Your 5-minute guide to the best things to do in Charlotte | Sept. 25-Oct. 1
Friday
Kick off your weekend with a visit to OMB’s 12th Annual Mecktoberfest, featuring limited edition 1-liter glass boots that you can fill with your favorite OMB beers and live bands playing a variety of Bavarian, bluegrass and rock music. There will also be German food specials such as sausages, pretzels and more. 11 a.m.-11 p.m. 4150 Yancey Road. Free admission. https://bit.ly/2FPoQ4s
Experience the art of Gil Horne, Jr. at BlackBoy, an exhibition narrating the Black male reality, and its perils to the identity, healing and memory of Black Male Beauty at 9189 Studio Gallery. You must register for a time slot to visit the gallery. 5-9 p.m. 8838 Balsam Bay Road. $15. https://bit.ly/2RBix74
Test your endurance at the US National Whitewater Center’s Tread Nightly/Tread Brightly two-day race. Choose from a distance of 4 miles or a half marathon, and run one race on Friday night. If you aren’t tired out, you can wake up on Saturday morning and run your race all over again. Guests are required to have an illumination light on Friday night’s run. 6 p.m.-midnight Friday, 6 a.m.-noon Saturday. 5000 Whitewater Center Pkwy. $32-110. https://bit.ly/3kCUwsJ
Saturday
Enjoy dinner and a movie at Harry’s Grille and Tavern. Each ticket includes a three course meal, popcorn and candy to enjoy while watching a screening of the Avengers. 6-9 p.m. 2127 Ayrsley Town Boulevard. $30. https://bit.ly/33BDTXE
Explore Charlotte by bike and enjoy brunch from a local restaurant at Bike and Brunch. Take a leisurely paced 10-mile bike ride through the city with lots of stops for photos, and return to 7th Street Market for brunch specials from Uptown Yolk. The cost of your brunch is not included in ticket prices. 10 a.m. 224 W. 7th St. $40. https://bit.ly/3c8m6Lj
Explore some of the best new movies from emerging and established filmmakers working all over the world at the virtual Charlotte Film Festival. $50 for an all access pass, $7 for individual films. https://charlottefilmfest2020.eventive.org/
Visit Lunchbox Records or Repo Records to shop around in honor of Record Store Day. This year, the event is socially distanced into multiple dates, with participating independent stores focusing on getting titles off the RSD List in your hands. 825 Central Ave. or 3325 Commonwealth Ave. Free. https://recordstoreday.com/Home
Sunday
Celebrate the beginning of fall with a Masked Oktoberfest at Catawba Brewing Company, featuring Oktoberfest-themed beers and food specials, games and a costume contest with prizes for the best lederhosen and dirndl. 2-4 p.m. 333 Louise Ave. Free admission. https://bit.ly/3hHdxbu
Monday
Thinking about buying a home and not sure where to start? Local nonprofit Community Link is offering a virtual Get the Facts Homeowner Registration Program, where you will learn about how to get ready for a mortgage, choosing the right house and lender for your budget and needs, and important facts about the home buying process. 6 p.m. Free admission. https://bit.ly/2FIsoFA
Tuesday
Order plants from the UNCC Botanical Gardens at the online Fall Plant Sale. Choose from an array of native and non-native shrubs, trees, perennials, wildflowers and ferns, purchase your plants online and schedule a pickup time. All proceeds benefit the UNCC Botanical Gardens. Free admission. https://gardens.uncc.edu/fall-plant-sale/
Wednesday
Join the F**** Up Level Up Zoom meeting featuring Ohavia Phillips, activist and host of The Oh Show, along with Charlotte activists Kristie Puckett Williams, Nada Merghani and Frederick Murphy. In addition to sharing their lessons learned and how they are crushing it today, they’ll walk us through some of society’s screwups and what we need to do to level up. 7-8:15 p.m. Free admission, donations suggested. https://bit.ly/2FGSpVQ
Thursday
Pumpkin lovers won’t want to miss the Poplar Fall Flavors Dinner. Chef Edwin Cruz of Edwin’s Organix will be cooking up a four-course dinner featuring pumpkin-themed treats such as fresh pumpkin ricotta tortellini, pumpkin shrimp bisque and more. Each course is paired with a glass of wine. RSVP to trish@poplarcharlotte.com to attend. 6:30 p.m. 244 W. 10th St. $65. https://bit.ly/3c7wrHv
This story was originally published September 23, 2020 at 12:21 PM.