Taste of Boysenberry Festival - Opening Weekend
theFUNnelCakeBog visited Knott's twice during the opening weekend of Taste of Boysenberry Festival. Please enjoy our video recap installments and photos taken at the event.
THE DETAILS: Guests can catch a taste of the popular springtime Boysenberry Festival, with the all-new Knott’s Taste of Boysenberry Festival.
The retail and food event offers boysenberry-inspired savory bites, sweet treats, and refreshing drinks that can’t be found anywhere else. While the theme park remains closed, the food and merchandise-focused outdoor event offers over 80 boysenberry-infused food and drink items which are included on the event tasting card.
Guests can also shop from a wide variety of boysenberry-inspired merchandise including event apparel, kitchenware, and pre-packaged take-home sweets. In addition, you will find handmade and personalized gifts from over 20 artisan local crafters offering unique boysenberry items.
Knott's Taste of Boysenberry Festival takes place on select dates March 5th through May 2nd. Event hours are 12 pm to 9 pm select Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and from 12 pm to 8 pm on Sundays. View the calendar to find event days and hours.
All Knott's Taste of Boysenberry Festival activities and outdoor dining will be conducted at a safe and socially distant space for families to enjoy.
The only way to experience this limited-time food event, is with a tasting card purchased in advance (a tasting card is required for event entry).
Regular tasting cards (ages 12+) are priced at $45 (plus tax) and include five food tastings and Junior tasting cards (ages 3-11) are $20 (plus tax) and include three tastings.
Tasting cards are date specific and must be purchased online at knotts.com or through the Knott’s Berry Farm mobile app prior to the date of visit. In order to manage proper physical distancing of guests, Knott's Taste of Boysenberry Festival tasting cards will be limited each day and may sell out.
Download Tasting Card Items and Locations Guide
OUR TAKE An annual Knott's Berry Farm seasonal event, the Boysenberry Festival returns for 2021 after being cancelled just days prior to its scheduled opening in 2020. In fact, on our last visit to the park on a regular operating day last March, the banner was up over Main Street and the merchandise started to appear in the shops. While this year's "Taste of Boysenberry Festival" event is billed as a scaled-down, socially-distant, limited capacity, specially ticketed experience, guests partaking in the fun should not notice much difference other than Knott's well implemented new safety measures. Minus the masks and the absence of screaming teenagers on the roller coasters, this past weekend's opening felt like a normal day out.
Knott's was the first Southern California theme park to re-open its gates last summer offering a "dining and retail" experience which fell under allowable activities within California's strict COVID-19 guidelines. With the "Taste of Calico," Knott's proved to be the leader in offering safe, clean, and amazingly fun entertainment in a time of much uncertainty. Three more sold-out festivals followed. The highlight of the year was "Taste of Fall-o-Ween," which managed to still offer a sampling of the ever-popular Knott's Scary Farm. With Disney, Universal and Six Flags still closed, fans and passholders of other parks flooded the berry farm with glowing exit reviews. Those that would never step foot inside "the other park" (yes, you... Disney APs) started to realize what us KBF fanatics knew all along... Knott's offers a down-home atmosphere, with friendly service, delicious food, beautiful landscape, quality entertainment, and an incredible value. What many of us didn't know is how well Knott's could pivot, and not only pivot, but provide the blueprint for reopening and become the envy of the "house of mouse" down the street, and the "spinning globe" up north in Hollywood. Fast forward months later, Disney is now offering a similar event at California Adventure, and Universal is set to open their own "Taste of Event" in the coming days. While Knott's has noticeably increased its "limited capacity" since its first event last summer, their commitment to safety and cleanliness has not been compromised. In fact, I have yet to see one review from a guest with complaints regarding to feeling safe or comfortable within the park. To every berry lover's delight, this year's festival kicked off to a sold-out weekend on March 5, with over 80 boysenberry themed main dishes, beverages, and desserts. While the rides remain closed (for now), you hardly miss them. Live entertainment, a virtual scavenger hunt, streetmosphere, character interactions, crafter booths, wood carving demonstrations, and numerous shopping opportunities will make you completely forget the rides are even there. Please enjoy our videos and photos, which should give you a feel for the event, which runs through May 2. If you are thinking of going, buy your tickets now... as it will sell out! THE FOOD WE TRIED
Between our tasting cards and additional purchases, we tried over two dozen items during the opening weekend. Our favorite main dishes included: Boysenberry BBQ Carne Asada Pizza Slice with Cilantro and Onions Boysenberry BBQ Brisket Mac and Cheese Salmon and Orzo Salad with Boysenberries on Spinach Chef Special Tamale with Boysenberry Roja Sauce over Spanish Rice Etouffee, Shrimp, and Boysenberry Sausage over Rice with Naan Bread Acai Bowl with Granola, Boysenberries, Cran-raisins, and Nutella, Boysenberry Shrimp Ceviche with Tortilla Chips. In terms of desserts and beverages, we loved: Boysenberry Pineapple Cucumber Agua Fresca Boysenberry and Basil Lemonade ACE Berry (alcoholic) Cider Boysenberry and White Chocolate Chip Cookiewich with Vanilla Soft Serve Boysenberry Cake with a Boysenberry Cream Cheese Icing
THE ENTERTAINMENT Knott's never fails to deliver in the entertainment and atmosphere department. While current guidelines prohibit the posting of show times to avoid crowds gathering, characters strategically placed throughout Ghost Town interact and greet the crowd. The Deputy Mayor welcomes guests from atop the Gold Trails Hotel. You can evenly safely (and from a distance) meet the Easter Beagle in Camp Snoopy and the Easter Bunny (after partaking in a virtual egg hunt) atop the ramp at the Charles M. Schulz Theatre. Krazy Kirk and the Hillbillies return with LIVE performances on the Calico Mine Stage while diners partake in their delicious eats. Enjoy the magic of Hayden Allcorn in Calico Square. While in the Boardwalk tune into KNOT, a live (and hilarious) radio show broadcast from the stage across from Coasters Diner.
DECOR AND LANDSCAPE
We truly believe Knott's consistently is the best decorated and most beautifully landscaped park in Southern California. No matter the season, the Knott's landscape and décor teams blow the competition out of the water. Both departments offer an immersive and gorgeous setting taking full use of springtime flowers and the parks iconic berry. The setting is a photographer's dream and provides dozens of Instagram-worthy backdrops.
AFTER DARK Make sure to stay after dark and see how the park comes alive awash in vibrant colors. Again, a photographer's dream!
Links to theFUNnelCakeBlog coverage of past Knott's tasting events: Taste of Merry Farm Taste of Fall-oWeen