Solano Stroll

I went to Solano Stroll in Sun 9÷13÷15. I woke up late and so missed the parade. Took the shuttle from North Berkeley Bart station and that was fine, not crowded at that time.
Walked around and got a bunch of freebies:
reusuable bags
Kind bars
Jelly Belly
pens
bike reflectors for my pants when I’m out walking
Milk from Andronico’s
Restaurants I need to try stil for future tripsl:
House of Curries
Bowl’d
Kathmandu Restaurant
Lao Thai Kitchen
This yr out Kyoto — take-​out sushi. Tasted ok, Cash Only.

I always used to enjoy the Stroll. Until it became a place to walk your dog or ride your bike. Just walk, people! Also, keep your political messaging to a minimum, I don’t know who thought it was a good idea to set up a booth to show how male circumcision works as a scare tactic to parents. Ooh, look mommy! What’s foreskin? Screw you guys, seriously.
Oh, and a «petting zoo» area that charges $ 5 for 5 minutes of petting. Have some class.

Very good, we are planning on going every year.

We were looking for something to do last weekend and on a lark decided to check out the Solano Stroll. I’d heard about it for years but never thought to go. What a loss. This street fair is one of the best I’ve ever been to, and I’ve been to a lot of street fairs. There’s something about the Berkeley/​Albany area that makes anything that happens there interesting. There were lots of interesting groups represented, the food we tried was delicious and it was fun to watch the people — and pets — who were there. I’ll definitely go next year.

26 blocks of FREE family fun! Screw that!
Ohhh, everyone LOVES the Stroll! NOT! More like 2600 reasons to stay out of Berkeley. Out-​of-​towners driving the wrong way on one-​way streets, ignoring road blocks and pushing their children into on-​coming traffic in the middle of the street. Not to mention the normal «I own the street because I ride a bike» a**wipes taking full advantage of the Stroll to break even more traffic laws than usual… well the list of morons out there just goes on. Next Stroll I’m actually out of «Entitled Town», if I’m still living here.
A 52 year-​old Berkeley native who misses the How Berkeley Can You Be parade

Allen Cain does an amazing job running the Solano Stroll, which is a HUGE event with more moving parts than you would believe possible. The event is amazingly family-​friendly, with so many special areas and activities for kids, and extremely eco-​responsible as well. There’s a licorice specialty vendor this year, which shows you how diverse the food options are! The Stroll is alcohol-​free, which makes it a great opportunity for those who prefer public events to be more relaxed, and don’t forget there’s a parade!

Allen does a great job of running this event! We’re about to enter our second year as an arts booth demonstration vendor — and am so excited to be here :)

Great environment to take the whole family, or a date, or just go with a couple friends. It’s good food, great entertainment and overall provides a fantastic sense of community. I would go every year.

Man, this event (along with the Mountain View Art and Wine festival) has to be my favorite in the entire bay area. I really love the easy-​going community vibe that permeates the neighborhood.
Albany seems to be a really great city anyway.
What are the differences between this festival and just about any another other in the bay area?
1) The main parade that commences the event: Fire engines, a Grand Marshall along with a few local quasi celebs and politicians. These are followed by marching bands, Carnaval-​type dancers, pre-​schoolers, high-​school organizations, political groups, etc.
2) The community owns it: The Berkeley-​Albany Girl Scout Service Unit was there, the Albany Lions Club Foundation, local martial arts schools had demonstrations, Berkeley Disaster Prep had a booth.
3) Better food selection: Plenty of brick and mortar restaurants & food booths were on both sides of the street. Little Star Pizza at the bottom of Solano, Zachary’s Pizza towards the top, Ajanta Indian, New Orlean Cajun Cooking Booth, a few Vietnamese booths, at least 2 sushi options, a fish & chips booth, a few spots service teriyaki rice bowls, and a couple of taquerias,. There were others but you get the point.
4) A great selection of live entertainment: The California Shakespeare Theater was there, along with high school bands, a large (20 – 30 piece) orchestra, a blues band and a few other live music performers.
5) Dogs are allowed (on leash): An interesting aspect of this festival is that they actually encourage people to bring their dogs along for the stroll. I’m not sure if this is good or bad but it certainly adds to the character of the event and as far as I can see, there haven’t been any negative incidents so far.
6) Activities for kids: Face painting, giant slides, a Ferris wheel and of course a «jumpy» house.
In my opinion they could use more photography vendors (my favorite) though. Although I figure there is a good reason why there were no fine art photographers selling.
This is a community and an event that ‘gets’ it. They do it right every year.

