Beer and Bacon Festival

Beer and Bacon? What’s not to love! Well… not so fast. We purchased VIP tickets back in December when priced at $ 39 for a grand total of $ 87.17 for two with taxes and fees. We arrived before noon, free parking, and check-​in was seamless. Food was hot and the beer was flowing even before the noon kick off which was great. This was my first time at this event but others we were with stated that there was more people than last year for VIP. Lines were long but manageable for the VIP session from noon-​2pm. We were able to try all the food stations within that time which was nice because by 3:30pm most places had already run out of food. If you do the VIP session I recommend eating first, got to lay a base down for all that beer :). Most food items were pretty average though, nothing gourmet to say the least. When 2pm rolled around and general admission came in the lines got even longer but by 4pm lines were almost nonexistent. By then all the good beers were out and the place started to look like a ghost town. Music was pretty good if you enjoy Journey and country music but they never did the whole hog butchering class. I did enjoy the event and felt like I got my money’s worth but not sure I would attend again. I really enjoyed the World Beer Festival and would rather attend that one again when choosing between the two. I recommend getting the VIP session if you do go and purchase the tickets well in advance to get the discount.

Who doesn’t like beer and bacon? I have been to this event at least 3 times now and I always have a good time. I do agree with other reviews that the lines can get very long for both food and beer, so you definitely need to bring your patience.
I am usually not a huge craft beer fan, but I did enjoy sampling the Crispin, White Street Kolsch, a few Pilsners and IPA’s. As far as food, they are all just samples of course but I enjoyed the BLT, bacon explosion, bacon pizza, beer battered fried mac and cheese, bacon jalapeño hush puppies, and the oh so popular bacon station.
They have always held this particular event at Koka Booth in Cary in late March or early April (as with 2016) and it can be a bit chilly/​rainy at this time of the year, but I think I prefer a chill over a blazing hot August which is when the Beer, Bourbon and BBQ festival is held. Anyway, I like both these festivals in addition to the Great Grapes Wine festival later in April all brought to us by the Trigger Agency, an events and promotions company based in Baltimore.
In addition to the food and beer, I enjoyed listening to the musical entertainment; Trial by Fire (Journey cover band), and Kasey Tyndall (local country/​rock act).
I look forward to attending the Beer and Bacon Festival again next year!

Let me start by saying that we have been to this event before.
This year, we had VIP admission and were one of the first to be admitted at NOON.
Our first 40 minutes here were great. Lines were minimal. The food and beer were flowing.
At around 12:40 it became VERY CROWDED !!! There were lines almost everywhere. They obviously decided to UP THE HEAD COUNT for VIP admission.
My favorite foods were from Tazhikis (pork slider) and from Cameron Bar And Grill (pulled pork slider).
WHERE WAS THE CHOCOLATE
COVERED BACON ??? Nowhere to be found !! There were NO types of desserts !! Even the kettle corn guy was missing (and I brought some $$ for him).
We will be heading out around 2 because when they open the gates for general admission it’s gonna be bad
Where do I get my Unilocal Poncho ???

I gave a ticket for the festival to my husband for Christmas and we looked forward to the festival for months. My sister and brother in law came in from Florida to go with us too. The beer selection was excellent but the bacon offerings were in my humble opinion quite sub par. I have watched beer and bacon festival shows on cooking channels and the food offerings are actually full portions of burgers or other dishes. At this venue the bacon and portions were embarrassingly small and not satisfying. We stood in line for 20 minutes for 2 pitiful slices of bacon that were gone practically as soon as we stepped away from the server. Some of the items were tasty but too small, and I am really not a big eater. I felt this was very overpriced for the above mentioned reasons and will not want to go next year. Pleasant day out but frankly disappointing.

My husband and I bought Groupon tickets for Friday night and even though it had been raining and there was mud everywhere, we had a fantastic time at this festival! The only downside were the long lines for the bathroom and for food. Lines for beer, bourbon, and other vendors were not too long. The music was good, everyone was in good spirits and we plan on buying tickets every year! A new family tradition!

Beer and Bacon were absolutely wonderful, the lines not so much.

It was fun to get out and do something different. Overall though, the ticket price wasn’t totally worth it for non-​VIP. The lines were ridiculously long and the food ran out, fast. It was a tough call — wait in line for the beer or the food? Obviously the beer won, and sadly, they weren’t worth writing home about. The «samples» were enough for one bite, and if you didn’t hurry and jump into the next line, you risked the food being completely gone. Considering going back next year and would definitely get the VIP tickets.

The amphitheatre is beautiful and the beers, vodkas, ciders, boubon and whiskey were good, but the lines were a bit long. If it doesn’t rain next year, I recommend separating the vendors into their own booths, to give people more room to mingle and wait in line. The lines blended, and on one side of the large tent, there was a lot of congestion as people waited to approach the various vendors. I like that you had a DD ticket — and was happy we had our own DD. I would suggest adding more food options for next year.

Had a lot of fun at this event. But… The lines were incredibly too long, the food was all in tiny portions, and there weren’t that many vendors. If they want to let THAT many people in, they need to TRIPLE the amount of beer and food… Or they just only need to sell a certain amount of tickets, and when they’re sold, say «sold out» and DON’T sell them at the door the day of. We bought the VIP tickets and it was not worth the price…

Lines were kinda long for beers. Entry was pricy for what you got but it was a good time! Need more vendors and samples. Would do it again hoping weather is better!

This festival is a blast! I would definitely recommend the VIP session as you get more trips to the beer tents, and shorter lines at all the food tastings. Delicious, well thought out bacon dishes, good beer, and a bonus for the wine & bourbon tastings!