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Hopefully, you already know about the Bloomington Craft Beer Fest, coming up on April 13 at the historic Woolery Limestone Mill. If not, here's the scoop - Live music will be provided by the Secret B-Sides, from Asheville, North Carolina and 220 Breakers, a Bloomington band. Indiana brewers will be joined by a select group of out-of-state breweries to bring you the best in regional craft beer. Doors open to VIPs at 3 pm. General Admission at 4 pm. Tickets are $35 in advance (get them here) or $45 at the gate.

If you're traveling to Bloomington to attend the Craft Beer Fest, here are a few good reasons to come early, also known as the very first Bloomington Craft Beer Week. That's right, we said WEEK! Bloomington Craft Beer Week was created by  residents who are lovers of craft - especially local - beer. Local breweries, restaurants, bars and retail establishments will be hosting events all week long, celebrating the very best of locally brewed beverages in Bloomington and leading up to the festival on the 13th.

Here's a list of Bloomington Craft Beer Week events: 

$8 Thgr3e Wise Men Growler FIlls - Scotty's Brewhouse
All week, except Sunday, April 7.

BBC & Upland Kill the Keg - House Bar
Brewery swag goes to the lucky beer lover whose pour empties the keg.
Saturday, April 6 

Brewer's Workshop - The Tap
Featuring brwers from Sun King, Flat 12, Black Acre & Brugge. 
Tuesday, April 9, 6:30 

Beer School - Yogi's Grill & Bar
Yogi's will feature Indiana Craft Beer on all 55 taps.
Beginning Tuesday, April 9, 7 pm, throughout the week.

Indiana Beer Specials - The Bishop
$3 pint night featuring local breweries.
Tuesday, Apri 9

BBC & Upland Pint Night - Malibu Grill
Wednesday, April 10

Triton Brewery Tap Takeover - Max's Place
Wednesday, April 10, 6 pm

BBC Dinner - Restaurant Tallent
Wednesday, April 10, 6 pm

Girls Pint Out - The Tap
Featuring Cutters Brewing
Wednesday, April 10, 6;30 pm

Cutters Meet the Brewer Event - Nick's English Hut
Wednesday, April 10, 7 pm

Bloomington Champaign Velvet Release Party - The Tap
Wednesday, April 10

BBC Tap Takeover - Nick's English Hut
Thursday, April 11, 7 pm

Fountain Square Brewery Tap Takeover - The Owlery
Thursday, April 11, 8:30 pm

Daredevil Brewery - The Root Cellar at FARMbloomington
Friday, April 12, 6 pm

Flat12 Tap Takeover - Max's Place
Friday, April 12, 6 pm

BBC & New Albanian Tap Takeover - The Tap
Friday, April 12, 7 pm

Flat 12 & People's Collaboration Tap Takeover - Nick's English Hut
Friday, April 12, 7 pm

Cutters Tap Takeover - Atlas Bar
Friday, April 12

BFest After party: Flat12 & Sun King Tap Takeover - The Tap
Saturday, April 13, 7 pm  

Planning a special dinner for the Easter holiday? If you're looking for dining options with special Easter menus, here's a quick rundown of what's available in Bloomington this year!  

Bobby's Colorado Steakhouse
812-332-7552
11 am - 4 pm, 19.50 Adults/$9.75 Kids 5-10

Eagle Pointe Golf Resort
812-824-4040
10 am - 2 pm, $16 Adults/$8.99 Kids

Scenic View
812-837-9496
Brunch - 4 pm; Dinner -  4 - 8 pm
Varies, $7 - $12; No buffet

FARMbloomington
812-323-0002
10 am - 3 pm, a la cart menu specials

Chapman's Restaurant
812-337-9999
10 am - 3 pm, $21.95 Adults/$11 Kids 10 & Under

Irish Lion
812-336-9076
11 am - 3 pm, menu items vary:  $5 - $10  

Grazie! Italian Eatery
812-323-0303
10 am - 3 pm, menu items vary; $4 mimosas

Updated - Mar. 28. 

