Happy Memorial Day weekend! With an extra day to rest, there’s no excuse not to make the most of all the fun things to do in San Diego, from a Pulitzer-winning Hamlet retelling to a festival celebrating native plants and the critters that help them thrive. Here are 13 of the best upcoming events in the city.
Food and Drink | Concerts and Theater | Festivals and Art | More Things to Do
Food & Drink Events in San Diego This Weekend
Havana 1920 Diplomático Rum Pairing Dinner
May 23
Cuban cuisine crafters Havana 1920 are launching a new dinner series, pairing their eats with a variety of cocktails that feature Diplomático Rum. This Thursday at 7 p.m., guests will enjoy an off-menu, three-course meal with mixed drinks designed for each dish. GBOD beverage director Ryan Andrews and Diplomático Rum brand ambassador Evan Charest will guide diners through their tasting experience with flavor facts and insights about each rum. The dinner costs $65 per person, including a $25 reservation deposit to secure your spot.
548 Fifth Avenue, Gaslamp
Cutwater Mezcal Cocktail Class
May 23
Curious if you could hold your own behind the bar? Test out your mixology skills with a special cocktail-making class led by bartender Hayley Wilcox this Thursday at Cutwater Tasting Room & Kitchen. Wilcox will teach attendees how to make a fresh and flavorful mezcal paloma and give them the chance to add a special twist to the drink with items from the garnish bar. Guests will also get to sample Mezcal Joven and take home a Cutwater cantarito mug. Spots for this class, which begins at 6 p.m., can be reserved for $35.
9750 Distribution Avenue, Miramar
Vista Strawberry Festival
May 26
The community of Vista—once the strawberry epicenter of California—hosts its annual ode to the scrumptious red berry with a free fruit festival this Sunday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Attendees can enjoy a craft beer garden, contests, a community short film festival, and a smorgasbord of fresh strawberries plucked from local fields. The festival also includes a 5K and kids’ run (one mile or a quarter-mile) the morning of the festival; all runners aged 21 and up will receive one free beer at the festival.
170 Eucalyptus Avenue, Vista
Concerts & Theater in San Diego This Weekend
San Diego International Fringe Festival
Through May 26
As the San Diego International Fringe Festival enters its second week, see some of the event’s most innovative productions, such as No Regrets. Held at the Les Girls Theater in Point Loma, the show marries live jazz and burlesque to tell the true story of strippers standing up to corrupt local cops. The Best Man Show at the Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theatre will make you squirm with secondhand embarrassment as a drunken best man speech turns into a full breakdown. Admission to each show is $13, plus the required $7 Fringe Tag.
3790 Riley Street, Midway | 2130 Pan American Plaza, Balboa Park
Maggie Rogers at Petco Park’s Gallagher Square
May 23
Fresh off the April 2024 release of her album Don’t Forget Me, folktronica artist Maggie Rogers—whose music moved Pharrell in a viral video taken when he visited her NYU classroom in 2016—will perform at Gallagher Square at Petco Park this Thursday night at 7 p.m. Before Rogers takes the stage, catch a supporting set from dream pop artist The Japanese House. Tickets range from $40 to $65.
840 K Street, Downtown
Fat Ham at the Old Globe
Opens May 25
The winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, playwright James Ijames’ Hamlet retelling follows Juicy, a queer Black college student tasked by the ghost of his father to pursue vengeance on his killer. Watch him decide whether to heed the call in this tender dramedy. The Old Globe will host 34 performances of Fat Ham during its month-long run on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage. Tickets for this weekend’s pair of shows start at $42.
1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park
Coronado Promenade Summer Concert Series
Begins May 26
The City of Coronado’s free annual concert series returns this Sunday with the first of 16 shows at Spreckels Park. The tunes kick off with a performance from the Coronado Concert Band at 4:30 p.m., followed by Laurie Beebe Lewis & The Electric Underground at 6:30 p.m. Lewis, formerly of The Buckinghams and The Mamas & The Papas, will perform a repertoire of ’60s rock n’ roll hits from the biggest artists of the psychedelic era.
601 Orange Avenue, Coronado
Festivals & Art Exhibits in San Diego This Weekend
Colors of Home Exhibit at Gallery 21
Through June 3
While venturing Balboa Park’s many cultural offerings, locals and visitors can check out a new exhibition from Encinitas-based artist Denise Cerro at Gallery 21, located within the Spanish Village Art Center. Cerro’s mixed-media works depict abstract yet familiar objects and spaces awash in hues of orange, green, and blue. The gallery will hold an opening reception for Colors of Home from 12 to 4 p.m. this Sunday.
1770 Village Place, Balboa Park
Kuumba Festival at the Educational Cultural Complex
May 24–26
Held in the heart of San Diego’s Black Arts and Culture District, the 32nd annual Kuumba Fest centers Black arts, culture, and dance. The three-day programming includes an African marketplace, reggae musicians, DJs, panels, keynote speakers, and many choreographed dance performances.
6727 Imperial Avenue, Encanto
Undocumented Times / Queer Yearnings at Oceanside Museum of Art
Opens May 25
On display at the Oceanside Museum of Art through October 6, Undocumented Times / Queer Yearnings is a collection of poems and paintings depicting Mexican-American artist Alexa Vazquez’s coming-of-age story as an undocumented queer and trans woman immigrant. On Saturday, June 8, see Undocumented Times and the upcoming More Disruption exhibition at a dual opening reception that is free for museum members and $15 for visitors.
704 Pier View Way, Oceanside
Pollinator Festival at Native West Nursery
May 25
From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, amateur botanists and green-thumb gardeners can help nurture nature at The Little Barn at Native West Nursery. Shop and take home more than 100 native plant species and enjoy live music, local craft vendors, educational booths, kids’ activities, and food from The Go Go food truck. Attendees can also buy herbal products, flower bouquets, candles, and glass art and learn about conservation, pollinators, plant species, and local environmental programs. RSVP for this free event here.
1849 Leon Avenue, Tijuana River Valley
More Fun Things To Do in San Diego This Weekend
Terry Virts: How to Astronaut at The Baker-Baum Concert Hall
May 23
Out of the billions of people to ever walk the Earth’s surface, less than a thousand have ever ventured through the Earth’s atmosphere into outer space. Astronaut Terry Virts is part of this esteemed club. As part of the La Jolla Music Society’s Speaker Series, Virts will reflect on his time as commander of the International Space Station and journey from flying F-16s to guiding the Space Shuttle Endeavour. He’ll share photos and videos shot on his zero-gravity expedition, giving the audience a glance at what life is truly like among the cosmos. Tickets for Thursday’s speaker event at The Baker-Baum Concert Hall, beginning at 7 p.m., range from $23 to $48.
7600 Fay Avenue, La Jolla
Santee Street Fair & Craft Beer Festival
May 25
TThe Santee Chamber hosts a day of free, family-friendly fun at the 14th annual Santee Street Fair. In addition to exploring live music, art exhibitions, carnival rides, and more than 300 craft vendor and food booths, San Diegans can enjoy a pancake breakfast served up by local Boy Scouts and taste the best of local breweries at the craft beer garden. Ticket options for the beer garden include five six-ounce beer samples for $15 or 10 samples for $20. VIP beer and lunch tickets cost $25 and come with 10 tasters and a bacon-wrapped hot dog courtesy of Doggos Gus.
198 Riverview Parkway, Santee
