Summer is here—or at least the summer event season is. Nearly. Or something. I saw a banner today for the Bite of Bend, which is going on in just over two weeks time, on June 16th and 17th (Saturday and Sunday).

What’s different this year is that it’s taking place in Downtown Bend, rather than the Old Mill District where it’s been for the last few years (or maybe it’s always been down there). I like the Bite of Bend, even though it mostly consists of wandering around looking at food. But still.

For newbies, their description is pretty good:

The mission of The Bite of Bend is to celebrate our local culture and create an event that accurately reflects the food of our region. New this year will be the Oregon Marketplace, showcasing food and farm grown produce from around Oregon. The majority of our entertainment is also local. In this way, businesses that support our event benefit from the network of goodwill associated with The Bite of Bend.

This event is free to the public and includes a wide array of activities such as a children’s area, performance stage, beer garden, fine food and wine as well as a live Iron Chef competition; not to mention local food booths offering “bites” of their locally created provisions.

They have 28 participating eateries listed, though I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s more when that weekend rolls around.

The Iron Chef competition they have is one of my favorites, though I never get to hang around long enough to watch a full match. And people look at me funny when I get enthusiastic about it. Check out this year’s Iron Chef schedule/competitors:

Saturday

• 12:00pm Zydeco vs. Marz Bistro
• 1:30pm Jens Garden vs. Black Butte Ranch
• 3:00pm Broken Top vs. Seasons
• 5:00pm Hans vs. Café 3456

Sunday

• 12:00pm Semi Final Round
• 1:30pm Semi Final Round
• 3:00pm Final Round

They’ve taken it up a notch this year, with a whole extra day of finals. I’d put money on Zydeco.

There’s also plenty of music and activities in the Children’s Area scheduled, so there should be plenty to do. Mark your calendars!