Festival Food
They came, they saw . . . they ate. Festival after festival finds hundreds of
thousands of Edmontonians and visitors enjoying the sites, sounds and tastes of the city.
But not all the food available to be devoured at these outdoor events is created equal.
There is good, there is bad -- and there is just plain gross!
Capital EX offers the most to be wary of.
Not only is the food extremely overpriced -- four bucks for a plate of greasy fries? --
but is of varying quality. The burgers and other "mystery meat" delights are notorious for getting people sick.
It's easy to guess why -- questionable storage, lack of accountability to the customers since by their nature
these temporary food stands are fly by night operations. Opting for chicken, which is at least recognizable,
is the better, but equally expensive, option. The highlight of food at the midway? The mini-donuts, fresh out of the fryer,
sprinked with powdered sugar or cinnamon. These treats literally melt in your mouth.
A Taste of Edmonton, which coincides each year with Klondike Days, has more culinary appeal. After all,
the entire reason for this event is for people to sample the wares of a variety of different Edmonton
restaurants. The variety is extremely wide and will appeal to all palates.
Most of the festivals have the same, recognizable food vendors in their makeshift
tents. Ice cream, popcorn, nachos, gourmet coffee and
hot dogs are the most common snacks. Sometimes, but not as often, you can find
vegetarian dishes like meatless burritos and green onion cakes.
The heat of the day calls for some thirst quenching help, and beverages are as easy to find
as enough coins to put into a vending machine. If something other than pop
is your fancy, and you are over the legal drinking limit, you can seek out the beer tent where you can get
an overpriced cup of draft beer or wine cooler. The licensed
area of any downtown festival involving Churchill Square can be found
at the fenced off section right in the middle of the square.
Fruit smoothies is the healthy and economical
way to go -- the vitamins and natural sugar provide excellent re-hydration, and taste great!
Of course, the least expensive and probably the healthiest option is to bring a brown bag lunch and snacks . . .
but that just would not be as fun or exciting.
