MANAYUNK

 

Manayunk was the talk of the town this past Saturday, April 12th for Manayunk’s StrEAT Food Festival.  Great weather and delicious food— what better way to enjoy the spring weather we have all been patiently waiting for?  As the first food festival of the spring, we are proud to say that this festival has topped the charts.  Throughout the past 2 years of hosting StrEAT, last Saturday was our most successful food festival yet!  

Crowds began to form the sidewalks of Main Street right before 11 am, as over 33 food trucks and  15 vendors finished setting up and start to accept their customers.  The food options varied tremendously—options ranged from ice cream and cupcakes, to hot dogs and burgers, to tacos and cheese curds!  There was no way to reach them all (although we wish it was possible) but guests did have a few favorites.  Lines swarmed around Cow and the Curd, Smokin’ Tacos, Vernalicious, and Mac Mart Food Truck, just to name a few.  Even though lines were long, it was worth the wait to enjoy the busy trucks mouth-watering food items.

StrEAT also took over social media!  We encouraged guests to upload their best dishes to Instagram and hashtag #MNYKSTREATFOOD as a way to get Manayunk lovers more involved and for a chance to win a great prize package! Here are pictures of our three winners:   

 

If you haven’t guessed it, strawberries were the “hidden” ingredient featured in many food items the vendors whipped up for the festival.  Dishes ranged from smoked salmon tacos with strawberry salsa to cheese curds with strawberry dipping sauce to simple but yummy strawberry lemonade, plus much more.  Restaurants and retailers also took part in the fun by incorporating a strawberry theme too! Restaurants whipped up either cocktails or dishes while retailers on the street chose to decorate their store or offer a promotion.

It was not easy for us to choose the best strawberry features throughout the festival, we were lucky to have Marilyn Russell of 95.7 BEN FM be the judge.  We are happy to announce the winners:

• Best Strawberry Item in the Food Truck Category: Chewy’s- Fried Strawberries topped with chocolate and powdered sugar.
• Best Strawberry Item in the Restaurant Category: Chabaa Thai Bistro- Strawberry Dumplings made right in front of your eyes by Chef Moon.
• Best Merchant Window Display: Tiny Terra Ferma with strawberry plants.

Manayunk StrEAT Food Festival was the kick-off for what’s to come in Manayunk.  From now until April 25th, 20 participating restaurants in Manayunk will be offering specials ranging from $15, $25, and $35.  For a full list of participating restaurants, menus, and to make a reservation via OpenTable, visit: http://manayunk.com/signature-events/streat-food-festival-restaurant-week/restaurant-week-menus.html