Everything a street fair should be.
I like to go to street fairs to oogle the cute doggies that everyone walks and daydream that I can take them all home with me ;)
Luckily, when we got there about 2 hours before closing on the last day, the crowd was comfortably sparse. Things were winding down, everyone was friendly and at ease. A stroll indeed.
We had a DELICIOUS crab garlic fries from one of the street food stands. The lady charged us $ 7 instead of the usual $ 8, just cuz. She was tipped the extra dollar.
Grazed at all the interesting handmade art things. Ended up buying two neat bamboo bowls from a really sweet older couple. One of the bowls was just barely damaged and thus discounted steeply.
All in all, a great last-​minute decision to attend!

Starting at the top of Solano at The Alameda (and close to Bangkok Jam) we began walking down the middle of the closed street along with about a gazillion other people.
This year’s Solano Stroll theme: «A Global A-​Faire. «
We ended at the foot of Solano near the Albany Theater just around the corner from San Pablo Ave. Our 2010 Solano Stroll had taken about two and a half hours. And this was just one way. It was fun, but slow going. Lots and lots of people.
«I felt like a grain of sand sliding slowly down the hourglass»
Said the Tinman. Or was it the Scarecrow? Or perhaps the Lion.
Never you mind, there was plenty for the crowd to do on this sunny afternoon. We were an orderly ‘n mellow bunch as we wended our way through carnival rides, sponsored booths, food vendors, and performing artists.
The folks looking for a heart found it…
The Berkeley-​Albany Girl Scout Service Unit was there, the Albany Lions Club Foundation was there, and there were so many opportunities to help all forms of fuzzy critters that the mind boggled. All things bright and beautiful had definitely arrived at the Faire.
The folks looking for a brain found it…
California Shakespeare Theater was there.
Many different schools were there.
Albany Preschool, El Cerrito Preschool, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Richmond Art Center, and the Young People’s Chamber Orchestra were all there.
To name a few.
Opportunities abounded.
Even the OLLI Lifelong Learning folks were there.
«E Pluribus Unum» for all, as it were… or was that «E Clampus Vitus». Can’t remember… the mind boggles.
The folks looking for courage…
Well, the Melody Club was there, should liquid courage be needed. The City of Berkeley Fire Department had a truck on display.
The Police Department sent a van just for show,.
Berkeley Disaster Prep had a booth.
Epworth United Methodist Church was there handing out little Rainbow Flags proclaiming «God is Love.»
The Golden Lion Martial Arts Center was one of a number of athletically oriented groups present.
Courage…or the ability to work toward gaining courage.
The Stroll had it all.
And as for me, Dorothy the Meek and the Humble…
After the Stroll down the crowded street, I just wanted to head for home.
It was fun, it was real; it was a bit like being swept away in a tornado.
And Smiley, Furby and Emmett Dogstar needed their dinner…
Trust me, even little dogs can have a meltdown when the kibble is not forthcoming.
Solano Stroll 2010 is history. It was fun. Goodbye for now, my pretties. see you next year.

First time at the Stroll and certainly not the last. I was forewarned to park far as it’ll be difficult to find parking. Having been raised in SF, parking wasn’t an obstacle. We ended up parking just 3 blocks away.
I love street festivals with so much to see, and shop around for. We’d been thinking of preschools for baby, and there were lots of preschool tents at the stroll. Anyways… we loved the stroll. Unfortunately, after a tri tip sandwich (not so good), chicken skewers (very good), fried oysters and garlic fries (yummy), and a blueberry funnel cake (too good)… hubby got sick and we had to go home. We made it about ½ way up the stroll… next year, we’ll pace it a little more in food and distance.
All in all, I really enjoyed this community event.

