53rd Annual Belmont Greek Festival 2025 (Aug. 30-31)

Yassou!  A fabulous celebration of Greek culture will arrive in the mid-Peninsula at the 53rd Belmont Greek Festival on Labor Day Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 30-31, at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Holy Cross, 900 Alameda (corner of Ralston Avenue), in Belmont. Festival hours are Noon-10 pm on both Saturday and Sunday.

Festival hours: Noon-10 PM both Sat. & Sun.
General Admission: $5
Seniors & Youth (13-17): $3
Children (12 & under): Free, with an adult.
Local Parking and Free Shuttle Service available. Details here.

The spectacular Belmont Greek Festival is a wonderful family event that each year draws more than 15,000 visitors to enjoy homemade Greek meals and pastries, imported Greek beverages, lively music and dancing, a mythology play, bookstore, church tours, and other activities.

“All the food is homemade and delicious,” said Festival Chair Kathy Flocas. “Our volunteer cooks and bakers have been working hard, using old recipes from Greece which have been handed down over multiple generations,” Flocas said.

After the festival, guests will be able to order selected Greek dishes through the popular Take N Bake program, which includes scrumptious frozen entrees ready to cook at home, and freshly-baked pastries. Online orders will open on Wednesday, Sept. 3, on this website, and food pick-ups will start on the weekend of Sept. 6-7.

“The food is fantastic,” said Flocas, “and we’re excited to share our Greek culture with the community. We welcome everyone to join us at the festival for some amazing food and entertainment.”

A full array of culinary choices will be offered in an indoor dining hall and outdoor food booths. The marvelous meals will include moussaka (layers of seasoned meat and eggplant topped with creamy béchamel sauce), pastitsio (Greek lasagna), youvetsi (lamb shanks and orzo), spanakopita (spinach and cheese stuffed inside filo pastry), tiropita (cheese stuffed inside filo pastry), gyros (pita sandwich with seasoned meat, tomatoes, onions, and tzatziki sauce), calamari (squid), souvlakia (Greek shish kebab), and plenty of Greek lamb, to name just a few.

For the sweet tooth, there will be traditional pastries such as baklava (layers of nuts and filo pastry soaked in honey), loukoumades (tender doughnut holes covered with honey), kourambiedes (butter cookies covered with powdered sugar), galaktoboureko (custard stuffed between filo pastry), koulourakia (twisty, buttery cookies), and more.

Take N Bake will feature several frozen entrees including moussaka and youvetsi, along with an assortment of freshly-baked pastries.

One of the festival highlights will be the platia, an outdoor village square, “resembling a delightful street in Greece lined with bistro tables and chairs, alongside our popular bookstore,” Flocas said. The platia will feature frappés (iced coffee), baklava sundaes, and Greek coffee.

The kafenion coffee house will offer a quiet, indoor space to relax with Greek or American coffee and yummy pastries.

Guests 21 and over will enjoy the Mykonos Beer Garden, featuring craft beers imported from Greece, as well as the traditional taverna with distinctive Greek wines, beer, and liquor, such as the anise-flavored Ouzo aperitif and Metaxa brandy. In addition, a wine and cocktail booth will offer imported wines, flights for tasting, and colorful Greek cocktails.

Festival visitors will find continuous entertainment on two stages. At the main stage, they can dance to exciting music by a popular Greek band and watch dance groups perform their elaborate, dynamic steps.

At the outdoor amphitheater, reminiscent of the theaters of ancient Greece, guests will enjoy humorous stage performances based on Greek mythology, a concert by the Festival Chorus and Ensemble featuring Greek folk and popular music, a performance by the Aurora Mandolin Orchestra, and trips to “Andyland” with award-winning children’s entertainer Andy Z.

Throughout the weekend, there will be tours of the beautiful Byzantine-style church, including the stunning mosaic iconography. Other festival highlights will include a bookstore with Orthodox Christian publications, icons, and gifts, plus vendor boutiques featuring art, clothing, and jewelry.

The proceeds of the festival support the many ministries of Holy Cross Church, as well as monetary donations made to local charities. Past recipients of festival donations include the Second Harvest Food Bank of San Mateo County, Samaritan House in San Mateo, Bay Area Cancer Connections in Palo Alto, Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, and My New Red Shoes in Redwood City.

General admission is $5. For seniors and youth (ages 13-17), admission is $3. Children 12 and under are free with an adult. Local parking and a free shuttle service are available.

The Belmont Greek Festival accepts only credit and debit cards. Cash can be exchanged for a festival debit card which can be used to purchase food and merchandise.

Pets are not permitted except for service animals.

For more information, explore this website further, or email us at office@goholycross.org, or call (650) 591-4447, or visit us on Facebook. Opa!