Kennett Square Mushroom Festival

The Kennett Square Mushroom Festival runs Saturday, September 12 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, September 13 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the weekend after Labor Day, same as always. The street fair covers about a mile of State Street and the surrounding roads in downtown Kennett Square, with 220-plus vendors. Admission is $5 per person and covers both days: buy at the entry points and wear the wristband. Cash and Venmo only. Festival parking is at Kennett High School (100 E South St) and Chatham Financial (235 White Horse Lane, with handicap accessible access), and shuttles run from both. The Kennett Square Parking Garage and the YMCA lot are independent, so no shuttle. It goes on rain or shine, it's stroller-friendly, and pets are not permitted on the grounds. The schedule leans hard into the fungus. Saturday has two rounds of the Mushroom "Chopped" contest (10 a.m. and 2 p.m.), chef demos at noon and 4 p.m., Damselfly on the music stage at noon, a children's magic show at the American Legion building, and Cory Glover and Vernon Reid playing an acoustic set from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday brings the Chopped finale at 10 a.m., the mushroom eating contest at noon, and two more chef demos. There's a growers exhibit and a kids zone both days, plus a 9/11 tribute fire truck show and fresh mushrooms for sale. Bring walking shoes and some cash, since some vendors may be cash-only.