If you want to get to know Albany and Berkeley all at one time, this is your event.
Definitely one of the best local street fairs I’ve experienced in the Bay Area. It’s got everything:
Talent! Little girl gymnasts doing cartwheels without hands in the street. Taiko drumming. The Latino brothers band doing Santana covers. Russian folk dancing. Jiu jitsu. A Mexican folk choir. Some guy doing 80’s cover songs in a tie-​dye Elvis suit.
Food! Brentwood local farming. Frozen ice, Sausages, Corn-​on-​a-​stick, Thai food, and $ 3.50 Zachary’s by the slice (probably the only time you won’t have to wait 40 min for a pie). Tri-​tip, barbeque, funnel cake, falafels, and yes, even Jamba Juice and Peet’s have stands, also.
Art! If you ever wanted a glittery crown with streamers, an ethnic top woven by monks from the Himalayas, or to learn about all the local high schools in the area, this is your event!
Fun for the family! A gigantic blow-​up obstacle course for the kids (costs $$ of course). A fifty foot slide. A rock climbing wall sponsored by the Boy Scouts. A car getting blown up by the fire department. $ 1/​minute massages, and you can even figure out your health based on your tongue appearance and health, sponsored by the holistic acupuncture society.
Be aware: you will not walk faster than 0.0001 miles per hour. You should look where you’re walking, both straight ahead and at the 3-​foot level because of all the dogs and children running around.
** Free things I grabbed: toothbrushes and reusable grocery tote bags.
Since I live a few blocks away, I’ll definitely be back next year.

**Over-​priced food. Lots of Asian food stands that marked their prices up, 9 dollars for a plate of pad thai?
**Nice representation of local businesses but the very worse was the NEW YORK TIMES stand. I was not surprised that no one stopped by and when I asked the scruffy man behind the stand if I could have a cheap plastic pen (they had a bunch), the guy said I had to subscribe in order to get a 10 cents pen. At first I thought he was kidding because the other local businesses had candy and fancy pens as give-​aways as their advertisement. I don’t think I will ever subscribe to the New York Times after this awful experience at the Solano Stroll.
Overall, I had a blah experience that was not helped by the gray skies and chilly weather today.

Great energy at this street fair! Different music performances as you go up the street — classic rock, taiko drums, soul, hip-​hop, hawaiian, fire juggler (eh, it wasn’t as great as it sounds), and trapeze artist (again, not as good as it sounds).
There’s definitely something for everyone — food, clothes, knick knacks, community organizations to get involved in, organic food delivery, religious organizations, slides, and the bouncing machine for the kids.
What’s more great is that it’s within walking distance of my apt. so no hassle with the parking!

I’ve tried making it to this event every year since 2000. However, every time that i attend this event i have a blast with whomever i go with. I made sure i put in a request early to get this day off from work since now i kinda work weekends.
I made sure i didn’t get too slaughtered upon arrival to this event because i didn’t want to end up scrubbing my face on the pavement in a drunken state down by the ivy room like i did about 6 years ago at the same event while chasing after my friend. Dumb i know. Last years stroll i caught like the last 40 minutes of it due to a tattoo appointment in Berkeley.
This is an event that’s fun for everyone! Fun for the whole family as well! Alcohol-​free event but that didn’t stop myself and a whole lot of others LOL. I definitely got my drink on and had a blast walking up and down this years event with friends. Hell! i even got a free blow-​up Parrot which i carried with me up and down the stroll lol.
This years event had it all. I mean i believe it was probably bigger than last years and 10 times more the people. I recommend you check it out and attend this event. unfortunately, this is an annual event so you’ll have to wait till next year. Sorry lol.
5 out of 5 stars for this years solano ave stroll.

This was my second year to go Strolling, and I plan to continue going as long as I live in the area. Bring good walking shoes, as it’s 26-​blocks (about 1.25 miles) from top to bottom, though only a 1−2% grade. There’s a free shuttle from the bottom back to the top, in addition to the free shuttle from North Berkeley BART. Do yourself a favor and don’t even consider trying to park within ½ mile of Solano Avenue – it’s just not gonna happen.
The bottom ¼ of the fair is mostly a kids’ playland (lots of slides and bouncy houses) and the food booths. The middle is lots of Saturday Market-​type craft booths, and the upper ¼ is mostly civil and social service agencies. There are small bands about every 2 blocks, and this seemed to be dominated by jazz groups. Several athletic studios, from martial arts to circus aerobatic to the ubiquitous 24-​Hour Fitness, had demonstrations as well. Be forewarned that as with any street fair, you will be repeatedly accosted with lots of fliers and the various booths and displays are nearly all designed to separate you from your wallet. But at least you’ll enjoy the food, music, and people-​watching in the process, and hey, all that walking is good exercise!
There was quite a display of contrasts in the mix, too. From people bringing their large dogs – which drew adoring attention from kids and adults alike – to folks bringing their Paris Hilton-​esque lapdogs (you know, the ones that are the size of a loaf of bread) – which was clearly and justifiably terrifying for the dogs as they tried to avoid getting stepped on by the massive crowd. There was also the performance by the hoochie-​dancing 8-​year-​old girls that contrasted with the t-​shirts being hawked across the street saying «Barbie is a doll, not a goal».

