Sip, savor, and salsa: Where to celebrate Cinco de Mayo 2025 in PA

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo 2025 in Pennsylvania at these cultural events, parties, and restaurants.

Cinco de Mayo, Spanish for “Fifth of May,” is more widely celebrated in the United States than in Mexico, but that doesn’t make it any less meaningful. Americans commonly mistake the holiday for Mexican Independence Day, but Cinco de Mayo actually commemorates Mexico’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. Soon after, Mexican Americans began celebrating the anniversary of the battle, and the tradition grew, eventually becoming a broader celebration of Mexican culture every May 5.

There are many events planned across Pennsylvania where you can take part in Cinco de Mayo 2025, whether you’re looking for delicious Mexican food or want to learn more about Mexican American culture. Or…¿Por qué no los dos?

Cinco de Mayo events in eastern Pennsylvania

Cinco de Mayo at local restaurants – Philadelphia 

Philadelphia’s South Side Cinco de Mayo celebration, the largest in the city, has been cancelled this year due to increasing ICE activity and worries that ICE would target the event. (The event, El Carnaval de Puebla, was also cancelled in 2017 due to increased deportations.) Cinco de Mayo events in Philadelphia will therefore be much smaller in 2025 and often held at local restaurants. Check out your favorite local Mexican restaurant to see what they’re up to this Cinco de Mayo, or try these standbys: 

• Rittenhouse Square Latin-inspired restaurant Bar Bombón is celebrating Cinco de Mayo with food and drink specials all weekend, including $3 off margaritas, tacos, and empanadas on Monday, May 5.
• Trendy but traditional Mexican restaurant Sor Ynéz is offering Cinco de Mayo food and drink specials on Monday, May 5, and all weekend. On Monday, DJ Rumbero will provide music as a backdrop to the party. Book your table on Resy.
• Family-owned Blue Corn Mexican Restaurant and Bar is taking reservations for its Cinco de Mayo fiesta, which will include a live mariachi band as well as classic Mexican meals and margaritas. Call to make a reservation, and remember the restaurant is cash only.
• Popular eatery El Vez is hosting a Cinco de Mayo celebration as lively as the restaurant’s interior. Plus, orders of margarita pitchers will include a colorful flight of different fruit flavors so you can craft your perfect marg. The restaurant is also offering special foods available only for the weekend, like its fritto misto shrimp and calamari dish.

El Vez is home to a delightful spin on traditional Mexican food and drink. (C. Smyth/Visit Philadelphia)

Cinco de Mayo Fiesta – Allentown

The city of Allentown is hosting its own Cinco de Mayo celebration a day early, on Sunday, May 4. Together with city gem Amigos Mexican Grill and Lehigh Valley Mexican community group Interlace Cultural y Desarrollo Integral Mexicano, Allentown invites community members to a family-friendly block party on Hamilton Ave (near Amigos Mexican Grill). There will be live music, a DJ, dance performances, local vendors, great food and drink, and activities for kids.

Cinco de Mayo Festival – Kennett Square

On Sunday, May 4, one of the region’s best Cinco de Mayo celebrations, Kennett Square’s Cinco de Mayo Festival, will take off at the Kennett Borough parking lot on South Broad Street. Hosted by community groups Casa Guanajuato and ¿Qué Pasa, Kennett Square?, the festival celebrates Mexican culture with live music, incredible cuisine, dance performances, arts and crafts vendors, and more. The live music and dance productions include performances by Pasion Musical, Devinil, Seylin, and the Tenochtli dance troupe Danza Tenochtli.

A dancer performs a Mexican folkloric dance at Kennett Square’s annual Cinco de Mayo celebration. (John LightComposer/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Cinco de Mayo Agave Fest – Reading

Reading’s Cinco de Mayo Agave Fest promises a weekend jam-packed with Mexican culture, food, and fun. There will be traditional dance performances, multiple mariachi bands, flavorful cuisine, craft cocktails, an artisan vendor market, and more. The festival takes place Friday, May 2, through Sunday, May 4, at the large, event-focused campground Quinta Las Cabanas Grove.

