Happening May 12, Montgomery, Alabama’s first-annual All Star Food Festival coincides with the state’s “Year of Food” and will be presenting tastings and demos from more than 30 restaurants from 3-7 p.m. Held downtown on Commerce Street, the festival will also include guest chefs, farmers, brewers and gardening and nutrition workshops, in addition to a “The Future of Alabama Food Roundtable” discussion moderated by Scott Jones. Tickets to the festival, No. 4 on our list this month, are $35 in advance and $45 at the gate. 

1. Visit the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia, for special exhibition “From Poe’s Quill: The Letters and Manuscripts of Edgar Allan Poe“ May 1-30.

2. Head on over to Fort Mill, South Carolina, for the South Carolina Strawberry Festival, named South Carolina’s “Event of the Year,” May 1-5.

3. Beale Street Music Festival, Memphis, Tennessee’s largest annual event, takes place May 4-6 on the banks of the Mississippi River with Jane’s Addiction, My Morning Jacket, Florence + the Machine and more.

4. Commerce Street in downtown Montgomery, Alabama, is the place to be May 12 for the inaugural Alabama All Star Food Festival.

5. New Orleans’ Mid City Bayou Boogaloo Festival May 18-20 presents music on three stages, food and art on the banks of historic Bayou St. John.

6. The Hangout Music Festival, presenting Jack White, Wilco and the Red Hot Chili Peppers directly on the beach, takes place in Gulf Shores, Alabama, May 18-20.

7. Gonzales, Louisiana’s 45th annual Jambalaya Festival is one of the largest in the state, serving up world-champion jambalaya, live music and more May 24-27.

8. Nashville, Tennessee’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts hosts “Creation Story: Gees Bend Quilts and the Art of Thornton Dial,” beginning May 25 and running through September 3.

9. Beaufort, South Carolina’s 26th annual Gullah Festival celebrates the history and customs of the African Americans of the lowcountry May 25-27.

10. North Carolina’s Outer Banks Music Festival in Corolla presents two days of music May 27-28, including Shaggin’ on the Beach and a beer and wine festival on Sunday, all at the restored Whalehead Club.