Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival

If you're headed to Arlington for the Labor Day Weekend LSU game,  flesh out your Texas weekend at the Annual Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival. The three-day event combines the Lone Star State’s love of music and food with performers and pitmasters from across the country. Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band and Tab Benoit anchor a weekend of great blues performances, which also includes sets by Samantha Fish, Chubby Carrier and Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials.    

New this year, and raising the bar in barbecue contests, is the unprecedented BBQ Triple Play competition with three sanctioning organizations participating: International Bar-B-Que Cookers Association, Kansas City Barbeque Society, and Steak Cookoff Association. Pitmasters from throughout the U.S. will compete for more than $24,000 in prizes in fourteen categories. Attendees can sample the very best these pros have to offer at the popular People’s Choice competition and the Battle of the BBQ.

The event also features a marketplace with more than 70 artisan, craft and commercial vendors. Hours of operation are Friday 6:00PM to 10:00PM, Saturday 2:00PM to 10:00PM, and Sunday 2:00PM to 10:00PM. The event takes place across from Bedford City Hall at 1951 L. Don Dodson Drive, Bedford, TX, 76021.

Tickets are on sale start at $7 per person; specialty seating and packages are also available. General admission and parking are free Friday, August 31. purchased online at bedfordbluesfest.com.