Cinco de Mayo @ El Big Bad Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. 419 Travis
Cinco de Mayo is on a Monday this year (boo!), but that doesn't mean you can't celebrate early on Saturday (yay!). El Big Bad will host a Cinco de Mayo celebration beginning at 11 a.m. and continuing into the wee hours of Sunday morning. Feast on crawfish and a Yucatan roasted pig, then wash it all down with Karbach Brewing Co.'s FUN Series 007 and El Big Bad's liquid nitrogen frozen margaritas.
Houston Food Truck Fest @ Stereo Live Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. 6400 Richmond
Enjoy the nice weather this weekend and head to Stereo Live for the 3rd Annual Houston Food Truck Fest. Purchase a $20 ticket to enter the festival, then stop by your favorite food trucks for tasty treats, snacks, meals and drinks (food and drink from food trucks is not included in the admission price). Start with a customized gourmet peanut butter and jelly sandwich from Monster PBJ, or a Ramen Burger with OMG! Fries from Oh My Gogi! truck for lunch. Then, get some truffles from Chocolat d'Arte or cupcakes from Zeapod Cakery for dessert. VIP tickets cost $48 and get you into the festival an hour early, plus unlimited soda, bottled water and access to the VIP only seating, covered area and bathrooms.
International Beer Fest @ Kemah Boardwalk Saturday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. 215 Kipp Ave., Kemah
Spend the afternoon at the Kemah Boardwalk during the International Beer Festival where you can sample beers from 44 breweries from the Asian Pacific, Europe and the Americas. For $39, each person will receive a wristband giving them access into the event, beer samples from the breweries, food samples and beer vendor giveaways. Participating breweries include Cooper's, San Miguel and Steinlager offering samples of Asian Pacific beers; Samuel Smith, Stella Artois and Guinness serving European beers; and Imperial, Negra Modelo and Dos Equis serving beers from the Americas.
Santo de Mayo Pub Crawl in Midtown Saturday, 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Saint Arnold Brewery will hold the Santo de Mayo Pub Crawl in Midtown on Saturday. The brewery will hand out tickets in the open house format from 2 p.m. until 3 p.m. at all of the first stops. Choose where you want to go first, then make your way to the rest of the bars to complete the crawl. The participating locations include Christian's Tailgate & Bar, Buffalo Wild Wings, Front Porch Pub, The Dogwood, The Midtown Drinkery Bar & Grill, The Gaslamp and as one big stop, Celtic Gardens/Pub Fiction/3rd Floor Bar. Show your love for Santo by wearing any Santo gear you've got -- t-shirts, hats, etc. The last stop is Little Woodrow's at 6 p.m. If you finish the crawl, you'll receive a 2014 Santo de Mayo pint glass.
Go Pig! Or Go Home! Suckling Pig Throwdown @ Kata Robata Sunday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. 3600 Kirby
If you haven't bought your tickets for Go Pig! Or Go Home! yet, then what are you waiting for? You most certainly don't want to miss out on this pig-roasting competition featuring a multitude of Houston chefs vying to be the grand champion. For $95 you will receive unlimited samples of every pork dish created by the participating chefs, small bites from Kata Robata and free drinks from 8th Wonder Brewery, Duchman Family Winery and Byejo spirits. Will chef Ronnie Killen be crowned the grand champion again? Or will another Houston chef take him down? Get your tickets before they're all gone to see for yourself.
