Tis' the season to eat, drink and be merry, Lobster Festival style! Californians typically prefer eating Maine Lobster at the seasonal feeds & festivals, and they tend to be the most avarice eaters, setting records for consumption of this delicacy once banned from being served more than twice a week to maids and servants. That was a very long time ago! Today you'll pay around $25 - 50 for a lobster meal at a festival or feed, and it's considered something quite extravagant, not typically eaten on a daily basis because of the cost.

In 2009 the Port of Los Angeles Lobster Festival set the Guinness World Record for most seafood consumed at a public event. That's how much Californians love their lobster!

Upcoming are a handful of lobster events in California. The three biggest in Southern California are festivals spanning three days each. They are held in September in Long Beach, Redondo Beach and San Pedro. In the wine country and Northern California they call their events Lobster Feed, and the events generally last only a day, afternoon or evening.

Sonoma and Napa wine country wineries host a number of these annual Lobster feeds. They are extremely popular events served with specially selected wines, and they generally cost $50 and up.

Back in Southern California, the Lobster festivals include rock bands, pirates, a mechanical bull ring, swimsuit fashion shows, and vendors selling all sorts of other foods, as well. Here's the 2011 lineup of Lobster events we've rounded up for your consumption.