Highlights of Events in Long Beach This Weekend
- This weekend in Long Beach features various events including Anna’s Pizza Joint Grand Opening on May 2 with free pizza and drinks.
- The Long Beach Plant Fest at MOLAA offers plants, workshops, and food on May 2 from 11 AM to 4 PM.
- Enjoy a free open-air art session at Rancho Los Cerritos on May 2 from 10 AM to 12 PM, open to all artists.
- Catch live blues music by Robert Dean at Hellada Gallery on May 2 from 7 PM to 9 PM, with no cover charge.
- Finish your weekend on May 3 with original music by Long Beach’s The Mercy Stone at Pike Restaurant & Bar at 4:30 PM.
Long Beach, you really never let us down. This weekend is stacked — and we mean properly stacked. Whether you’re trying to get outside, catch some live music, expand your plant collection, or just eat really good pizza while a DJ spins old school vinyl (yes, really), there is something for every kind of LBC local this Saturday and Sunday. Here’s your official LBC Vibe guide to the best things to do in Long Beach this weekend, May 2–3, 2026.
Anna’s Pizza Joint Grand Opening — Saturday, May 2
Belmont Shore has been buzzing since Anna’s Pizza Joint soft-opened on 2nd Street back in March, and now it’s time for the real celebration. The official Grand Opening goes down this Saturday, May 2 — and they are not playing around with it.
Doors open at 11 AM at 5351 E. 2nd Street, right in the heart of Belmont Shore. DJ Geenee will be spinning old school vinyl from 12–3 PM, the first 25 guests get a free slice and drink, and from 12–3 PM it’s 50% off all food and draft beer (dine in only). There’s also a merch release and lots of giveaways throughout the day.
Anna’s Pizza Joint is the brainchild of Curtis Fullerton — the same team behind Anna’s Joint on Pine Avenue in Downtown Long Beach — and chef Adam Crisafulli. Everything is made in-house, from the chili oil to the pesto to the vodka sauce. Their NY-style pies are already getting people talking, and they’re also slinging meatball subs on garlic knot bread and frozen custard from local gem Seaside Creamery. House beer? Long Beach Beer Lab. Naturally.
This is a Belmont Shore grand opening with actual energy. Get there early if you want that free slice.
5351 E. 2nd St., Long Beach CA 90803 Doors open 11 AM | DJ Geenee 12–3 PM 50% off food and draft beer 12–3 PM (dine in only) Free to attend
Long Beach Plant Fest at MOLAA — Saturday, May 2
Your favorite green gathering is back and this year it’s taking over one of Long Beach’s most iconic cultural spaces. The Long Beach Plant Fest, presented by Hella Plants Market and Plantiitas, rolls into the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) this Saturday, May 2 from 11 AM to 4 PM.
Expect a full day of rare and common plants, hands-on workshops with local plant experts, food vendors, and straight-up community vibes. Whether you’re a serious collector hunting for a rare tropical, a new plant parent looking for something easy, or honestly just here for the music and the energy — this event has a place for you. Kids get in free, parking is available nearby, and the organizers are keeping it sustainable and single-use bag-free, so bring your tote, your wagon, or whatever you’re hauling your new plant babies home in.
Long Beach Plant Fest is the kind of event that makes our city feel like a living, breathing community. Don’t miss it.
Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA), 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach CA 90802 Saturday, May 2 | 11 AM – 4 PM Kids get in free | Get tickets on Eventbrite
Express Your Creativity at Rancho Los Cerritos — Saturday, May 2
If you need a slower, more intentional start to your Saturday morning before the energy picks up, this one is for you. The Arts Council for Long Beach hosts their monthly open-air art session at the gorgeous Rancho Los Cerritos historic site on Saturday, May 2 from 10 AM to 12 PM — and it is completely free.
Artists of all levels and all media are welcome — whether you’re working in graphite, oil, pastels, or watercolors. You’ll meet at the Visitor Center, then spread out across the beautiful historic grounds to sketch, paint, and soak in a setting that honestly makes everything look like a painting already. After the session, everyone gathers at noon for a sack lunch in front of the Visitor Center to share their work and connect with other local creatives. Bring your own chair, easel, supplies, and something to eat.
This is a recurring first-Saturday event and one of those quietly special Long Beach gems that deserves more love. Free parking on site.
