After weeks of anticipation, I, along with most other revelers, left the Great GoogaMooga tired, hot, thirsty and slightly less hungry than when I arrived. If I haven’t adequately explained how excited I was for GoogaMooga, let me reiterate – this was supposed to be the culmination of everything I love about Brooklyn! Well-crafted, artisanal food, good music, beer, and a nice patch of green grass on which to enjoy it. Alas, this weekend missed the mark. Entirely.

Now, I know that a free food festival in Prospect Park is bound to attract a crowd. But as soon as we walked in on Saturday, we were faced with huge lines spanning across the park. Two friends left us in just twenty minutes. In order to get a  beer, we first had to wait on line to get our I.D.’s checked. Then wait on another line to put cash on a “Googamoula” card. Then find our way to bar and actually buy the drinks. We asked one person how long he had been waiting, and he admitted it took one hour and forty-five minutes just to get his I.D. checked! We quickly decided that drinks were unnecessary and went in search of food.

Most of my weekends tend to revolve around food. But this weekend is going to involve food of epic proportions. It is the inaugural GoogaMooga festival, which, despite sounding like an infant’s first words, is actually a gathering of New York’s most desirable chefs, food entrepreneurs and musicians. This is the place where mere mortals can hope to rub shoulders with the likes of Tom Colicchio, Anthony Bourdain and other restaurant royalty. I have been counting down the days ever since my boyfriend, Charlie, managed to score tickets (it sold out within an hour!) I’ve scoured the website, read through every email, downloaded the app, and now I have 17 hours to decide which vendors to set my sights on tomorrow! Will I crave a slice of Roberta’s renouned pizza? Or a pork bun from Eddie Huang’s BaoHaus? Or maybe something savory from Saxelby Cheesemongers? It’s not a decision to be made lightly. I’ll be sure to give a full report of the day’s events and highlight all of my favorites!