I played the part of Street Food Cinema newbie this past Saturday. It was a great night, with a great crowd, and awesome organization (as someone who has done tons of events, I was totally impressed). From the screen to the speakers, to the way the food trucks were arranged, I could appreciate that the Street Food Cinema team members were clearly old pros at creating an experience. I wasn’t alone in this as I could hear the conversations all around us, and several of the other movie-goers were returners. Families, couples, kids and dogs were all friendly and comfortable neighbors with each other. We happened to semi-adopt a small child and miniature white fluffy thing (dog), in fact, who both wandered over to our blanket multiple times. Keeping the dog, sadly, was out of the question.

There may be other parts of LA where a giant crowd can make for unfriendly behaviors – I’d say the culture of Street Food Cinema is precisely the opposite: down to earth, friendly, and inclusive. The feature this past Saturday was the Addams Family (SO great) and several little girls were dressed like Wednesday while moms and dads and hipster couples were dressed like Gomez and Morticia. I love Halloween and all things Addams family, so the tone of the night was set early, i.e. I was a giddy 7-year-old for the majority of the evening as each black dress and set of braids passed by.

Blankets, chairs, coolers, and just about every other picnic and/or comfort-lending item is welcome at SFC. The seasoned SFC veterans had bedroom-like shops set up for multiple family members. Importantly, the selection of food trucks and palate range was AWESOME. I had a veggie bowl and nibbled at fries and some kind of dangerous Nutella-banana empenada thing and various other snacks that ended up on our blanket from a variety of vendors. The park was clean and easily accessible. Parking was free in the adjoining lot, however, space was limited. The neighborhood offers plenty of free street parking – it just requires walking a little further.

Against the backdrop of mountains and a clear night sky, I can’t think of a better way to spend a Saturday night, especially if you want to do something casual yet special with family and friends.

Thank you Street Food Cinema!