Only in its second year of existence, the Northwest Taste Festival is already making a name for itself and attracting a healthy following. Before this event existed, there was no other public food and drink tasting event in Washington, or the surrounding states. Now thousands of people descend upon Spokane for the unique opportunity to sample the best food and drink in the region, in a fun and engaging environment. It’s not all about tasting, there are baking competitions sponsored by Fat Daddio’s for professional bakers and a separate one for non-professional entries. There are excellent cooking demonstrations from the region's best chefs, where they show you the secrets of the trade. It's a great event to purchase gifts for yourself and others. They even have a “shop & drop” area where you can store your purchased items, while you find more.
A basic fee gains you entrance to the festival and allows you to sample all the food areas and watch the chef’s demonstrations. An upgraded pass will grant you access to The Grand Tasting Pavilion where you can sample beers, ciders, wines, and spirits in your very own collector’s glass. The festival is centered around providing exhibitors the ideal location to showcase their creations. This attracts the region's top vendors, restaurants, and chefs, making a better festival for all who attend. The festival is not only about the fun of tasting, the proceeds from The Tasting Pavilion go to Wishing Star, a foundations that grants wishes to sick children.
Find out what it's like to be a food industry insider and sample the finest foods and drinks from the Pacific Northwest at the Northwest Taste Festival. We got the opportunity to sit down with owner and event manager, Caroline R. Kloetsch, to talk about the festival and its impact on the community.
RAL: Give me some basic information about the event and what makes it unique.
CK: This is the second year of the Northwest Taste Festival. This event welcomes everyone, but our target demographic market is foodies, families, and couples between the ages of 35-65. The event is unique to the Northwest United States because there is not another event that features food and beverage sampling that is open to the public.
RAL: Take me through a day at the event. What can attendees expect?
CK: As you come into the show, you will first smell wonderful food and see many different types of vendor booths. We have vendors sampling and selling jam, coffee, tea, candy, granola, breads, and other baked goods, olive oils and vinegars, seasoned pumpkin seeds, cheese, nutritional drinks and more. There are BBQ grills, kitchen gadgets, and healthy living products as well.
On the Chef’s Stage you can watch as local and regional chefs create unique dishes to sample, and demonstrations on how to grow your own sprouts, make nutritional snacks, or learn how to decorate a beautiful cake!
This is a sampling event so you can wander through and taste various food items as well as visit the Grand Tasting Pavilion where beverage vendors will be sampling wine, beer, spirits, and hard ciders. This area is hosted by The Wishing Star Foundation, a local non-profit company that grants wishes to children with life threatening illnesses. You will be able to sample and buy full bottles of your favorite beverage as well as help out this wonderful organization! The event is festive and fun and you will come away with many new favorites and possibly learn about a new product or service.
RAL: Tell me about the local lodging. Are there any lodging specials that are linked to the event?
CK: We have three hotels in particular, that have set up special pricing especially for this event. Courtyard by Marriott, the Oxford Suites and the brand new Grand Hotel, are all in downtown Spokane and within a block or two of the Spokane Convention Center. Courtyard by Marriott has set up a special package deal that includes an overnight stay, two tickets to Northwest Taste Food & Beverage Show and a dining experience at the Left Bank Wine Bar. These specials and packages can be found on our website at www.nwtaste.com.
RAL: How does the event affect the community?
CK: Northwest Taste is a fairly new show to the area but has already received much positive response and we are excited to see it grow! There are many small food businesses and restaurants in the area and this is the perfect place to get to know them. There are so many places to stay and visit while in Spokane. We have partnered with Visit Spokane and the Hotel/Motel Association to create a great getaway weekend. The Chinese Lantern Festival is also happening at Riverfront Park, which is directly behind the Convention Center. This is a brand new, walk through exhibit of beautiful hand-made silk lanterns and is beautiful at night when the lanterns are lit! The farms at Greenbluff are also in full swing and is the perfect place to buy apples, taste wine and beer and even eat pumpkin doughnuts.
RAL: Why should people come to the festival?
CK: With all that is going on during the weekend of the show, it is the perfect time to taste, try and buy all that is fabulous about the Northwest.
For more information please visit the event website.