During the first full week of October don't come near the west side of Evansville unless you are prepared to have fun, eat greasy food, and hear some great entertainment. For the last 75 years, the annual Nut Club Fall Festival has been turning all of Franklin Street into a playground! Reportedly the second largest street festival (right after Mardi Gras) in the United States, the Fall Festival has something for everyone.
Up and down the city sidewalks are food booths created and ran by local non-profit organizations. University clubs, church groups, high school band troops, and others peddle a variety of food from huge brain sandwiches to mouthwatering strombolis. In for a little exotic fare? You might want to try candy bugs (real grasshoppers smothered in chocolate or captured in a clear lollipop), ostrich burgers, alligator gumbo, or a walking taco. Of course the corn dogs, cotton candy, carmel apples, and cider help to give you the true atmosphere of autumn.
Besides the bountiful food are the rides! Scary rides, fast rides, kiddie rides, haunted house rides: we have them all. Ticket prices are also relatively inexpensive. On Wednesday and Thursday a bracelet is offered for $15 which entitles the wearer to unlimited rides all night long!
If that's not enough, you can enjoy live entertainment every evening as well! While some of the competitions are a bit cheesy (junior high tug-of-war and talent show), they will give you a little of the local flavor. In addition, local bands play every night. On Saturday, the festivities begin with the pet parade which showcases cute kids and their even cuter animals, then winds down with a real parade at dusk.
While none of the booths at the festival seel alcohol, many of the pubs along Franklin Street open their doors to customers who want something a little stronger than cider to accompany their tenderloins and cheese sticks.
There are no lodgings nearby, but some very nice accomodations can be find about fifteen minutes away in either direction.
If you've never experienced a street festival, you don't know what you're missing. We might not have half-naked women throwing beads around, but we do have a lot of midwestern enthusiasm to share with you!