Belmont Greek Festival Returns Labor Day Weekend, Sept. 3-4, 2022
With the luscious aroma of Greek cuisine and joyful shouts of “Opa!” filling the air, the 50th Belmont Greek Festival arrives in the mid-Peninsula on Labor Day Weekend, Sat., Sept. 3 – Sun., Sept. 4, at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church, 900 Alameda de las Pulgas (corner of Ralston Avenue), in Belmont. Festival hours are Noon-10 pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, thousands of guests are expected to visit the festival once again to enjoy wonderful Greek meals and pastries, lively music and dancing, a mythology play, cooking demonstrations, church tours, a bookstore, and more.
“We’re so excited to be back,” said Festival Co-Chair Kathy Flocas. “We’re working hard to make this 50th Anniversary Greek Festival special for our local community, and we can’t wait to welcome our guests back in person,” Flocas said.
“It’s our opportunity to share our Greek culture, food, and traditions with the community,” she said.
The marvelous meals will include pastitsio (Greek lasagna), souvlakia (Greek shish kebab), spanakopita (spinach and cheese stuffed inside filo pastry), gyros (seasoned meat wrapped in pita bread with tomatoes, onions, and tzatziki sauce), and Greek lamb, among others.
For the sweet tooth, there will be traditional pastries such as loukoumades (tender doughnut holes covered with honey), baklava (layers of nuts and filo pastry soaked in honey), kourambiedes (butter cookies covered with powdered sugar), koulourakia (twisty, buttery cookies), and more.
“We’re certainly known for our delicious food,” said the other Festival Co-Chair, Niki Kouretas. “Our volunteer cooks use family recipes that have been handed down for generations, and they’re eager to share this amazing food with our guests.”
One of the newer festival highlights is the platia, an outdoor village square, “resembling a delightful street in Greece lined with bistro tables and chairs, alongside our popular bookstore,” Kouretas said. The platia will feature frappes (iced coffee), Greek coffee, and baklava sundaes.
The Kafenion coffee house will offer a quiet, indoor space to relax with Greek or American coffee and yummy pastries.
Guests 21 and over will want to try distinctive Greek wines, beer, and liquor, such as the anise-flavored Ouzo aperitif and Metaxa brandy.
Festival visitors will find continuous entertainment on two large stages. At the main stage, they can dance to exciting music by a popular Greek band and watch folk dance groups perform their elaborate, dynamic steps.
At the outdoor amphitheater, reminiscent of the theaters of ancient Greece, children and adults alike will delight in a Greek mythology play, cooking demonstrations, and performances by the Aurora Mandolin Orchestra, Festival Chorus, and award-winning children’s entertainer Andy Z.
Throughout the weekend, there will be tours of the award-winning Byzantine-style church, including the stunning mosaic iconography. Other festival highlights will include a bookstore with Orthodox Christian publications, icons, and gifts, plus vendor boutiques featuring art, clothing, and jewelry.
To make sure the festival is fully staffed by the hard-working volunteers, the festival will be only two days this year instead of the traditional three, and the number of food items normally served in the Main Hall Restaurant will be slightly scaled down and served outside.
“This is an effort to focus on bringing the community back together and enjoy the outdoor experiences, and hopefully by next year we will be able to return to our three-day festival and re-open our indoor restaurant at full capacity,” Flocas said.
“We’ll still have most of our favorite dishes, as well as the same excellent quality, spectacular entertainment, and joyous kefi, or spirit, that festival guests have come to love,” Kouretas said.
The proceeds of the festival support the many ministries of Holy Cross Church, as well as monetary donations made to local charities. Past recipients of festival donations include the Second Harvest Food Bank of San Mateo County, Samaritan House in San Mateo, Bay Area Cancer Connections in Palo Alto, Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, and My New Red Shoes in Redwood City.
General admission is $6. For seniors and youth (ages 13-17), admission is $3. Children 12 and under are free with an adult.
The Belmont Greek Festival accepts only credit and debit cards. Cash can be exchanged for a cash card at the festival.
Pets are not permitted except for service animals.
For more information, explore this website further, or email us at [email protected], or call (650) 591-4447, or visit us on Facebook. Opa!
With the luscious aroma of Greek cuisine and joyful shouts of “Opa!” filling the air, the 50th Belmont Greek Festival arrives in the mid-Peninsula on Labor Day Weekend, Sat., Sept. 3 – Sun., Sept. 4, at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church, 900 Alameda de las Pulgas (corner of Ralston Avenue), in Belmont. Festival hours are Noon-10 pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, thousands of guests are expected to visit the festival once again to enjoy wonderful Greek meals and pastries, lively music and dancing, a mythology play, cooking demonstrations, church tours, a bookstore, and more.
“We’re so excited to be back,” said Festival Co-Chair Kathy Flocas. “We’re working hard to make this 50th Anniversary Greek Festival special for our local community, and we can’t wait to welcome our guests back in person,” Flocas said.
“It’s our opportunity to share our Greek culture, food, and traditions with the community,” she said.
The marvelous meals will include pastitsio (Greek lasagna), souvlakia (Greek shish kebab), spanakopita (spinach and cheese stuffed inside filo pastry), gyros (seasoned meat wrapped in pita bread with tomatoes, onions, and tzatziki sauce), and Greek lamb, among others.
For the sweet tooth, there will be traditional pastries such as loukoumades (tender doughnut holes covered with honey), baklava (layers of nuts and filo pastry soaked in honey), kourambiedes (butter cookies covered with powdered sugar), koulourakia (twisty, buttery cookies), and more.
“We’re certainly known for our delicious food,” said the other Festival Co-Chair, Niki Kouretas. “Our volunteer cooks use family recipes that have been handed down for generations, and they’re eager to share this amazing food with our guests.”
One of the newer festival highlights is the platia, an outdoor village square, “resembling a delightful street in Greece lined with bistro tables and chairs, alongside our popular bookstore,” Kouretas said. The platia will feature frappes (iced coffee), Greek coffee, and baklava sundaes.
The Kafenion coffee house will offer a quiet, indoor space to relax with Greek or American coffee and yummy pastries.
Guests 21 and over will want to try distinctive Greek wines, beer, and liquor, such as the anise-flavored Ouzo aperitif and Metaxa brandy.
Festival visitors will find continuous entertainment on two large stages. At the main stage, they can dance to exciting music by a popular Greek band and watch folk dance groups perform their elaborate, dynamic steps.
At the outdoor amphitheater, reminiscent of the theaters of ancient Greece, children and adults alike will delight in a Greek mythology play, cooking demonstrations, and performances by the Aurora Mandolin Orchestra, Festival Chorus, and award-winning children’s entertainer Andy Z.
Throughout the weekend, there will be tours of the award-winning Byzantine-style church, including the stunning mosaic iconography. Other festival highlights will include a bookstore with Orthodox Christian publications, icons, and gifts, plus vendor boutiques featuring art, clothing, and jewelry.
To make sure the festival is fully staffed by the hard-working volunteers, the festival will be only two days this year instead of the traditional three, and the number of food items normally served in the Main Hall Restaurant will be slightly scaled down and served outside.
“This is an effort to focus on bringing the community back together and enjoy the outdoor experiences, and hopefully by next year we will be able to return to our three-day festival and re-open our indoor restaurant at full capacity,” Flocas said.
“We’ll still have most of our favorite dishes, as well as the same excellent quality, spectacular entertainment, and joyous kefi, or spirit, that festival guests have come to love,” Kouretas said.
The proceeds of the festival support the many ministries of Holy Cross Church, as well as monetary donations made to local charities. Past recipients of festival donations include the Second Harvest Food Bank of San Mateo County, Samaritan House in San Mateo, Bay Area Cancer Connections in Palo Alto, Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, and My New Red Shoes in Redwood City.
General admission is $6. For seniors and youth (ages 13-17), admission is $3. Children 12 and under are free with an adult.
The Belmont Greek Festival accepts only credit and debit cards. Cash can be exchanged for a cash card at the festival.
Pets are not permitted except for service animals.
For more information, explore this website further, or email us at [email protected], or call (650) 591-4447, or visit us on Facebook. Opa!