Start your summer off right and come out to the second annual International Food, Wine & Hops festival on Saturday, June 9. The event will take place from 1 p.m.-5 p.m. along West Street, within the limits of Westgate Circle and Church Circle. Sixteen different restaurants and participants will be distributing unique samples of food, beer, wine and more. This year’s participants include:

Azure, Carpaccio, India’s, Fado Irish Pub, Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge, Lemongrass, O’Callaghan Hotel, Tsunami, 49 West, Wild Orchid Café, Crush, Stan & Joes, El Toro, Luna Blu, Rams Head Tavern and Annapolis Collection Gallery.

This year, Luna Blu will be serving fresh, in-house, mozzarella caprese made with creamy buffalo mozzarella and local tomatoes. They will also be sampling Chianti and Italian Orvieto wines.

The fun doesn’t stop with the food and beverages; live music and entertainment will be provided throughout the day at various locations. The interesting and diverse variety will include Irish dancing, bagpipes, Flamenco, a Mariachi band, an Italian opera singer, a Thai dragon and a Japanese Tea Ceremony.

So come experience a plethora of delicious food and drink and the opportunity to learn a bit more on the diverse culture that is within the great city of Annapolis. Tickets are only $30, but a set of four can be purchased at the discounted price of $100. Last year’s pre-sale tickets sold out, so get them fast! You can purchase them online through the following link: http://tickets.marylandhall.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=860&c=52&pg=

Once you have a confirmation receipt, you must exchange it for a wristband at one of the following locations after 12:30 p.m.: Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge, Tsunami, Westin Hotel lobby or Loews Annapolis Hotel lobby. Valid photo IDs are required. The event is rain or shine, but we’re expecting a beautiful summer day!