Here’s a sentence that should need no further persuasion: this weekend, Corey Avenue is shutting down for crab races, a Tom Petty tribute band, and an alarming amount of seafood, and it’s entirely free to attend.
Florida Penguin Productions is bringing the St. Pete Beach Seafood Festival back to 300 Corey Avenue this weekend, June 12 through 14. The event is presented by the Corey Avenue Business District, and it’s the kind of weekend that makes you remember why you live here instead of, say, Ohio.
Let’s start with the basics. There’s no admission charge. Zero. Nothing. Not even a suggested donation dropped into a sad little box by the entrance. You show up, you eat seafood, you watch live bands, and you go home smelling faintly of the Gulf. That’s the deal.
The music lineup is surprisingly stacked across all three days. Friday night kicks off with Motel Funk from 6 to 10 pm, which is exactly the energy you want to start a beach festival weekend. Saturday brings Bickley XI, a steel pan band that’ll have you forgetting all your problems by measure two, followed by Memphis Lightning doing high-energy blues rock, and then The Petty Experience closing things out with a Tom Petty tribute set. Sunday wraps with Classix covering classic rock, southern rock, country, and dance, another round of Bickley XI, and Barefoot Bob & The Hope handling top 40, rock, and country to close out the weekend…