Rancho Los Cerritos, 4600 Virginia Rd., Long Beach CA 90807 (Bixby Knolls) Saturday, May 2 | 10 AM – 12 PM All media welcome | All skill levels welcome Free
Good Old Blues LIVE! at Hellada Gallery — Saturday, May 2
This is the kind of Long Beach night out that makes us love this city. Musician Robert Dean takes the stage at Hellada Gallery in the East Village Arts District every first and third Saturday of the month — and this Saturday, May 2, he’s back from 7 PM to 9 PM for a live blues set that costs you absolutely nothing to walk into.
Hellada Gallery has been a cornerstone of Long Beach’s Downtown arts scene since 1996 — a community gallery and art center tucked on Linden Ave that quietly hosts some of the most authentic, no-frills cultural programming in the city. No cover charge, just drop a donation if you feel it, grab a snack, find a spot, and let Robert Dean do his thing.
This is real Long Beach. Come through.
Hellada Gallery, 117 Linden Ave., Long Beach CA 90802 (East Village Arts District) Saturday, May 2 | 7 PM – 9 PM Live blues | No cover | Donations welcome
The Mercy Stone Live at The Pike — Sunday, May 3
Cap off your weekend on the East Side with some seriously good live music. Long Beach indie band The Mercy Stone plays Pike Restaurant & Bar this Sunday, May 3 at 4:30 PM — and if you haven’t caught them live yet, this is your sign.
The Mercy Stone is a Long Beach original, performing all original music that blends indie pop, rock, folk, and electronica into something that genuinely doesn’t sound like anything else. Their debut album got picked up on Spotify’s Fresh Finds playlist and earned a feature in Clash Magazine — one of the UK’s most influential music publications. These guys are the real deal, and catching them at a neighborhood bar on a Sunday afternoon is exactly the kind of unpretentious, community-rooted experience Long Beach does better than anywhere.
Pike Restaurant & Bar is a well-loved East Side spot with great food, strong drinks, and a welcoming vibe. Afternoon show, local band, good people. Sunday doesn’t get better than this.
Pike Restaurant & Bar, 1836 E. 4th St., Long Beach CA 90802 Sunday, May 3 | 4:30 PM Live original music | Go to Eventbrite for tickets and updates
Long Beach, This Weekend Has No Excuses
From a grand opening with free pizza and a DJ to an outdoor art session at a historic ranch, a plant festival at MOLAA, live blues in the East Village, and a local indie band closing out Sunday afternoon — this weekend in Long Beach is a genuine reminder of why we chose this city and why we stay.
Go support local. Go explore. Go eat that pizza.
As always, follow @LBCVibe on Instagram for more Long Beach events, weekend guides, and the stories that make this city what it is. And if you go to any of these events this weekend, tag us — we want to see your Long Beach.
FAQs
Anna’s has two locations in Long Beach, but the Grand OPening for Anna’s Pizza Joint is located at 5351 E. 2nd St., Long Beach CA 90803, in the Belmont Shore neighborhood.
The Long Beach Plant Fest is a community plant market presented by Hella Plants Market and Plantiitas. It features rare and common plants, hands-on workshops, local food vendors, and music. The 2026 event is held at the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) on Saturday, May 2 from 11 AM to 4 PM.
Yes, tickets are available through Eventbrite. Early bird tickets are recommended. Kids get in free.
Express Your Creativity is a free monthly open-air art session hosted by the Arts Council for Long Beach at Rancho Los Cerritos in Bixby Knolls. Artists of all skill levels and all media are welcome — graphite, oil, pastels, watercolors, you name it. The group meets at the Visitor Center, explores the historic grounds to sketch and paint, then gathers at noon for a sack lunch to share their work. It happens the first Saturday of every month.
Robert Dean performs live blues at Hellada Gallery on Saturday, May 2 from 7 PM to 9 PM. There is no cover charge — donations are welcome at the door.
The Mercy Stone is a local Long Beach indie band that performs original music blending pop, rock, folk, and electronica. They have been featured on Spotify’s Fresh Finds playlist and in Clash Magazine. They are playing live at Pike Restaurant & Bar on Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 4:30 PM.
This weekend has several free options: the Grand Opening at Anna’s Pizza Joint (with 50% off food and draft beer from 12–3 PM), the open-air art session at Rancho Los Cerritos, and the live blues show at Hellada Gallery are all free to attend. The Long Beach Plant Fest requires a ticket for adults but kids get in free.