Cinco De Mayo Fiesta at La Posada & Felix’s Cantina – Milford 

The only Yucatecan restaurant in Pennsylvania, Felix’s Cantina at the northeastern Pennsylvania hotel La Posada, is hosting its Cinco de Mayo celebration on Saturday, May 3. The family-friendly event will feature food specials (like $3 tacos), margaritas, live music including salsa, and kids’ activities like piñatas and face painting. The party continues on Monday, May 5, with more food and drink specials.

Cinco de Mayo at Más Mexicali Cantina – West Chester

The West Chester Mexicali restaurant (that’s California-style Mexican food, as opposed to Tex-Mex) Más Mexicali Cantina is going all out for Cinco de Mayo with four days of tequila tastings, mariachi music, drink specials, prizes, and Latin dancing. And if the weather cooperates, the cantina’s rooftop will be open!

Many of the Cinco de Mayo celebrations in Pennsylvania will feature live mariachi music. (Joseph Corl/Unsplash)

Cinco de Mayo Pop-Up Dinner at The Colonnade – Scranton

Scranton event venue The Colonnade is hosting a special pop-up dinner of traditional Mexican foods on Monday, May 5, in celebration of Cinco de Mayo. Your $45 ticket includes an appetizer of tortilla chips with salsa, guacamole, and queso; a fajita, taco, quesadilla, taco salad, and enchilada station with rice and beans; and dulce de leche cake for dessert. The venue will also have margaritas and sangria for sale, as well as a full bar. 

Cinco de Mayo Cooking Class with Koren’s Kitchen Catering & Prepared Family Meals – Wayne 

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo, you can learn how to make your own Mexican meal with a cooking class from Delaware County’s Koren’s Kitchen Catering & Prepared Family Meals. On Friday, May 2, the $95 class will teach you how to make traditional Mexican cuisine, including pollo asado (Mexican grilled or roasted chicken), carne asada (Mexican grilled beef), traditional Mexican rice and refried beans, as well as fresh guacamole and salsa. 

Cinco De Mayo Cocktail Class + Tasting at Cande Lounge – Philadelphia 

Mixologists with Double Strained are hosting a tequila cocktail making class on Cinco de Mayo at Cande Lounge in Philly. Participants will learn how to craft two cocktails and a mixed shooter with the Mexican spirit and do a lot of tasting along the way! Hosts will use Don Julio, Milagro, Casamigos, Tres Agaves, and 21 Seeds tequila and provide light snacks. Tickets are $55.

Cinco de Mayo events in western Pennsylvania

Enchilada making in Erie – Erie 

You can learn how to make your favorite enchiladas right at home at this enchilada making demonstration in Erie on Cinco de Mayo (May 5) at 6 p.m. Hosted by local Village West shop La Bella Vita, the party will include tasty samples, margaritas, chips and salsa, and a bottle of enchilada sauce that you can take home. Tickets are $17.50—half off from the original price!

Tacos and Margs Crawl – Pittsburgh 

One of the largest Cinco de Mayo events in Pittsburgh is a bar crawl in the party-loving South Side neighborhood. Bar Crawl Nation hosts Pittsburgh’s Tacos and Margs Crawl on Saturday, May 3, and has planned for revelers to visit a lineup of popular bars and restaurants on E. Carson Street, including Jimmy D’s, La Bodega, and Mario’s South Side Saloon. Each bar will offer taco and margarita specials and live entertainment. Participants will also be eligible to win prizes along the crawl, including a reward for finishing. Tickets start at $25.

Cinco de Mayo Fiesta – Slippery Rock

Slippery Rock University’s Student Organization of Latinos/Hispanics and Allies is hosting a Cinco de Mayo Fiesta in the university quad on Monday, May 5. Between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., there will be food, salsa dancing lessons, a live DJ, and guest performances by music therapy and percussion students. If it rains, the fiesta will be held in the theater at the Smith Student Center.

Cinco de Mayo Celebration at SanaView Farms Winery – Champion

Event venue, historic farm, and winery SanaView Farms in the Laurel Mountains is hosting a Cinco de Mayo celebration on Sunday, May 4, with a special Mexican menu and craft margaritas. Guests will enjoy flavorful tacos with a host of toppings, Mexican street corn, delicious cinnamon-y churros, and chocolate cake. Vegan and vegetarian options will also be available. Margaritas include the house margarita—blueberry lavender lemonade—as well as a classic marg and a frozen watermelon version. Live music by Yukon John will provide the soundtrack for the party. Reservations are encouraged.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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