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Downtown La Salle will transform into an outdoor concert venue in September as Rock the Block and BBQ-n-Blues bring live music, local food and drinks, and one of Starved Rock Country’s favorite festivals to First Street.
The free, family-friendly Rock the Block is 5 to 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18, under the lights on First Street in downtown La Salle before giving way to the 12th annual BBQ-n-Blues on Saturday, Sept. 19.
“The atmosphere, music, food has made this event something that many in the community look forward to every year, and we are incredibly proud of that,” said Tony Bacidore, of the La Salle Business Association, which organizes the event.
Rock the Block is a new event this year, replacing Jazz’N the Street.
“We wanted to find two genres of music that would entice a wider range of people to attend the event, and we felt rock ’n’ roll would be a better genre to do that than jazz,” Bacidore said.
Ben and Kate will perform as a street band from 5 to 6:15 p.m. before returning for another set from 7:30 to 8 p.m. Friday.
The evening continues with REO Survivor and Co., a tribute to REO Speedwagon, Loverboy and Survivor, beginning at 6:15 p.m. They will be followed by headliner Chicago Rewired, a Chicago tribute band, at 8 p.m.
Steve Westerman, also of the La Salle Business Association, has selected the bands for these events for several years.
“He is amazing at understanding what people from our area are looking for in terms of music when they come to an event like this,” Bacidore said. “Typically Steve already has bands in mind for future years, and it just takes time to get them all to fall into place.”
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The music continues Saturday with the return of BBQ-n-Blues, featuring performances by the Ivy Ford Band at 4:30 p.m., The Jimmys at 6:30 p.m. and The Jimmy Nick Band at 8:30 p.m.
Of those acts, The Jimmys will be a familiar face to returning festivalgoers. The Jimmys were a hit at last year’s festival and are returning by popular demand, Bacidore said.
“They’re well-loved throughout the Illinois Valley,” he said.
Saturday also includes another popular festival attraction, the annual BBQ Rib Cook-Off. Teams will spend the day preparing their entries before turning them in for judging at 6 p.m. Guest judges representing several of the event’s largest sponsors will evaluate the ribs on taste and tenderness, with winners announced on stage at 8 p.m. Cash prizes and trophies will be awarded to the top five teams.
The celebration concludes with a fireworks display at 10 p.m., courtesy of the city of La Salle.
Festivalgoers can expect returning La Salle food vendors including Haze Smokehouse, The Dog House, Big B BBQ, Mickey’s Massive Burritos, 9th Street Pub and the La Salle VFW.
The beverage tent will feature domestic beer, seltzers, wine from Utica’s August Hill Winery and signature cocktails from Star Union Spirits in Peru.
With two days of live entertainment, barbecue, local beverages, food and fireworks, organizers hope visitors make a weekend of it by exploring La Salle’s downtown shops, restaurants and nearby Starved Rock Country attractions.
“We work with our downtown businesses to promote their stores in hopes that while people are downtown, they’ll see all of the amazing small businesses in La Salle and hopefully stop in and make a purchase,” Bacidore said.