Downtown State College to Host Inaugural Food and Drink Festival

814 Cider Works will be among the craft beverage producers at the inaugural Sips & Sounds Downtown festival on June 30 in State College. Photo by Darren Andrew Weimert | Town&Gown

By

Geoff Rushton

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June 22, 2023 – 2:45 pm

Community, Entertainment News, Local News, State College

A new outdoor festival will celebrate local food, beverages and live music in downtown State College.

The inaugural Sips & Sounds Downtown, organized by the Downtown State College Improvement District with support from a Centre County Tourism Grant, will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. on Friday, June 30, on the 200 block of South Allen Street.

Attendees will have an opportunity to enjoy craft beverages from Central PA Tasting Trail member businesses, a variety of non-alcoholic drinks, food from several area vendors and music by local musicians. The event also will include raffles and restaurant discount tokens for hundreds of attendees.

It’s designed as a kind of State College summer kickoff, according to DSCID, taking place two days before the Ironman 70.3 Happy Valley and four days before Central PA 4th Fest.

“We invite our residents and visitors to share a one-of-a-kind experience with us and enjoy a fun, family friendly summer evening in Downtown State College,” Lee Anne Jeffries, DSCID executive director, said in a statement.

Central PA Tasting Trail members scheduled to be on hand with beer, cider, spirits and wine are:

• 814 Cider Works
• Antifragile Brewing Co.
• Axemann Brewery
• Big Spring Spirits
• Seven Mountains Wine Cellars
• University Wine Company

Non-alcoholic beverage options also will be available from Moody Culture Kombucha and SoBar.

The food vendor lineup includes:

• Juana’s
• Auntie Anne’s
• El Jefe’s
• Rebelz
• Savory Station
• Crumbkowski
• Sunset Slush

Music schedule:

• 4-5:30 p.m. Ted & Molly
• 5:30-6:30 p.m. DJ Elbow Knee Knee
• 6:30-8 p.m. Molly & Maria

Free parking will be available in the Schlow Centre Region Library parking lot, and validation for up to three hours of free parking in the Pugh, Fraser and Beaver garages will be offered at the DSCID table during the festival.

Admission to the festival is free, but DSCID suggests a donation of $10 to help the organization continue offering free community events. Pre-registration to skip the lines is available online.