Postponed: Oxnard Salsa Festival will fête fabulous dance and the fabulously fiery food

POSTPONED: The 2023 festival, originally scheduled for July 29 and 30, has been postponed. The organizers released this announcement: "We had anticipated the festival’s return in 2023 after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic. The decision was made to postpone it one more year until more resources were available to ensure a successful event," said Gary Blum, a member of the Oxnard Downtowners. "We know canceling the festival will disappoint many in the community who have made the Oxnard Salsa Festival a family tradition. We look forward to welcoming salsa fans back next year."

Stay tuned for more information about the rescheduled 2024 event.

GREEN CHILE SEASON... is on the hot horizon, with roasting events starting to pop up on the late-summer schedules of many Southern California grocery stores. And while chile can be enjoyed throughout the year, it is, coincidentally, right around the end of July when we begin to more fervently seek out spicy and savory sauces, the kind of chip-dipping, meal-topping condiments that brim, beautifully, with chile and peppers and tomatoes and onions and other mouthwatering ingredients. So call the return of the annual Oxnard Salsa Festival perfectly timed: It's a summertime celebration that pays flavorful tribute to the incredible and incredibly versatile dip as well as putting the spotlight — or sunlight, rather — on several spectacular Salsa dance performances, as well as an energetic line-up of live bands and musical artists.

JULY 29 and 30... are the 2023 dates, Plaza Park is the place, and the festival is free to enter. If you'd like a place to sit near the music within the Concert Venue area, that is $5. When you're not soaking up the sound-filled scene, and all of those impressive moves on the dance floor, you may want to make your way to the Salsa Tasting Tent, where "dozens of different flavors of salsa," from a talented showing of salsa-making pros, will be available for trying. Eager to chow down on tacos, empanadas, and other goodies? Food will be for sale during the festival, as libations like wine and margaritas. A Kid Zone, a place to browse vendors, and other lively look-around areas will dot the grounds. This popular fest, by the by, will soon sashay into its 30th anniversary, making it one of the caliente-iest and coolest conventions in all of California.