Following some wildly successful night markets in San Francisco, Oakland’s Chinatown will make its mark with the Chinatown Night Market this Saturday night, with a “Dumpling Olympics” and more.

San Francisco has used a series of night markets to try to rejuvenate a lackluster downtown scene. SF’s Chinatown Night Market has tried to do the same in that neighborhood, while last weekend’s Sunset Night Market drew an estimated crowd of 20,000. Now Oakland’s Chinatown, which has had a rough couple of years, is looking for some of that same revitalization magic, as NBC Bay Area reports there will be an Oakland Chinatown Night Market this Saturday night (5-9 pm).  

The event is free to attend, but if you RSVP you’ll be entered to win a raffle prize.

It’s being organized by the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council (OCIC), who say in an announcement that “for one night only, two blocks on Eighth street will be laced with a new generation of tastemakers with street eats, cultural products, live music, and more.” The event will be on Oakland’s Eighth Street between Broadway and Webster streets, but with other activities along Franklin and Tenth streets, and an Oakland Asia Cup basketball tournament (4-7 pm) at nearby Lincoln Square Park.

“It’s very progressive thinking,” OCIC president Stewart Chen told NBC Bay Area. “We’re going to have an electric music festival. We’re going to have DJs."

A scheduled Dumpling Olympics will have its winners determined by a fan vote. There will be an outdoor bar and Taiwanese street eats at Lounge Chinatown, the Alameda Brewing Company will be serving beer, and ABG Art Group is organizing an outdoor pop-up art gallery.

You’ll also get music from Japanese-American rapper Seiji Oda at 8 pm, with other DJs spinning from 5-7 pm.  

And if you can’t get enough of these night markets, KQED has a complete list of Bay Area night markets, with dates running through mid-November.

The Oakland Chinatown Night Market is this Saturday, September 7 from 5-9 pm on Eighth Street between Broadway and Webster streets.

Related: Downtown Night Market and Friday Parties Help to Launch 'Vacant to Vibrant' Program [SFist]

Image: Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council