Toms River Food Fest Guide

Are you heading out to Toms River's third annual Food Fest on Saturday, May 4? Check out the information below to ensure your trip downtown goes as smoothly as possible. 

The festival will run from 12 to 9 p.m. on Washington Street, between Main Street and Hooper Avenue, and is free to enter. A rain date of Sunday, May 5 has been set just in case, but the National Weather Service's forecast for Saturday calls for a mostly sunny day with a high temperature near 64 degrees.

A variety of foods provided by local vendors will be for sale. According to township officials, cheese steaks, BBQ pork, sausage and peppers and teriyaki will be available alongside hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza. Desserts will include funnel cake, Italian ice, cotton candy and fried Oreo's. 

Free games and inflatable rides for children will be open from 12 to 6 p.m. Free face painting will be available. 

Toms River Fire Company No. 1 will sponsor a beer and wine garden for adults to enjoy. 

Entertainment Schedule:

12:30 to 2:00 p.m. - Shorty Long and the Jersey Horns, the World’s No. 1 Party Band playing everything from Bob Marley and Billy Idol, to Jimmy Buffett and Tom Petty. 

2:30 to 4:00 p.m. - Jobonanno and the Godsons of Soul, an R&B band with a classic rock influence playing your favorites from Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones and more.

4:30 to 6:00 p.m. - Gypsy, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band. 

6:30 to 9:00 p.m. - Weird Science, The Ultimate 80’s Experiment, highlighting the best of the decade with songs from Duran Duran, Journey, Bon Jovi, Poison, Rick Springfield and The B-52’s.

Parking: 

The township encourages visitors to use public parking lots at no charge in Toms River's downtown including: 

• The Ocean County Parking Garage at the County Complex, Hooper Avenue
• Municipal Parking Lot A (Irons Street behind bank)
• Municipal Parking Lot C (Water Street)
• Municipal Parking Lot D (Robbins and Water Street)
• Municipal Parking Lot E and H (west Water and Irons Street, across from the U.S. Post Office)
• The Parking Garage behind Town Hall

Restrooms:

• The Toms River Township Municipal Building
• The Ocean County Library on Washington Street
• Two Port-a-Johns located on Washington Street

Toms River officials have said that this year's Food Fest represents the first celebratory event in town since Superstorm Sandy struck. 

"We’re anxious to get some things back to normal for our residents and visitors," said Mayor Thomas Kelaher in a statement. "Our annual Toms River Food Fest is a happy event and I encourage everyone to come out, bring the whole family, and bring your neighbors."