One of the most popular annual events in the area will be taking place this weekend.

In Kennett Square, the first of the events connected with the 33rd annual Mushroom Festival will be taking place on Friday night as visitors can enjoy the community parade, dining and dancing in the streets, and the old-fashioned carnival.

The Mushroom Festival's street fair, featuring more than 250 vendors from all across the country, will take place from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday. The street fair helped transform the Mushroom Festival into a major regional event, and certainly one of the top food festivals in the entire country.

The festival's celebration of Chester County's top crop—the mushroom—includes numerous culinary events. A wide range of chefs will share their love of cooking mushrooms. Featured guests this year include Melissa D'Arabian, star of Food Network's Ten Dollar Dinners and chef Jennifer Daskevich, who was the 2013 World Food Sandwich Champion. There will be an amateur mushroom cook-off and sales of fresh mushrooms throughout the town. Mushroom soup will be available at the Masonic Lodge, there will be a painted mushrooms silent auction, as well as a Cute-as-a-Button Photo Contest.

There will also be music and children's entertainment throughout the festival on Saturday and Sunday. Alejandro Escovedo will be headlining the performances at the Kennett Flash on Saturday evening.

The fun and festivities continue on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Soup and Wine event takes place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. There will be plenty of food and family-friendly fun throughout the day.

A full schedule of events for the Kennett Square Mushroom Festival can be found in the Mushroom Festival Guide or online at mushroomfestival.org.

The festival in Kennett Square will attract many visitors from all around the area. For local residents, this weekend presents an opportunity to help celebrate what makes southern Chester County such a great place to live and work.

Enjoy!