Howdy! In my neck of the woods, there is always something fun going on in Downtown Cuyahoga Falls. From performances and festivals to outdoor movie nights and big holiday events, it is a popular place to be. The area is lined with cute boutiques, tasty restaurants, and cozy bars and is the crowning jewel of CFalls. The festivals that take place include the Italian Fest, Irish Fest, and Oktoberfest and Johnny and his parents loved to go to all of them back in the day. Myself on the other hand? I have NEVER been to one Riverfront Fest and that really blew Johnny’s mind as I have lived in Cfalls my entire life. This past weekend was the Italian Fest and Johnny has been so anxious to take me to my very first one so we stopped by on Saturday. Check it out:

^^^ THE TANKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Whenever Johnny talks about different Riverfront Fests, I always say the exact same thing: “So you just walk around and eat?” The answer is always a resounding YES and I now know that to be very true lol. When we got to the Riverfront, it was lined with food trucks of every kind imaginable. There were some vendors, games to play, and a band prepping to start but all I cared about was filling my stomach. I was starving!

My only request for the Italian Fest was that I absolutely had to get a fresh squeezed lemonade because it is one of my favorite summer treats. We decided to take a lap around to see which food truck we would order our lunch from. Blessedly, a lemonade stand was right at the beginning of our rounds and I basically ran to it and ordered myself a large cup. When Johnny caught up, he asked me why I didn’t get the fifteen dollar tanker and I told him I didn’t want to put him out because this date was on him. Even though my large lemonade was already ready, he asked the girls working the booth if I could have a Tanker too and they happily obliged. This freaking growler of lemonade was as hilarious as it was heavy and Johnny and I took turns toting it around and sipping liberally. It was DELICIOUS and we both plan on jokingly taking our Tanker to work as our water tumbler for the day. What a hoot! 🙂

Saturday was an incredibly hot day and we thought it would be better to grab some grub and take it home to eat. Us vampires can’t be in the sun for too long and we are trying to be much more cautious after the Great Sunburn of 2025 from Geneva On The Lake! Regardless of this plan, I was too damn hungry to not get at least a snack while we continued to scope out food trucks. I knew exactly what I wanted too – a huge piece of street corn from a local vendor. I have heard nothing but good things about Johnny Lote’s street corn and all of the rumors are true. It was divine and I could have knocked back several ears no problem. Johnny Lote’s food truck is always at the Akron Rubberducks games and I know what I will be getting next time we cheer on our home team to Duck Em Up. 😀

Johnny had talked up the Stromboli from the Italian Fest for so long and that’s what we decided to go with. As much as I would have loved some pasta, I wasn’t trying to have a steaming bowl of marinara on a hot AF day lol. We ordered a classic Stromboli for Johnny and a veggie one for me and I couldn’t wait to dig in. Since Johnny had been singing the Stromboli praises for forever, we thought we were both in for a treat. Sadly, it was quite possibly the worst Stromboli we have ever had. They were doughy, soggy, and had minimal fillings so it was pretty much just like eating soggy uncooked bread. It was SO disappointing and I was STILL hungry but at least I got my Tanker!!!!

The Italian Fest experience was exactly what I knew it would be: Walking around and eating food. But I am so glad that I got to go to my first one with Johnny and he was so proud to take me. We had a blast even if the Stromboli sucked!

Do you have a favorite food truck? Do you have an area similar to the Riverfront in your neck of the woods? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah