The Around the World Cultural Food Festival will occur on Aug. 27, at Oronoco Bay Park in Old Town Alexandria. This is the second year the festival has taken place on the waterfront, as it was on Pennsylvania Ave in D.C. before the pandemic.
The festival explores the area’s diversity by offering various foods, crafts, and performances from more than 30 countries.
“We felt that last year people felt so comfortable because Oronoco Bay Park is spacious, and they had an opportunity to social distance. Compared to Pennsylvania Avenue, it didn’t feel crowded at all,” said event organizer Corina Serbanescu, referring to the festival’s previous location. “I think the big space helped very much with the turnout for the event.”
The main star of the festival happens to be the 24 food and dessert vendors ready to serve the various cuisines from their respective countries. Each vendor is selected after an extensive process of careful consideration. There is a limit to only one restaurant per country to ensure a diverse selection for visitors.
“For the food vendors, we have a very strict selection,” said Serbanescu. “What we’re trying to do is when visitors come to our event, they have the same experience as they would if they would actually go and visit those particular countries.”
I wanted to visit the the Festival but didn’t want the hassle of finding a parking spot, so I decided to do something that was more healthy and environmentally friendly — I paddle boarded there from JBAB in D.C.
This is the second year the festival has taken place on the waterfront, as it was on Pennsylvania Ave in D.C. before the pandemic.
The festival explores the area’s diversity by offering various foods, crafts, and performances from more than 30 countries.
The main star of the festival happens to be the 24 food and dessert vendors ready to serve the various cuisines from their respective countries. Each vendor is selected after an extensive process of careful consideration. There is a limit to only one restaurant per country to ensure a diverse selection for visitors.
After feasting on food from five different countries, it was time to enjoy music and dance from around the world.
Had a wonderful time. Love the Filipino pancakes, the okonomiyaki and the Indonesian salad.