 The snow is melting and love is in the air... or something like that!  Valentine's Day reminds us that spring is right around the corner and we couldn't be happier about that, so grab your significant other, best friend or casual acquaintance and get out there to celebrate the day of love (or like)! 

If you're in need of date ideas, we're here to help you out. Below you'll find a list of fabulous special dinner menus at area restaurants and a list of great events happening in Bloomington for Valentine's Day. Enjoy! 

Special Dinner Menus:

Scenic View: Soup and salad followed by scallops, mushrooms, beef tenderloin in puff pastry, basil chicken, dessert choice. 4600 Ind. 446, scenicviewrestaurant.com, or (812) 837-9496.

FARMBloomington: Brochettes of bison heart, tomato soup with oysters, smoked salmon, rack of lamb, grilled filet of beef, poached pears, chocolate cake. 108 E. Kirkwood Ave, farmbloomington.com, or (812) 323-0002.

Irish Lion: Sparkling wines paired with each course of scallops, sea bass, bacon-wrapped bison tenderloin, fresh fruit tartlet. 212 W. Kirkwood Ave, irishlion.com, or (812) 336-9076.

DeAngelo's: various Italian antipasti, pastas, desserts like chocolate chip cannoli, tiramisu, four-layer chocolate mousses, and raspberry tuxedo cheesecake. 2620 E. 3rd. St., deangelosbloomington.com, or (812) 961-0008.

Bobby's Colorado Steakhouse: prime rib dinner, filet and lobster tail for two, sweetheart dessert for two. 1635 N. College Ave., bobbysbloomington.com, or (812) 332-7552.

Café Django: live music accompany dinner specials like saltado mixto, Peruvian stir fry with chicken, beef and shrimp. Vegetarian options available. 116 N. Grant St., cafedjango.org, or (812) 335-1297.

Lennie's: seafood bisque, petite medallions of beef, shrimp, scallop linguini primavera, vegetable primavera, mini red velvet or chocolate covered cherries. 1795 E. 10th St, lenniesgourmetpizza.com, or call (812) 323-2112

Uptown Café: Fresh oysters, gorgonzola filet mignon, crab cakes, Mediterranean lamb chops. Located at 102 #. Kirkwood Ave or website at the-uptown.com, (812) 339-0900

Janko's Little Zagreb: Chilean sea bass with Charles Krug Sauvignon Blanc and Godiva chocolate cheesecake. littlezagreb.com or (812) 333-0694.

Activities:

Menomena at The Bishop - 9:30 pm, $12-$14

Tom Roznowski and Monika Herzig at The Players Pub  - 6:30 pm, $5

The Truman Show: A Musical at the Bloomington Playwrights Project - 7:30 pm, $19 ($16 students/seniors)

A Latin Valentine at Ivy Tech John Waldron Arts Center, featuring "Una Serenata Mexicana" - 8 pm, Free (Please pick up tickets ahead of time.)

Embrace: An Evening of Art and Tango at the IU Art Museum - 8-11 pm, Free

Sweetheart Concert and Art Display at Bloomington North High School - 6:30-9:30 pm, Free

Valentino's Valentine's Adventure for kids at Wild Care, Inc. - 5:30-9:30 pm, $15 per child

Valentine's Weekend with Jamie Lee at the Comedy Attic - 8 pm, $15

Valentine's Menu at Oliver Winery Downtown - 2-11 pm

If you're putting off your celebration until the weekend, don't miss the Indiana Uplands Wine Trail's annual Chocolate Lover's Weekend event on Feb. 16 and 17. Happening at the trail's nine wineries, including both Butler Winery and Oliver Winery in Bloomington, the event features different chocolates at each winery, carefully paired with a selection of wines. No charge and no tickets needed! 

When the staff at Options (the organization now called LIFEDesigns) set out to create an unforgettable fundraiser, they only dreamed it would be as epic as the Week of Chocolate has now become.  In 2000, the Week of Chocolate was born when executive staff at Options (LIFEDesigns) decided to host an entire week of fundraising activities in the community.  Each agency involved hosted its own fundraiser, keeping the profits made from its event.  By coming together, seven local nonprofit organizations saved money on advertising and publicity by sharing both and promoting one another's events.  Picking a theme to tie the week's events together was the tricky part.  "Why not have something everyone loves be the theme?" one staff member asked.  "What does everyone love?" asked another.  The answer came quickly... "Chocolate!" And it's been the Week of Chocolate ever since.

