Arlington's October Happens in the Parks While Mass Ave Waits for Its Next Openings
October 15, 2026
October 15, 2026
At noon on Saturday, October 17, Arlington Brewing Company starts pouring at Reservoir Beach on Lowell Street. Woodman's of Essex and Augusta's Chicken on the Road park their food trucks nearby, and a DJ sets up next to a kids' zone. An hour later, at 61 Eastern Ave., volunteers at Robbins Farm Park bring out the sacks for the sack race and the spoons for the egg-on-a-spoon relay. A table there sells apple cider, cider donuts and apple pie for a nominal charge.
In summer, Arlington's calendar centers on Massachusetts Avenue. Town Day brought thousands into Arlington Center on September 19. For the rest of October, the dates on the town's calendar are mostly in its parks. Meanwhile, the next set of businesses on Mass Ave has its licenses and plans but hasn't opened yet.
The two events on October 17 overlap from 1 to 4 p.m. Here is how they compare.
| Arlingtoberfest | Robbins Farm Field Day | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Reservoir Beach, Lowell Street | Robbins Farm Park, 61 Eastern Ave. |
| Hours | Noon to 6 p.m. | 1 to 4 p.m. |
| Run by | Arlington Recreation | Friends of Robbins Farm Park |
| Food and drink | Woodman's of Essex, Augusta's Chicken on the Road, beer from Arlington Brewing Company | Cider, cider donuts, apple pie for a nominal charge |
| For kids | Kids' zone | Three-legged, egg-on-the-spoon and sack races, cornhole, a scavenger hunt, a bouncy house for younger children |
| Cost | Free | Refreshments for a nominal charge |
| Dogs | Listed as dog-friendly | Not specified |
| Rain plan | Moves to Sunday, Oct. 18 | No rain date listed |
The schedules make it easy to do both. Arlingtoberfest runs six hours and Field Day runs three, so a family can spend the early afternoon at Robbins Farm and still reach the Reservoir with hours to spare. Field Day also has a history component that Arlingtoberfest doesn't. The Friends of Robbins Farm Park list activities about the farm's own past alongside the races.
One small point if you're plugging in a map pin: sources give different street numbers for Reservoir Beach. YourArlington's listing uses 250 Lowell St., and Arlington Brewing Company's event page lists 301 Lowell St. Navigating to "Reservoir Beach" by name is the safer bet.
The town runs one of these events, and a volunteer group runs the other.
The Town of Arlington's calendar lists Arlington Recreation as the lead organizer and Arlington Brewing Company as its beer partner. This is only the second year. When Arlington Recreation announced the first edition, it advertised three live bands, a kid-friendly area with a bounce house and Menotomy Grill selling fall-inspired food. That first festival was scheduled for October 18, 2025. The 2026 listing has a DJ in place of the bands and two named food trucks. The festival is still finding its format, so this year's lineup isn't necessarily the permanent one.
Field Day comes from a volunteer group. The Friends of Robbins Farm Park are still recruiting helpers through a sign-up page. Arlington High School students who volunteer can earn community service hours. The group calls the event "annual," and it appears on the Friends' full 2026 events schedule. Because volunteers do the work, how the day goes depends partly on how many people sign up.
The parks stay busy a week later. Arlington Recreation's facility schedule for Menotomy Rocks Park shows a "Spooky Walk" on Saturday, October 24, booked from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. That window is a facility booking. The town hasn't yet published visitor hours or a program for 2026, and the detailed guide that turns up in searches covers the 2025 walk. Keep the date open and check Arlington Recreation's Menotomy Rocks page closer to the day.
The same page shows a Fall 2026 Tai Chi class in the park from 11 to 11:45 a.m. on both October 17 and October 24. Since the class ends before noon, you could start October 17 at Menotomy Rocks and still make both afternoon events.
After Field Day and Arlingtoberfest, most of October's remaining dates are indoors and fall in the last two weeks of the month.
The Regent changes its schedule often, so confirm show times on the theatre's schedule page before buying tickets. The two shows at Arlington Center for the Arts run well past Halloween. If the October 15 reception doesn't fit your week, you can see both shows any time before December.
While events are happening in the parks, the changes on Massachusetts Avenue are happening at the Select Board, in leases and in storefront renovations. Several new businesses are lined up, and none has opened yet.
Two new wine and spirits shops. In March, Arlington voters approved a ballot question adding two package-store licenses, bringing the town's total to eight. On October 5, the Select Board unanimously awarded them, YourArlington reported. Arlington Center Fine Wines will open at 5 Medford St., just off the center, and Ruby Wine and Spirits will open at 1340 to 1342 Mass. Ave. in Arlington Heights. "Now it's the real work," co-owner Pietro Giglio told YourArlington after the vote. Ruby owner Utsav Patel said he was excited to open and "provide quality products to consumers and residents." The license award is the first step. Neither shop has announced an opening date.
A French bakery that hasn't opened yet. Patch reported in August that Colette Bakery planned a café of about 20 seats at 681 Mass. Ave., serving breads, croissants, pastries, sandwiches and coffee. The target was September, but no exact date was set. WhatNow Boston described it as the bakery's fourth Boston-area location and said the owners hoped to open before the end of September. As of mid-October, the locations page on Colette's website lists Medford, Boston and Melrose but not Arlington. For now, it's one to keep checking.
Storefronts that have already changed. Some improvements are already finished. The town's storefront improvement program paid for work at five businesses, YourArlington reported. Magic Bites at 916 Mass. Ave. got a new door and awning, and Butternut Bakehouse at 787 Mass. Ave. got a parklet. Utopia Cleaners at 1370 Mass. Ave. and Za at 138 Mass. Ave. got new awnings, and Wild Ember at 830 Mass. Ave. got a new door. Butternut's Suzana Samad told YourArlington the parklet gives people a place to have coffee, meet friends and work outside. On a mild October morning before the Spooky Walk, that parklet is one of the few outdoor seats on the avenue paid for by this year's grants.
The parks will host Arlington's community events through the end of October. On Mass Ave, the next new shop to open will most likely be Colette or one of the two wine shops, depending on which finishes its buildout first.
If you've been coming to these Saturdays for years and are starting to think about a move within Arlington or into a nearby town, Martha Sevigny would be glad to talk about what your home's location near these parks and Mass Ave means for its value. Schedule a confidential consultation.
Stay up to date on the latest real estate trends.
Her skills in finance, attention to detail, and client satisfaction translate seamlessly to the benefit of her real estate clients.