Loomis Eggplant Festival

While other countries (China and India especially) outpace ours in the production and consumption of eggplants, there’s one thing they conspicuously lack: the Loomis Eggplant Festival. Other festivals may boast produce trendier with the youths, but there’s a charm to the nightshade fruit. The fest’s eggplant cooking contest celebrates innovations in dishes, and you’d be hard-pressed to ignore the day’s offerings of music (The Buckoffs, Amanda Gray), animals (goats, chickens) and performances (hula, dance demos). As if you need more encouragement to attend, the entire event kicks off with an eggplant kazoo parade—no better Saturday morning exists. 5775 Horseshoe Bar Road, loomischamber.com/eggplant-festival.