This is our next blog for the foodies who love food more than anything, here we present you top food festivals that you should visit if you are crazy for food...One of the major things to explore in every destination is its food! The type of cuisine changes every few hundred miles, offering something diverse and all the more finger licking on your platter every time....
- Pizzafest
Location: Naples, Italy
Every night during one week in September, Napoli's Lungomare Caracciolo area becomes a pizza village with 500,000 visitors who consume more than 100,000 pizzas of every kind.The best pizzerias in Naples serve the 50-odd historic versions with classics Napolitana, Margherita and Marinara taking pride of place.The attractions vary from the stiffly contested World Pizza-Making Championships to the simple enjoyment of a hot pizza Vesuvio under the shadow of the real volcano.
- Oktoberfest
Come, be part of the world’s greatest celebration of beer with million other beer lovers who flock to Germany every year for Oktoberfest. From the finest of brews for you to chug, spill, and bathe in, to culinary delights like bratwurst, pretzels, and roasted meats, you’ll be spoilt for choice. Along with the amazing variety and quantity of beer you get here, the festival also lets you enjoy some tasty dishes.
- Bacon Festival
Yes, you heard it right! There is a festival in the world that is solely dedicated to bacon. The world goes gaga over bacon, so you have no excuse to not visit one of the best food festivals around the world. The meat-loving population of the world can go crazy hogging on dishes like bacon gelato, bacon salad, bacon ramen and bacon tater tots.Chefs cook the meat right outside on the street from organically fed hogs -- factory farm animals aren't allowed -- and their dishes are accompanied by local craft beers.There's even a Kevin Bacon tribute band on the third night of the January festival.
- Salon du Chocolat
Are you a fan of chocolates and fashions alike? Then you must head to taste some high-quality chocolates produced in Ecuador and attend the Salon du Chocolat festival in Quito.Ecuador produces more high-quality chocolate than any other country, and this is the best place to get a choc hit in the tasting sessions and cookery classes. The festival lets you relish the taste of the finest of chocolates, and watch a fashion show with models wearing dresses made of…any guesses what? About 15,000 visitors are expected at the mid-June event but the climax occurs on the final day, when the winners of the various awards are announced, including everybody's favorite, the chocolate sculpture competition.
- Dumpling Festival
Location: Hong Kong
Does your mouth starts to water when you think of steamy and juicy dumplings? If yes, then this festival is just for you. Savour the taste of zongzi dumplings – glutinous rice with different fillings wrapped in bamboo, lotus or banana leaves – on the fifth day of the fifth Chinese lunar month. Engulf yourself in a sea of dumplings and the amiable hospitality of the Chinese people. By far the most spectacular activity that takes place is the dragon boat race -- a sport now so popular that it has its own international federation.
- National Cherry Festival
Traverse City, Michigan, has been closely associated with the cherry ever since a Presbyterian missionary planted a cherry tree in 1852.Miraculously, the tree survived harsh winters and thrived.Today Traverse City's orchards supply three-quarters of America's cherry crop and are declaiming this statistic with aplomb.Take a flight to the town’s Cherry Capital Airport, stay at the Cherry Tree Inn, be part of the Cherry Bomb Lacrosse Tournament, cheer for the girls’ rollerblade team called the Toxic Cherries, witness the Cherry Parade, and crown a Cherry Queen. With so much ‘cherry-ness’ to enjoy, there’s no reason why not to visit this international food festival.
- Herring Festival
Location: Hvide Sande, Denmark
Herring Festival is one of the unique cultural food festivals around the world. Each April, schools of herring swim into the Ringkobing Fjord in Denmark to spawn in its sheltered waters. And when they do, it’s party time for fishermen, and for scores of people coming into the town to now enjoy platters of pickled, filleted, fried, fish-caked, and baked herring! There aren’t many food festivals around the world serving this delicious fish. So, make sure you don’t miss this one! Amazingly there's also a fashion show demonstrating the latest couture for outdoorsy, waterproof and presumably smell-resistant clothing.
- Vegetarian Festival
Location: Phuket, Thailand
The biggest event occurs on the island of Phuket, where the faithful hang lanterns outside temples and march through the streets beating drums to drive away evil spirits. By far the most impressive spectacle at the September/October event is the sight of devotees deep in trance walking on hot coals, bathing in hot oil or piercing their body parts.They seem immune to pain, believing that they're protected by the gods they're channeling.
With so many sights blinding the eyes, it's easy to forget that the whole place goes veggie for nine days.It might seem as though it's the same carnivore-friendly dishes on restaurant menus, but the cooks use soybean and protein substitute products instead of meat.They say food festivals favour only the meat-lovers. We say different! Join the frenzy at this nine-day Thai celebration with colourful parades, music, and the best of vegan dishes! You’ll be surprised to see how the whole town goes vegan for these nine days amid a range of dishes made out of vegetables, fruits, soybean, and protein products. Even non-vegetarians will fall in love with this international food fest!
- National Street Food Festival
This will surely bring a smile to the faces of all those street food lovers. From savoury chaat, oily chhole kulcha, sweet and tangy bhalle papdi, to spicy gol gappe, there’s no end to the kind of food one can have on the streets of Delhi. And once every year, all these amazing street delicacies are brought to Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium to the delight of all foodies in the capital!
The Most Weird Food Festivals Around The World
There are some of the food festivals around the world that are very unique and strange. But they are also very interesting to know about and to attend also. Here are a few such festivals:
- Giant Omelet Celebration
Prefer omelets in breakfast? How about one that’s bigger than your house? According to legend, Napoleon had once ordered every egg in town be broken to prepare a giant omelet after he had enjoyed his own! To this day, Bessieres carries on the tradition where chefs come together to prepare a 15,000-egg omelet for the people of Bessieres, usually on Easter.
- Bugfest
Location: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Ever had bugs served in your plate for lunch? Here’s a festival that is totally dedicated to bug-dishes and they exhibit a variety of both – bugs and the dishes prepared with them. Oh yes! It’s exactly what you think it is! Would you like to attend the Bugfest if you ever visit US around the time when this festival is on?
- Olney Pancake Race
Location: Olney, England
Women in Onley have been running a 400-yard annual pancake race since 1445 while holding pancakes in cast iron pans, a tradition that has now become one of the most amusing world food festivals! And, of course, you get to eat those delicious pancakes once the race is over and the winner is announced!
- Monkey Buffet Festival
Location: Lopburi, Thailand
No, this festival DOES NOT provide you an unlimited supply of monkeys for eating. This is one of the most amazing (as well as amusing!) food festivals around the world where the animals eat and the humans watch! With our sneaky little friends going crazy amidst the sea of 400 kg of food laid out before the temples of Thailand, the scenario can get wilder than the Hatter’s tea party!