The goal of the week was to showcase many different types of agencies and host events that appealed to everyone in town.  LIFEDesigns' mantra is to build inclusive communities, which is something the Week of Chocolate does well, providing events for people of all ages, abilities and incomes. This year the Week of Chocolate tradition continues.  LIFEDesigns continues to host the community-wide chocolate-themed festival, and many of the organizations involved have been part of the week since the beginning.  This year's events feature something for everyone!

LIFEDesigns signature event is the Art of Chocolate held on Sunday, January 27^th from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at the IU Art Museum. For $50 a person you can attend this decadent event featuring appetizers and desserts from some of the finest local chefs in town. There will also be chocolate martinis, wine and live music! A Juried Art Show and silent auction highlight the evening.  Tickets can be purchased at BCT Box Office, at LIFEDesigns or at the door. However, the event is limited to 300 people, so get your tickets in advance!

An entire list of Week of Chocolate events is as follows:

• Sat., Jan. 26^th - 1 to 4pm - Sundaes on Saturday, Benefiting Monroe County History Center
• Sat., Jan. 26^th - 11am to 2pm - Chocolate Challenge, Benefiting Pinnacle School
• Sun., Jan. 27^th - 6:30 to 8:30pm - Art of Chocolate, Benefiting LIFEDesigns (see above)
• Mon., Jan. 28^th - 6 to 10pm - Chocolate Bingo, Benefiting the Bloomington Moose Lodge #1081
• Tuesday, January 29^th- 6 to 8pm - Making Truffles, Benefiting Martha's House
• Thursday, January 31^st - 7pm - Death by Chocolate Interactive Murder Mystery: Til' Death Do Us Part, Benefiting Citizen Advocacy of South-Central Indiana

• Friday, February 1^st - 8 to 11pm - Chocolate Prom: A Prom for Everyone, Benefiting Rhino's
• Saturday, February 2^nd - 3 to 6pm - Wonka's Chocolate Carnival, Benefiting Amethyst House
• Saturday, February 2^nd - 10am to 4pm - An Art Sale, Benefiting LIFEDesigns

We hope you will join us this year to celebrate the value of these human service agencies and the work they do in our communities. Support these local agencies by attending their Week of Chocolate fundraising events. Help a good cause while having fun and eating chocolate, too! It doesn't get much better than that!

To learn more go to www.weekofchocolate.com.

Special thanks to our guest blogger, Leslie Abshear, Community Development Officer at LIFEDesigns, Inc.  

Whether you're a visitor or a local, if you're looking for a restaurant that's serving a Thanksgiving Day meal, it can be a hard thing to find!  Visit Bloomington has made it easy for you this year! Here's the low-down on Bloomington area restaurants that will be open for Thanksgiving Day. 

FARMbloomington will be serving a Thanksgiving dinner for $35 per person ($19 for the kids). Seatings will be at Noon, 2 and 4 pm. Reservations are required, so give them a call at 812-323-0002 to reserve your spot at the table.

Chapman's Restaurant will be open from 10:30 am to 4 pm serving a special holiday meal. The cost will be $21.95 per person, $11 for children and free for the little ones (under 5 years). Call 812-337-9999 to make your reservations.  

Bobby's Colorado Steak House will be serving a full Thanksgiving Day buffet from 11 am to 4 pm, for just $12.50 per person. Reservations are recommended, please call 812-332-7552.

Mother Bear's Pizza will be open from Noon to 4 pm on Thanksgiving Day, serving up their Pilgrim's Pride Pizza. No reseravtions are required. 

Wherever you end up spending the holiday, Visit Bloomington wishes you a very happy Thanksgiving!   

Yes, you read that correctly, we're giving away a fun B-town Date Night to one lucky winner! Getting entered is super-easy and here's the run down on what our winner will receive: 

Two Tickets to Solana from the Indiana Festival Theatre
Adopted Asian-American Chloe Ellsworth finishes college and returns home to her family farm in Middle Valley, Indiana, but her royal birth family demands that she immediately return to her native land to take her place on the throne. This life-altering disruption sends her on a fairy-tale journey, that reveals her true identity and her true place in the world.

