HarborFest Chula Vista

Honestly this little festival wasn’t what I was expecting! Something to offer for all ages! Lots of food booths, along with some trucks. We had a bacon wrapped hot dog & yummm it hit the spot! There are also a few booths throughout the festival that offer alcohol. at a hiked up price of course! ;) $ 6 dollars for a can of corona or modelo.
Definitely a fun place to take kids– arts & crafts, zip line, face painting, a tour around the bay & lots more!
Parking can be tough, but not too bad if you don’t mind walking a bit.
We had a good time and will be back next year if they decide to have it again! Hopefully we’ll be able to make it there earlier for the taco & drink tasting which was only from 11 – 2 :/

An awesome place to be for tacos and tequila! Right by the harbor. More to post shortly…

The Chula Vista HarborFest was a fun event, although somewhat chaotic. We were given free tickets by The Man which included a couple of drinks and access to the Seafood Tastings event. A lot of Ceviche! Unfortunately, the seafood ran out early for several of the vendors, but I guess that just shows how popular this event is, eh? We discovered a couple of truly outstanding places we want to check out — one in La Jolla on Girard and the other right here in CV!
After the bites and sips, we walked around the HarborFest grounds to check out the various booths, including commercial, governmental, and NGO’s like Scripps Aquarium and Seaworld (maybe Seaworld doesn’t qualify as an NGO — at least their stockholders are hoping so, LOL). Everybody seemed to be having a great time. There were three live stages with bands and lots of activities for the kiddies. The weather was balmy and the bay breeze really made this a pleasant day in the sun. Unlike others, we were able to park for free on the street. The $ 10 «preferred parking» in a dirt lot was silly. We were closer to the entrance than a lot of the paying customers!
This event shows a lot of promise, and with a little more organization, I know it is going to be even more fun in the future!

How did I miss seeing you there Mel?! They lose a star only for charging 10 bucks to park in a bad dirt lot that didn’t look organized. Otherwise, we had fun at the first ever Chula Vista Harborfest. They definitely need to make this an annual event.
The seafoodfest was a bargain at 10 bucks for 12 tastings. I only made it to 8 as the lines were a little too long and I was starting to get full. Also, the ceviche tastes got a bit too repetitive. I really enjoyed Barrio Star’s smoked salmon nacho. Didn’t make it to Finch’s, Mel, as the line was too long. My favorite was Tidal’s gazpacho with crab. The line was almost non existent so the chef gave a few of us 2nds. Not sure why the line was short there as it was a great combination of flavors.
The snowcone line was ridiculously long and 8.50 was steep compared with the price of the seafood tasting. Enjoyed seeing the corvettes and watching the young aspiring masterchefs compete on stage.

Bayside park is the perfect location for a summer festival — can’t beat the view! I had never been to this location before and was impressed with the amount of waterfront green space.
There is something for everyone at Harbor Fest, which is a refreshing change from the average neighborhood street fair (cough, cough North Park). Free kayaking, boat tours, lazer tag, arts and crafts, live music, car show, cooking demos, and the list goes on. There was also a seafood tastings area ($ 10 for 12 tastes) and a wine/​cocktail tasting ($ 20 for 10 tastes). We took part in the seafood tasting and found a few new places we’d like to check out — well done Finch’s! The wine tasting looked fun, lots of Baja wineries and local spirits. There were other bars spread throughout the event, and unlike in San Diego, you were allowed to walk throughout the event with your adult beverage.
I believe this is only the second year of the event, and it was a little lacking in organization. The parking situation was a bit confusing — despite the fact that we looked at the website in advance. We waited for 35 minutes for the shuttle to pick us up from the event lot.
Overall, it was a lovely day on the Bay! Not much to complain about with booze, food and music on the water.

The Latin pop singer Giovanna mesmerized the crowd at the Chula Vista HarborFest at the Bayside Park. This beautiful lady has some serious chops! My only regret was that I had to stand in line for the porta-​potty and miss part of the performance! At the HarborFest, there was awesome food, margaritas, Dos Equis Amber, singing talent… and NOT enough porta-​potties, which is the only reason I’m giving the event a 4 instead of a 5. There wasn’t any soap or hand sanitizer either. So I’ll happily come back next year if they have this again… but I’m bringing my own hand sanitizer next time!
We also had tickets for the SeafoodFest Tasting, part of the Chula Vista HarborFest. Thanks to rad Brad, our tickets were complimentary. It was fun to taste samples of seafood from the many vendors! My 2 overall favs were the marvelous cannelloni provided by Savoie, and the excellent seafood bisque offered by Finch’s Bistro and Wine Bar. I’m bookmarking these 2 vendors, so that I can visit their restaurants! (Finch’s has a restaurant in La Jolla, and Savoie has a restaurant in Chula Vista.
It was a gorgeous sunny day, with a breeze to keep us all cool in the August heat. Couldn’t ask for better company when we ran into Jocelyn and Mark. (-; The views of the bay from the Bayside Park made me feel like I was on vacation! Woo-​hoo for Chula Vista HarborFest!