Richmond is about to get very, very briny. The city’s inaugural Pickle Party takes over the Arts District and historic Jackson Ward starting Friday, running three days and packing in everything from a pickle parade to pickle-flavored pizza, a pickle art exhibition and even discounted pickle tattoos.
The festival kicks off with the First Friday Block Party on Brook Road, with DJs scheduled from 6 to 10 p.m., according to the Richmond Moon Market, and continues through the weekend. As Axios notes, it’s Richmond’s first-ever pickle-themed festival, blending food, drink, art and entertainment across the neighborhood. The Moon Market’s block party alone is expected to draw more than 40 vendors, food trucks and pickle makers to Brook Road, per RVAHub’s reporting on the event.
A Parade, a Conga Line, and a Lot of Brine
The signature moment of opening night is the Pickle Parade, set to start at 7 p.m. outside GWARbar before winding through Jackson Ward. The Moon Market says the Athanor Dance Collective will lead the procession, which the event’s organizers describe as a parade and conga line rolled into one. Buckville Hootenanny is also slated to perform its pickle-themed rock opera at Gallery5 that same night, while Fields On Fire is listed separately as another act, according to RVAHub’s coverage of the festival.
Food and drink specials are scattered across the district for the full run of the festival. Bar Solita is serving its own Pickle Pizza alongside other specials, while GWARbar is offering fried pickles and Lillie Pearl has a pickle cocktail on the menu called the “What’s the Dilly,” RVAHub reports. Field Day Boutique is getting in on the theme too, offering entry to win a vibrating pickle, per Axios.
Art, Awards and a Little Ink
Gallery5 opens its Art of the Pickle exhibition Friday, with an opening reception scheduled from 5 to 11 p.m. during First Friday, according to Gallery5. The gallery is also hosting the Best Pickles of Richmond contest, with categories for Best Pickled Cucumber and Best of Everything Else, plus four special awards for Most Creative, Sweetest, Spiciest and Most Unexpected pickles. For anyone looking to commemorate the occasion a bit more permanently, Moving Mountains Tattoo is offering discounted pickle flash all weekend, with both appointments and walk-ins welcome…