Street Fest brings bands, food, games to downtown Palatine

With three days of live music from some of the area's favorite bands, food for every taste, and plenty of activities and entertainment for kids, the heart of Palatine will be the place to be in the Northwest suburbs this weekend.

The annual Downtown Palatine Street Fest kicks off at 5 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Brockway and Slade streets, just north of Palatine Road and only blocks from the village's Metra station. The event runs until midnight Friday, then 11 a.m. to midnight Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.

Opening night features four bands on the festival's main stage, headlined by Sixteen Candles, which plays at 10 p.m. Jack Higgins starts the festivities, taking the stage at 5 p.m., followed by West Side Winders at 6:30 p.m., and Rod Tuffcurls & The Bench Press at 8 p.m.

The music begins at noon Saturday with the Good Mondays, followed by Late Night FM at 1:30 p.m., and kids' favorite Ralph's World at 3 p.m. 97 Nine takes the stage at 4:30 p.m., followed at 6:15 p.m. by Suburban Cowboys and The Railers at 8:30 p.m. The night's headliner, Chris Janson, goes on at 10 p.m.

On Sunday, the music gets underway at noon with Ember Ocean, followed by the Kevin Presbrey Band at 1 p.m., Bucket Number 6 at 2:30 p.m., and Hello Weekend at 4 p.m. Mike & Joe close out the festival with a 6 p.m. performance.

In between the performances, fest-goers can satisfy their appetites with food from some of their favorite local eateries. Among the options will be selections from Siri Thai, Slice of Chicago, Mexico Uno, Photos Hot Dogs, Artistic Cuisine, Brothers' BBQ, Pizza Bella, Ben & Jerry's, Heybeck's Meat Market, Yumz and Signature Sweets.

For the younger set, the fest offers the Kids Zone from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. The zone features a mix of hands-on activities, games, entertainment and demonstrations.

All-inclusive wristbands for the Kids Zone are available for purchase at a discounted price of $5 at Mariano's in Palatine. All proceeds go to the Palatine Township Food Pantry.

For a full Kids Zone schedule or more information about the fest, visit www.palatinestreetfest.com.

Sunday will see the running of the 11th annual Feet Fest, a 3K family fun run/walk organized by the Palatine Park District and sponsored by Palatine Bank & Trust. The race begins at 8:30 a.m. at Towne Square, 150 W. Palatine Road. For more information, visit www.palatineparks.org.

After the runners, dogs and cats will take over Towne Square for the annual Sweet Pea Pet Parade, beginning at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. Members of the community are invited to bring their best pet friends to the event. Animals and their owners are encouraged to dress up to participate in the parade, or you can just come as they are.

Participants are asked to arrive between 10:45 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. to pick up their personalized parade paddles. The event is free, but preregistration is required to be eligible for judging and prizes.to register, visit downtownpalatine.org.

If you go

Downtown Palatine Street Fest

When: 5 p.m. to midnight, Friday, Aug. 22; 11 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, Aug. 23; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 24

Where: Slade and Brockway streets, downtown Palatine

Info: www.palatinestreetfest.com