Happy Friday, Lodi! Summer nights have never been prettier and more relaxing.

This weekend, you can enjoy yoga, a corgi paddle board fest (it was in the last edition, but still deserves the spotlight in my opinion), fresh brunch options both Saturday and Sunday, and so much more.

Before you keep on reading, if you want more daily Lodi updates, be sure to add us on Instagram! We’re starting to film events, local spots, and starting regular community cleanups!

Also this edition’s cover photo was taken by our photographer @scrapedkneephotography while attending WOO GIRL! Cellars Rosé Soirée! Go check her out too if you ever need to book someone to take stunning pictures that capture memories forever.

As always, let's get into it.

— Kylie and Hunter Talamantez

Got an event you think the community should know about? We're now accepting submissions from our readers, so if you're hosting something public in Lodi or know about an event that deserves a spotlight, send it our way. We're excited to start featuring your events alongside everything else happening around town.

Readers and Eaters Storytime with Dr. JaNay Brown-Wood | Saturday, June 20th | 11:00 am

Here is one for the littles! The Lodi Public Library is hosting a Readers and Eaters storytime with author and child development expert Dr. JaNay Brown-Wood, who will read her picture book Linh’s Rooftop Garden, then follow it up with an actual tasting of the fruits and veggies from the story.

What makes this one worth a Saturday morning is the combo. Kids get a reading that sharpens their observation and comparison skills, since the book has them spotting the difference between a blueberry and a gooseberry, then they get to taste the real thing right after. That kind of hands on food exposure is genuinely one of the better tricks for getting hesitant eaters curious about fruits and veggies. Dr. Brown-Wood holds a PhD in Education and built her career around exactly this kind of playful, developmentally minded programming, so the storytime itself is built with little ones in mind. RSVP is recommended, and there is a heads up that the tasting includes strawberries, blueberries, onions, and other fresh produce if allergies are a concern.

📍 Lodi Public Library, 201 W Locust St, Lodi, CA 95240

Native Skills in the Nature Area | Saturday, July 11th | 10:00 am to 12:00 pm

Mark the calendar for this one because its a few weeks out but worth the wait. Lodi Lake’s Second Saturdays series brings docents Jeff and Peter from the San Joaquin County Historical Museum out to the Nature Area to teach kids and families about the skills used by the Native Miwok and Yokut tribes, including hands on acorn crushing and building miniature tule boats.

This is the kind of outing that sneaks real learning into a morning outside. Kids get actual local history, not just a worksheet version of it, plus the hands on crushing and building works those fine motor skills while keeping everyone off screens for a couple hours. Its also a nice way to give children a grounded sense of who lived on this land before, told by people who study it for a living. The event is free, though parking fees apply at the lake, all ages are welcome, and dogs need to sit this one out since it is inside the Nature Area.

📍 Lodi Lake, Redwood Amphitheater inside the Nature Area, Lodi, CA

Some of our favorite Lodi staples started because someone needed to make ends meet for their family, and Fiori’s is exactly that story. Joe Fiori opened the Butcher Shoppe back in 1983 after the meat shop he had been working at closed down. He had three young kids at home and needed a way to provide for them, so he took the leap and started his own.

Back then ordering a whole side of beef, pork, or lamb from your local market was still pretty normal, and that is exactly what Joe built the shop around. He cured his own pastrami and corned beef, smoked his own salmon, and made bratwurst and jerky completely from scratch. Word got around fast, and Fiori’s became the spot in town for marinated meats long before grocery stores caught on to that trend.

What is funny is the sandwiches were never the plan. Customers kept asking Joe to turn his deli meats and cheeses into something they could eat right there, and once he gave in, the sandwiches basically took over. Soups, chili, salads, espresso drinks, all of it got added along the way, but the sandwich case became the heart of the place. By 1998 Joe and his wife Barbara had outgrown their original spot and moved two doors down, doubling their size to 3,000 square feet.

44 years later, Fiori’s is still family run, still on West Lodi Avenue, and still serving the same flavors that built it. It is a really sweet reminder that some of Lodi’s best food came out of someone simply trying to take care of their kids.

📍 Fiori’s Butcher Shoppe & Deli, 400 W Lodi Ave, Lodi, CA 95240

— JUNE 2026 —

Sat - Jun 20

Sun - Jun 21

Wed - Jun 24 

— JULY 2026 —

Sat - Jul 11

Sat - Jul 18

Wed - Jul 22

Sat - Jul 25

— AUGUST 2026 —

Sat - Aug 8

Wed - Aug 26 Agents of Rock – Music in the Park | ~7:00 PM 

Sun - Aug 23

Thanks for reading! It means more than you know that you take a few minutes out of your day to stay connected with our little corner of the world. See you around Lodi! 🍇