Famous Food Festival Headlines Long Island's June in Deer Park

The Famous Food Festival returns to Tanger Outlets in Deer Park on June 19, bringing more than 100 vendors and live music to the outdoor shopping complex for three days through June 21. With Memorial Day behind it and summer officially open on Long Island, June fills quickly, and this year the calendar stacks carnivals, free concerts, and a multi-week fair at Nassau Coliseum alongside the food festival at Deer Park.

The food festival at 152 The Arches Circle has become one of the more reliable early-summer draws on the South Shore. Vendors serve regional specialties, international street food, and local restaurant fare, with entertainment running through the afternoon and evening on each of the three days. For families looking to kick off the season without a long drive, the site is accessible from the Southern State Parkway and close to the bulk of Babylon and Islip.

June also brings two Dreamland Amusements carnival stops, a free outdoor concert series in Ronkonkoma, the Bellmore Fireman's Fair, and the Empire State Fair at Nassau Coliseum. Here are six events worth locking in before June fills up.

1. Famous Food Festival, June 19-21 — Tanger Outlets, 152 The Arches Circle, Deer Park. More than 100 food vendors from across the region set up for a three-day outdoor festival. Live music runs alongside the food, and the event draws crowds from both sides of the island. Hours and vendor lineups are posted at events.longisland.com.
2. Long Island FunFest, June 11-21 — Suffolk County Community College Ammerman Campus, 533 College Rd., Selden. Dreamland Amusements operates a full carnival at the SCCC campus in Selden for 11 consecutive days. Rides, midway games, and fair food on site. The event runs daily, and the college campus gives it enough space for a full midway setup.
3. Smith Haven Mall Carnival, June 11-21 — 313 Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove. Dreamland Amusements runs the same June 11-21 window at Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove, giving families on the North Shore a carnival option close to home. Rides for kids and adults, games, and food vendors on the mall property.
4. Grooves on the Green, June 3 and June 17 — Station Yards, Ronkonkoma. A free outdoor concert series that runs every other Wednesday through September 23 at Station Yards in Ronkonkoma. Local vendors and nearby restaurants participate alongside live music performances. No admission, no tickets. Performances begin in the evening.
5. Bellmore Fireman's Fair, June 25-28 — Bellmore Train Station, Sunrise Highway, Bellmore. The annual Bellmore Fireman's Fair runs four nights at the train station on Sunrise Highway, with carnival rides, games, and fair food. Proceeds benefit the local fire department. The event closes June 28, making it the last major fair stop in Nassau before the Fourth of July.
6. Empire State Fair, June 26-July 19 — Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 1255 Hempstead Tpke., Uniondale. The Empire State Fair sets up at Nassau Coliseum for a multi-week run through mid-July. Live entertainment, rides, vendors, and exhibits fill the grounds outside the arena. It is one of the longest-running summer events in Nassau County and draws visitors from across Long Island.

Beyond these six, dozens of smaller events land in village squares, waterfront parks, and school fields across Nassau and Suffolk in June. Town recreation departments in Huntington, Smithtown, Oyster Bay, and Hempstead typically post June programming in the final week of May. Municipal websites and local community Facebook groups surface events that rarely appear on regional calendars.

For families planning weekends in June, the overlap of the FunFest and Smith Haven carnivals from June 11-21 gives options on both shores of Suffolk County. The Famous Food Festival covers a single June weekend but runs Friday through Sunday with enough vendors to make a return visit worthwhile. Grooves on the Green offers two free evenings in the month for those who want live music without a cover charge.

Tickets and details for most events are available at events.longisland.com and discoverlongisland.com. Grooves on the Green at Station Yards is free and does not require advance registration.