S O M U C H F U N !!!
Live bands for continuous music and dancing, plus lots of cute shops and hard-​to-​reisit food booths, generating lots of energy and cheers… This is what I’d like EVERY street fair to be.
Gauranteed, I’ll be there again next year.
(Yeah, this is a short write-up…the loooong drive tired me out. Please read other reviews for more details.)

I just walked home from the Solano Stroll for the 2^nd time today. My son and I usually try to get there in the morning before the parade starts. And by the time the afternoon kicks in, it’s almost wall-​to-​wall people.
This IS my favourite street fair in the Bay Area or elsewhere, hands down. It’s more of a community gathering that showcases a really great, diverse, and always changing Albany/​Berkeley neighbourhood and what it has to offer. For anyone to say that this giant block party would be the same year after year, completely misses the point!
Here are my own personal highlights from this year:
1. THE COMMUNITY PARADE, led by this year’s Grand Marshall — former Mayor Jewell!
2. THE COMMUNITY. Where lots of people know your name! Great people and dog watching too. But watch out for the sometimes aggressive stroller moms and their adorable babies.
3. THE COMMUNITY GROUPS. The ones that caught my attention was all the Green-​related stuff, various churches and synagogues (but where were the Unitarians?), school and library groups, the Desert Survivors Hiking Group, the Berkeley Camera Club, the BAHA, and others too numerous to mention.
4. THE FOOD. For lunch, I had a very tasty falafal from Zands and the day before had my pizza by the slice from Zachary’s (try to stuffed spinach and mushroom). There was also pie from Walkers (sigh…they’re closing) and coffee from Peets. Too bad I missed the Indian buffet and the Thai at the top of the hill and the outdoor seating at Fonda.
5. THE BOOZE. Well actually, I didn’t drink alcohol at the Stroll. However, the Ivy Room was giving out free drink tickets and what comes to mind Unilocal-​wise is the DYL Group and my desire to someday cover the Dive Bars of Albany.
6. The ENTERTAINMENT. The belly dancers were back, as were lots of different bands, Akido demonstrations, etc. I didn’t hear or see much Zydeco music this year. And some day, I will see Tim C. doing his Elvis imitation!
7. THE POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS. In this neck of the woods, there wasn’t a McCain — Palin campaign button to be found. There was of course an Obama booth and the Metro Dogs Barack poster for sale. And then there were all the local Albany and Berkeley council, school board, and initiative races going on. My only concern is that this Midwest Liberal feels a little left out in this sometimes elitist East Bay «Progressive» surge.
8. THE EXERCISE. During the Stroll, it’s so easy to walk up and down Solano. I have to do more of that the rest of the time. I also ducked into Fit Lite during the Stroll for a great workout in an empty gym. And they had cold water and other convenient facilities.
9. THE CRAFTS. The Solano Stroll is really not an arts and crafts fair, although they have improved in this area over the years. This time around I enjoyed Gathering Tribes (thanks Pennie!), Elaine Chu’s handcrafted papers and bindings, and Pacha World’s Fair Trade products.
My son had a great time too and spent a lot of his time at Dave’s Dugout. And chasing him around was the big reason I didn’t get the chance to meet up with the Unilocal group at the Stroll. Sorry…

My favorite street fair in the Bay Area, hands down. I actually look forward to it every year.
There’s just so much going on, and Solano is just the perfect street to absorb it all, with its size and view of the Bay, as you can see in my photo. The food offerings are plentiful. The live performances (especially the belly-​dancing girls) are good, not cringeworthy like at other fairs. The people-​watching is a lot of fun. There’s even bike «valet» parking. Since it’s in September, sunny weather is practically guaranteed.
What’s not to love? If they ever bring back the frozen-​cheesecake-​on-​a-​stick booth, I’d give the Stroll 6 stars.
So much better than staying home watching the Niners and Raiders open their season with a loss.