Monmouth County Weekend: Seafood Fest, Pooch Parade, Little Steven

Good morning, Monmouth County. It's a full fall weekend. Bell Works in Holmdel turns into a seafood and music festival on Saturday, Pier Village in Long Branch hosts a fall festival with a pooch parade, and Ocean Pathway in Ocean Grove fills up for the Mary's Place by the Sea Walk-a-Thon. Asbury Park has a lake cleanup, its last free farm stand of the season and a community day at the new fire headquarters, and the Count Basie Center in Red Bank has Little Steven on Saturday and Trombone Shorty on Sunday. Times come from organizer listings; check before you head out.

Friday

Lunar Faire Night Market, Freehold Township

The Lunar Faire comes to the East Freehold Showgrounds on Kozloski Road with a dark carnival theme: makers and vendors, a floating witch, a blade juggler, the drag band Saint Valentine and the Love Bugs, and a creepy sing-along called Faireoke. Tickets are $15 in advance and $25 at the door; kids under 10 get in free. Tickets and times

Friday night out

Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country at The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, 7 p.m. The Stone Pony
Brian Kilmeade in the Hackensack Meridian Health Theatre, and Chances Are, a tribute to Johnny Mathis, at The Vogel, both at the Count Basie Center in Red Bank, 7:30 p.m. Count Basie Center

Saturday

New Jersey Seafood & Music Festival, Holmdel

Bell Works on Crawfords Corner Road hosts an outdoor day of lobster rolls, crab cakes and shrimp, with live music, a beer, margarita and sangria garden, vendors, and kids' activities including inflatables, mini golf, pony rides and a petting zoo. Admission is $5 and free for kids under 5. Organizers say no tickets are sold in advance, so watch out for scammers selling them online. The listing shows an 11 a.m. start. Details

Long Branch Fall Festival & Pooch Parade, Pier Village, noon to 4 p.m.

Free to attend. Expect pumpkin carving, games, seasonal treats, The Nerds at the Boardwalk Gazebo and a Bavarian German band with traditional dancers at the Carousel Stage. Dogs in Halloween costumes parade at 12:30 p.m.; registration is $5 and benefits Pick Your Paw Rescue. Details and dog registration

Mary's Place by the Sea Walk-a-Thon, Ocean Grove, 8:30 a.m.

Walk, run or dance along Ocean Pathway in support of Mary's Place by the Sea, the Ocean Grove retreat that has offered free care to more than 17,000 women with cancer over 17 years. A vendor market and food trucks round out the morning. Register

A community Saturday in Asbury Park

Volunteers meet at 9 a.m. at the Western Footbridge near Emory Street and Lake Avenue to clean up Wesley Lake. The city's free community farm stand holds its last event of the season from 9 to 10:30 a.m., and Community Day at the new Fire Headquarters runs from noon to 3 p.m. Organizers have set Sunday, Oct. 18, as a rain date. More in local news

More Saturday

Marty's Place Howl-O-Ween Family Fest, Upper Freehold, noon to 5 p.m.: The senior dog sanctuary at 118 Route 526 holds its annual dog-friendly fundraiser with canine costume and pie-eating contests, mini swim sessions for dogs, food trucks and a beer and wine garden. $10; under 10 free. Marty's Place
Used Book Sale & Songwriters Reunion, Asbury Park, noon to 7 p.m.: The Asbury Book Cooperative fills the Carousel building with used books ($5 each, or $20 for a tote you fill) and live original music. Free; RSVP requested. RSVP
Books, Blooms & Magic, Freehold, noon to 4 p.m.: An enchanted book fair and makers market at Calgo Gardens. Details
Open Mic, Fiction Edition, Asbury Park Public Library, 11 a.m. Library listing
The Chorus of the Atlantic, Middletown Township Public Library, 2 p.m.: A free afternoon concert. Library listing
Saturday night: Little Steven presents a TeachRock benefit at the Count Basie Center, 7 p.m., and Jerry's Middle Finger plays The Vogel at 8 p.m. (Count Basie Center). In Asbury Park, All Them Witches play The Stone Pony (The Stone Pony) and Joe Grushecky & the Houserockers play the Wonder Bar (Wonder Bar), both at 7 p.m.

Sunday

Cars & Coffee New Jersey, Millstone Township, 8 to 10:30 a.m.: The Sunday morning car show's year-end meet, billed as the biggest of the season, at 400 Rike Drive. Details
Vintage Market at The Stone Pony, Asbury Park: Early-bird entry at 11 a.m. The Stone Pony
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue and Boney James, Red Bank, 7 p.m.: Trombone Shorty plays the Count Basie Center's main theatre while Boney James plays The Vogel. Count Basie Center

All weekend

Gypsy at the Middletown Arts Center, through Oct. 25. Tickets
Evita from NENAproductions Theater Project in Asbury Park, through Oct. 25. NENAproductions

Around the county

Name the recycling superhero: Monmouth County has launched a recycling education trailer and is holding a contest to name its superhero. Local news
Belmar and Wall share a tax collector: The Belmar council approved an agreement for Wall Township to provide tax collector services. Politics
Changes at Long Branch City Hall: Business Administrator Charley Shirley Jr. has resigned, and the mayor announced a leadership shake-up. Business
Monday at town hall: Wall's planning board takes up a splash pad and an airnasium for the YMCA's Camp Zehnder, and Wall's zoning board hears a self-storage plan on Wednesday. Our Monday government brief has the week's meetings. Monmouth County government

Planning something for next weekend? Submit your event and browse the full Monmouth County events calendar.