OKLAHOMA CITY – The 8th annual edition of Oklahoma City’s Asian Night Market Festival was an overwhelming success, with thousands turning out to the Asian District Friday and Saturday nights for performances, food, shopping, and joyful celebrations of the city’s richly diverse Asian communities.
Over back-to-back nights on October 2nd and 3rd, OKC’s Military Park filled with massive crowds, family activities, and more than 100 vendors lining the closed-off Classen Blvd from NW 23rd to NW 27th, boasting art, jewelry, and loads more.
The local fest was even recently named the #2 Best Night Market Festival in the nation by USA Today, with more than 80,000 guests expected each year, a remarkable increase from the inaugural installment less than a decade ago.
Though the final tally of this year’s attendance is still out, it may even eclipse those staggering past numbers.
“We come out every year,” a festivalgoer told Free Press on Saturday night, “and this is by far the most people we’ve ever seen.”
Between the fan favorite dragon and lion dances and the festival’s first-ever K-Pop dance competition, Asian District Cultural Association Executive Director Steve Le took the stage in Military Park to address the crowd and to show his clear gratitude.
A multi-day festival of such size, Le said, takes a small army of volunteers and around $80,000, and he offered his deepest thanks to the workers and donors that helped to make it all possible.
But Le also took a moment among all the festivities to remind attendees of the sad absence of one of the Asian District’s most powerful public artworks at the festival.
Last month, the interactive public sculpture “We Have Arrived” was badly burned and had to be removed from the park for repair and reconsideration.
Created by artists Denise Duong and Gabriel Friedman, “We Have Arrived” took the form of a small, art-covered boat to mark the 50th anniversary of the Vietnamese Boat People’s refugee journey across the sea following the Fall of Saigon.
Le spoke of the emotional power and deeply rooted cultural meaning of the work and encouraged everyone in the crowd to donate, also, to its refurbishment and repair so that it can return to the park and continue to teach and inspire new generations.
But after that solemn message, it was back to the joy and the widely diverse attractions and happenings all across the fest, including that hotly anticipated dance contest, games, fiery hot foods, creamy matcha drinks, outdoor film screenings, and on and on, with something different in every direction.
There were even family horse rides, a wall of horse-focused artworks, and a multi-story live mural painting throughout the event depicting a flame-bathed stallion, all to commemorate 2026 as the Year of the Horse.
It’s easy to see how an event so full of life and spirited, intermingled culture could clench that #2 spot, but it’s safe to say that this year’s installment will be angling for #1.
For more, visit asiandistrictok.com
Brett Fieldcamp is the owner and Editor in Chief of Oklahoma City Free Press. He has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly two decades and served as Arts & Entertainment Editor before purchasing the company from founder Brett Dickerson in 2026.
He is also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
