This weekend, I visited Richmond's Italian American Festival. The whole experience should have been right up my alley, given that I'm an Italian culture junkie and a somewhat of a foodie, but I left the festival with mixed reviews.
On the positive side, Saturday was a beautiful day to be outdoors and enjoying the Church Hill neighborhood. The mix of foods smelled wonderful even from a distance of a few blocks, everyone involved in the festival was incredibly friendly, and it was wonderful to see such a large gathering of Richmonders. I certainly wasn't the only one taking advantage of the fabulous day.
On the negative side, though, the Italian American Festival seemed to focus much more on mediocre sausage and pepper sandwiches (not so mediocre that I didn't eat the whole thing) and store-bought cannoli. After enjoying cannoli from a great little bakery in New York a few weeks ago, the one I bought at the festival seemed like it belonged to a different species. With such a vibrant Italian community, I would have expected more from the festival. Where were the fabulous foodstuffs I had envisioned? How exactly was this festival giving me any sort of immersion into Italian culture? Even the musicians seemed to be on break during my stroll down Broad Street.
To end on a positive note, I did buy a fabulous sausage, and have been eating it one little slice at a time since Saturday. If only I could remember who sold it to me...
1 comment:
I was really disappointed in the Italian Festival. It just seemed kind of slapped together without any real thought or planning.
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