Dinner at Grazie! Italian Eatery
One of B-town's favorite downtown eateries, Grazie! is located on the north side of the downtown square and specializes in Italian cuisine. 

This is the time of year when everyone's in a a flurry of activity, getting ready to head back to school. Many elementary and high schools have already begun the fall semester and Indiana University is right behind them with students moving into dorms next week!

So, here's how you get entered to win a B-town date night on us:
Leave us a note in the comments section with your best advice for incoming freshmen about living in Bloomington, don't-miss IU traditions or college life in general. We'll choose one of the comments and announce our winner right here on Monday morning, so be sure to check back to see if you've won. Good luck!

Hey, foodies - we know you're out there, and we'd like to hear from you!

You may already know that we're super-excited about welcoming our Best of the Road judges, the Road Bros, to Bloomington next week as part of the Rand McNally and USA Today Best of the Road Road Rally. As part of our celebration of being chosen one of the six finalists for Best Food Town in America, we're going to be giving away several gift certificates to a number of great restaurants in the Bloomington area.

We're excited to welcome the Road Bros, Mike and Brian, to Bloomington and of course we're going to show them a great time as they explore B-town's food scene, but we also know that we have tons of great foodie fans out there who love to visit Bloomington and we think you're important too! After all, you're the ones who voted to make us a finalist. So, here's what you can do to be eligible to win a gift certificate to one of Bloomington's great restaurants: 

Just tag us in your social media post about Bloomington's food scene.

Yep, that's really it! We love to hear what visitors (and residents) think about our awesome restaurants, so start posting! Post on our Facebook page, the Road Bros or Best of the Road pages or your own page! Tag us when you tweet the Road Bros or use the #bestoftheRoad hash tag on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. Talk about your favorite dish, a single restaurant or the whole food scene, just be sure to tag us so we'll see it. 

We'll be randomly giving away gift certificates from now until the Best of the Road winners are announced on July 16. Where can you tag us? Here's a list: 

Visit Bloomington on Facebook
@VisitBtown on Twitter
@VisitBtown on Pinterest
@VisitBtown on Instagram

Fun, family, friends, good food, charity, community, awesome entertainment-those are a few of the great things you get when you visit the Taste of Bloomington.

I love the Taste of Bloomington for all of the reasons listed above, and especially community. This yearly event has to be the best at bringing the Bloomington community together, from young to old, from rock-n-roll to country fans, and certainly a community that loves to taste a wide variety of good food and enjoys a diverse group of music performances. The Taste is not just for adults, it's an event where families can bring their children for fun activities from community partners like WonderLab and Bloomington Park & Recreation. They have face painting, a bounce house and of course plenty of music for kids to dance to.

One of the best things about the Taste is that it gives back to the community. A portion of the proceeds from the Taste of Bloomington will benefit the Hoosier Hills Food Bank and the Community Kitchen of Monroe County, to terrific organizations that provide food to those in need. Try good food, give good food!

You have to admit, if you live in the Bloomington area you're spoiled with having the opportunity to experience so many great restaurants. This yearly event gives residents and visitors a chance to taste food from new local restaurants as well. Of course I always go back to my favorite Taste participants that attend every year, to have their best item and try a new menu item that they might be presenting. When it comes to food, the Taste offers about any type of food you can think of: BBQ, Asian, Mexican, Greek, and many others. I should also mention there are plenty of wonderful, delicious, sweet desserts from Bloomington and Monroe County vendors.

Fun and friends go hand in hand with the Taste. Going to the Taste of Bloomington gives me a chance to catch up with friends I haven't seen for a while or some that I might have seen the night before. I love meeting new people and make new friends. You couldn't ask for a better event that does just that. New community members, families visiting IU for Freshmen Orientation, professionals for conferences, artist for the Arts Fair on the Square, you'll find them all checking out the Taste. The musical entertainment Taste offers is awesome!  I enjoy dancing so the Taste gives me the chance to put on my dancing shoes and be "Gene, Gene, the Dancing Machine".  Maybe dancing to a polka, doing a little two stepping or just air jamming to a local rock band, at the Taste you will definitely find your taste in music.

