The Weekend Playbook: 20 bands and late-night knockwurst

Boston Calling
Mike Diskin
Mike Diskin

Event of the Week: Boston Calling Part II Fresh on the heels of May's epic debut, this two-day, 20-artist music festival held on City Hall Plaza is back for round two this weekend. Plan on two beer gardens (pouring Lagunitas, Ommegang, Sierra Nevada), food from Tasty Burger, Roxy's, and the Chicken & Rice Guys, and two stages featuring the likes of Deer Tick, Passion Pit, Vampire Weekend, and The Gaslight Anthem. See the complete lineup and score your tickets here!Freebie of the Week Assuming you enjoy one-hour lunchtime dance parties (held at secret locations) with live DJs, gratis vodka cocktails & bagged lunches, then you should probably check this out. You know, if you're into that kind of thing. Thursday, September 5thThrough Friday, buy a coffee at Earl of Sandwich on Boston Common between 8-9a, and they'll throw in one of their popular breakfast sammies for a mere buck. Yes, one whole dollar. Go… now. The NFL season kicks off tonight, so consider this your last chance to take advantage of Lucky Strike's fantasy football packages complete with food/drink deals, free WiFi, and a $100 gift certificate. Quick, cancel the autodraft and do this thing live before the Baltimore-Denver kickoff.

Cambridge Open Market
Cambridge Open Market

Friday, September 6th
Kicking off its inaugural season this Friday at 1130a, Cambridge Open Market's setting up shop in the Plaza at Harvard and running every week through October.

Spend an evening uncomfortably cringing in embarrassment as "aspiring" stand-up comics try out their "best" material in an effort to win Comedy Central's Up Next talent search, going down at Johnny D's in Davis Friday night at 730p. Snag a ticket here

Saturday, September 7th
Consider yourself a car guy? Is the Porsche your dream ride of choice? If so, don't miss Porschefest this weekend at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum.

Mass Ave's Pemberton Farms is throwing a little free hyper-local beer fest called PemberFest from 2-5p, featuring all your fave area brewers like Slumbrew, Jack's Abby, Battle Road, and Backlash. Check it out

If Saturday's 500+ horse Grand Prix is anything like this video, then you're gonna want to be at Ipswich's Jumper Classic.

Fresh off their unlucky 45-0 loss to Wisconsin last weekend, UMass is taking on Maine in front of a quarter-filled Gillette Stadium this Saturday at 2p. They're Division I-A now -- and they need your support. Or, join college football fans from across the country as they cheer for their favorite teams/alma maters at bars around the city.

Sunday, September 8th
Enjoy throwback tunes and John Hughes movies whilst taking down fried chicken & waffles and Snickers French toast w/ candied peanuts, chocolate chip, and caramel sauce at Blue Inc's Totally Awesome 80’s Brunch.

Then take it even further back to the '70s, and go see the Charlie Daniels Band, just because it'll probably be awesome. They're playing at the Indian Ranch in Webster, at 2p.

Wurst at Bronywn
Dave Baldwin

Monday, September 9th
Assuming you find yourself craving knockwurst, kielbasa and eggs, or bretzels at midnight, consider yourself in luck, as Union Square's Bronwyn is rolling out their new late-night menu on Monday. Or if you live in JP, Canary Square's also recently debuted a lineup of late-night vittles that includes crab rangoon, Peking duck, and lobster fritters.

Tuesday, September 10th
East Broadway Foodie Crawl. Spend your Tuesday evening partaking of the best sustenance Somerville's East Broadway has to offer at this annual, 12-stop, international food stroll that culminates with dessert, after-parties, and live tunes. You will need tickets though

Wednesday, September 11th
Finally, hit Back Bay's Red Lantern nightly from 5-7p and take advantage of their "Kitchen Kamikaze" menu deal. It's simple: you order one of six Asian-nation-themed drinks (Sapporo, Mai Tai, Cambodian Collins), and they'll throw in a free paired "savory small bite", like Singapore spring noodles, rock shrimp tempura, and pan-seared pork dumplings.