate while listening to live music. What a concept! Prizes will be awarded for best drawings. Details: 10 a.m.-5 p.m Saturday, along North Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley; free; anotherbullwinkelshow.com
Goodguys West Coast Nationals: More than 3,000 American-made vehicles worth swooning over — hot rods, classic cars and trucks, customized vehicles and contestants and past winners from the annual Most Beautiful Street Rod competition — will be parked at the Alameda Fairgrounds in Pleasanton all weekend. Details: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday; $20 adults/teens and $6 children, $10 parking; good-guys.com.