Wherever or whenever I visit another place and I'm asked about Bloomington, Indiana, I always tell them "Bloomington is a small town with a big town taste".  It offers almost anything a major city can offer; a great and diverse community, a top notch university and schools, beautiful and breathtaking surroundings... and it offers one of the largest and best food tasting events in the state, The Taste of Bloomington. This community event is what I call "Taste'tastic!"

Special thanks to our local guest blogger, Gene Harrawood, for this great post. Gene is a long-time Bloomington resident, IU alum and member of the Taste of Bloomington Planning Committee. 

Local Breweries Collaborate to Brew a B.I.G. Event

Slated for June 9, 2012, the 2^nd Annual Bloomington Craft Beer Festival will unite craft beer drinkers at historic Woolery Stone Mill. Festival attendees will have an opportunity to sample more than 100 beers poured by over 25 Hoosier brewers plus a handful of craft brewers from neighboring states. Whether you're a beer enthusiast or enthused novice, Bloomington Craft Beer Fest (BCBF) combines hops, malts, arts and science to contribute to the big flavor of the festival.

Brewers of Indiana Guild (B.I.G.) anticipates the festival drawing approximately 1500 guests who share an appreciation of craft beer. Local food vendors and entertainment will add to the festive feel of the day. The Guild and local breweries have worked closely with Woolery Stone MIll owner, Randy Cassidy, in hopes of moving the 100% outdoor, open-air event of 2011 underneath the high ceiling facility beneath which quarry employees worked decades ago.

Bloomington's casual celebration of arts paired with an innate appreciation of individuality and a respect for science creates a perfect home for hosting a festival celebrating the arts and science of unique craft beer. 

I speak on behalf of your hometown brewers when I say we hope to see you at the 2^nd Annual Bloomington Craft Beer Festival!  Tickets, information and more at www.brewersofindianaguild.com.

Bottoms Up!

From guest blogger, Sara Sheikh of the Bloomington Brewing Company and the Bloomington Craft Beer Festival Committee.

WFHB's 2012 Acoustic Roots Festival conveniently falls on National Tourism Week - and we are (also conveniently) a sponsor of the event... so, we've put those two things together and will be giving away tickets to the show throughout the week of May 7-11, leading up to the Acoustic Roots Festival on May 12. One lucky person will win our grand prize, which includes an overnight stay at the Grant Street Inn and $50 in gift certificates to Grazie! Italian Eatery!

Tourism is a driving force for economic development in Bloomington and throughout much of the country and even the world! Our local tourism industry encompasses not only hotels and traditional attractions such as museums and wineries, but also the many unique restaurants in town, our vibrant downtown area, Indiana University, Lake Monroe, local shops, art galleries and more! To everyone involved in Bloomington's tourism industry - we salute you and thank you for helping to make Bloomington a fabulous place to visit! 

So, some of you are saying "Free tickets are awesome, but what the heck is the Acoustic Roots Festival?" This annual live music event is held outdoors at Upland Brewing Company and features some of the area's very best musicians in the Americana, Roots and Folk genres. This family-friendly, laid-back musical celebration is a great way to experience live music in Bloomington and sample some great food and drink from one of our local brew pubs. Here, let me show you what I mean...

The WFHB Acoustic Roots Festival, 2011

My family attended the Acoustic Roots Festival last year and had a great time.
We played with some hay...

 We made some new friends...

We listened to some great music from
Davy Jay Sparrow and His Well-Known Famous Drovers, and others...

We watched the sun go down and snuggled in to enjoy the evening.

The Ticket Giveaway

Looks like fun, right? So, what do you have to do to get those free tickets? Simple - just leave us a comment on this blog post and tell us about your experience with tourism in Bloomington.

If you're a visitor, what's your favorite reason to visit?

If you're a local resident, what do you always recommend to people when they visit?

Good luck! Hope to see you at this year's Acoustic Roots Festival!