12 years of sticky joy

Saturday · 26 September 2026 · Union Square, Somerville

Marshmallow Commons!

Cloud
Cream

So, what is the Commons?

A neighborhood feast for the soft-hearted.

Marshmallow Commons is a one-day street celebration of Somerville makers, curious cooks, local bands, and the gloriously sticky treat that brings everyone together.

Born from a tiny neighborhood recipe swap, the gathering now fills Union Square with tasting tables, craft stalls, family performances, recipe contests, and plenty of room to invent your own improbable snack.

Graham crackers with marshmallows by Topher, CC0 via Openverse

Open recipe challenge

Build the bite everyone remembers.

Home bakers and first-time experimenters get eight minutes, one shared pantry, and permission to make something delightfully excessive. A panel of local chefs chooses the best balance of flavor, texture, and nerve.

2025 crowd favorite
Salted maple cloud bar · Browned oat crisp · Tart apple

Download the entry form

Street Festival by Ian Muttoo, CC BY-SA via Openverse

Plan your day

Schedules

Common Stage

11:00Brass on the Block

12:05Cloud Cream Origins

13:20Recipe Relay

14:40Neighborhood Choir

16:10Cook-off Results

17:15Lantern Parade

Side-Street Stage

11:15Mallow Mythology

12:00Kitchen Percussion

12:50The Jar Label Club

13:45Bubble Folk Trio

14:35Soft Sculpture Lab

15:30Community Story Hour

16:30Late-Afternoon Strings

Little Cloud Stage

11:30Cardboard City

12:40Junior Taste Lab

14:00Sidewalk Chalk Jam

15:20Puppet Picnic

16:25Big Bubble Finale

Happening all day

Recipe library · Porch portraits · Quiet tent · Community mural · Bike valet · Cloud-cream tasting table

Eat, browse, meet

Vendors

Food

SweetJuniper Confections

Mallow & Rye Bakery

Buttercup Ice House

Sagebrush Caramels

Honeycomb Kitchen

SavoryMaple Street Arepas

Long Table Dumplings

Cinder Oven Pizza

Basil & Brine

North Fork Noodles

The Pickle Cart

Porchlight Tamales

Crafts

Soft Corner Studio

Cedar Paper Works

Tin Moon Jewelry

Harbor Thread

Rook & Pine Prints

Sidewalk Ceramics

Lucky Kite Workshop

Commonloom Textiles

Little Window Press

Elm Street Objects

Other tables

CommunitySomerville Seed Library

Warm Line Mutual Aid

Greenway Friends

Union Square History Club

Neighborhood Tool Share

ActivitiesCloud-Cream Face Paint

Pocket Parade HQ

Recipe Recording Booth

Festival Field Notes

Festival map

Find your next bite.

Map released September 1

Getting here

Union Square is best reached on foot, by bike, or via the 86 and 91 buses. Accessible drop-off is available on Prospect Street until 10:45 AM.

Transit notes

Become a volunteer

Help hold the Commons together.

It takes 143 neighbors to hang signs, welcome guests, restock tables, guide families, and leave the square cleaner than we found it. Shifts are short, lunch is included, and returning volunteers receive first choice.

Choose a shift