The 39th Annual Brewster in Bloom weekend runs May 2-4 with a partner adding gourmet food tastings to the lineup.

“Ocean Edge came on board this year with a series of events that should be pretty exciting for the public: Two tastings, a Derby watch party, Sunday brunch and an expo showing what Ocean Edge has to offer,” said Kyle Hinkle, executive director of the Brewster Chamber of Commerce, which runs Brewster in Bloom.

Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club will hold its Tasting Showcase in the Mansion Ballroom from 5-7 p.m. Friday and 2-6 p.m. Saturday. 

“The Tasting Showcase is a culinary pilgrimage through each of our restaurants, with cocktails, mocktails and tastings from each. This includes the brand-new brunch menu at Ocean Terrace,” said Brendan Carey, director of marketing, Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club, said in an emailed response to the Cape Cod Times.

For $50 per person, receive a tasting pass to visit each of nine restaurants’ tables, sampling featured dishes and handcrafted beverages. A cash bar will also be offered.

Participating venues include Ocean Terrace, The Roscommon Room, Linx Tavern, Bayzo’s Pub, The Shark Bah, The Beach Bar, The Front Lawn, and the new ice cream and coffee shops. 

“We are beyond excited to be participating in the hallmark celebration of Brewster in Bloom this year. It’s a marvelous way for the community to mingle, mark the changing of the seasons, and support local businesses,” Carey wrote.

An old-fashioned ice cream social and band concert in Brewster

Another sweet treat from 2-4 p.m. Friday is the Brewster Council on Aging’s ice cream social. The cost is $2 for adults and $1 for those 12 and younger to build their own sundae in an annual fundraiser that supports the Council on Aging, Hinkle said.

“The ice cream social goes until 4 and the free Brewster Band concert starts at 7 p.m. so you can make an evening out of it with dessert followed by entertainment,” she said.

The 31st annual Brewster in Bloom concert is in the vestibule of the Brewster Baptist Church. John E. New conducts a program that features music from ”The Music Man,” “Jersey Boys,” “The Greatest Showman” “Game of Thrones,” “The Sound of Music,” “Grease”, and “I Vow to Thee, My Country.” Free will donations are accepted to support the band’s future programs. 

What happens on Saturday at Brewster in Bloom?

From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., there is a juried arts and crafts show with 86 artists from across New England selling their own creations. The show is at the Bay Properties, 3057 Main St. (formerly Cape Cod Sea Camps) with free parking available.

“It’s a two-day show, 10 to 5 on Saturday and 10 to 4 on Sunday. It’s considered the first outdoor show on Cape Cod for the spring. I have looked forward to this show (each year) for years,” said Hinkle, who has purchased everything from dill pickles to silver jewelry at the maker’s market.

Stepping off at 10 a.m. Saturday, rain or shine, is the Cape Cod 5 Bloom Run, leaving from the Brewster Inn & Woodshed on Route 6A. Registration opens in the inn’s parking lot at 8:30 a.m. for the 5K (3.1 mile) run/walk. The MYLAPS B-Tag Timing System is used. Entry fee is $40 per person or $25 for participants aged 12 and under.

From 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Ocean Edge Resort hosts a Kentucky Derby watch party with Southern-style hors d’oeuvres and cocktails, as well as a fancy hat contest. Tickets are $40 and reservations may be made at oceanedge.com/.

Sunday at Brewster in Bloom means a parade

There are 40 units ― floats, bands, entertainers ― signed up for the 39th Brewster in Bloom Parade, which steps off from Eddy Elementary School parking lot at 1 p.m. and goes west on Route 6A to Swamp Road. The parade is led by Person of the Year Sharon Tennstedt, co-director of the Brewster Council on Aging, with a theme of “Let’s Take a Hike!”

“It fits in perfectly with Brewster because there are so many great places to hike ― Brewster Flats, the Punkhorn, Nickerson State Park ― and people do hike here,” Hinkle said.

Brewster in Bloom has a hike scheduled for 4 p.m. Friday at Eddy Sister Trail, a flat, half-mile walk in nature. Perhaps a chance to work off the ice cream social indulgence before the concert?

Ocean Edge is hosting an a la carte Sunday brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Ocean Terrace Restaurant.

Here come the brides … and grooms

From 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 4, Ocean Edge closes its “Taste of Ocean Edge” weekend with a mansion open house and showroom in the Mansion Ballroom. Admission is free to see wedding and event venues, as well as checking out experiences like beach fires, oyster tours and Brewster Flats adventures. Tour the mansion that Samuel Mayo Nickerson and his wife, Matilda, built as their summer home in 1890, according to oceanedge.com, and rebuilt after a devastating fire. In 1945 the mansion was sold to La Salette religious order where it served as a seminary and college for men. In 1980, it was bought and developed into Ocean Edge Resort.

Print out the event list for Brewster in Bloom at brewster-capecod.com for details on plant giveaways, book signings, children’s activities and more.

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