NEWPORT, R.I. — Sunday is the last chance to eat your way down Bowen’s Wharf in Newport. The 35th Bowen’s Wharf Seafood Festival, which opened Saturday, opens its gates again at 11 a.m. on Oct. 18 and closes at 6 p.m., and getting in is free.
The event goes on rain or shine, with tents covering the vendor area. Food and drinks are paid for at each booth, and part of the money taken in at the festival bars goes to Child & Family, a nonprofit based in Middletown.
Nearby restaurants and shellfish groups are cooking. On the menu: chowder, stuffies and lobster rolls, plus oysters, clams, fish tacos and fried calamari, with choices for people who skip seafood, along with doughnuts, kettle corn and chocolate-dipped fruit. Signature cocktails and beer are on hand, and café tables are spread around the wharf.
The vendor list runs long, from Newport Lobster Shack, Matunuck Oyster Bar and Newport Chowder Company to 401 Oyster Co. and Aquidneck Island Oyster Co. Two industry groups, the Rhode Island Shellfisherman’s Association and the Ocean State Aquaculture Association, also have a presence. Six bands share the BankNewport Stage over the two days, playing folk, surf rock and blues.
Bowen’s Wharf itself is a working waterfront lined with brick and cobblestone walkways and more than 30 shops and restaurants that are locally owned. Its seasonal calendar leans on festivals built around the catch from local waters, and the fall seafood weekend has been one of them for three and a half decades. Bike Newport is setting up high-capacity racks near the entrance for people who ride in.
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