Festival of Nations

Nashville Restaurants and Food
Midweek Odds and Ends

Festival of Nations

We hope you made it out to the Festival of Nations at the State Fair this weekend. The one day event brought music, dancing and fun. Best of all, ethnic food vendors stretched up and down the racetrack of the Speedway. We walked, chatted and sampled our way around the world. While some areas were better represented than others (Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean dominated) it was still a pleasant way to spend an hour or two, and the event provided the best Tennessee State Fair food we have ever had.

First stop is Korea for some bulgogee, basically thin cut marinated beef, and a super crispy egg roll. Many of the food booths were run by area church groups and it was basically moms and grandmas cooking up favorites. We could tell they tamed it down for the fair crowd. Still, the low prices (about $1 or $2 for sample items and $5-$7 for a lunch) made it possible to taste a bunch of different dishes.

Next stop was India where the folks at Woodlands Indian Vegetarian Cuisine were camped out and offering noodles, among other things.

The Laotians were really representing this day with several booths and a variety of foods. They offered samples of Lao beef jerky and we spied the ladies making spring rolls. While the menu version included chicken, they quickly rolled one up for the veggie eater with just veggies.

Veggie Eater: I love Woodlands, so I happily supported their booth by ordering veggie noodles. The thin egg noodles were served at room temp, had a mild spiciness to them and included carrots, scallions, cilantro, and peppers. I love fresh spring rolls and was not disappointed by the Laotian booth; julienned veggies and rice were enveloped by rice papers and served with a sweet chili pepper dipping sauce. And last, but not least, veggie empanadas. I rarely see a veggie version, so I had to avail myself. Boiled eggs and veggies fried in a masa pocket - comfort food at its best. This was a delightful, veggie friendly event.

Meat Eater: Paraguay also offered those light, pillowy empanadas with beef, carrot and egg. There were several Mexican vendors and we were drawn to one stand by the big bowls of handmade salsa out front. You can tell pretty quickly when someone puts some care into the food and a complex, peppery salsa made from scratch is a good sign. Now nachos certainly are not very Mexican, but if they’re really some fresh chips smothered in savory beef, potato and carrots, crema, and three of those lovely salsas (including glorious smoky chipotle oil based version) then you have the end to a great lunch.

The Festival of Nations is only a one day thing, so if you missed it this year you’ll have to hope they do it next year. Our only suggestions to the organizers: more trashcans near the vendors, more seating and table areas; more shade (perhaps a couple of tents) and continued expansion to better represent Europe, The Middle East and Africa. Kudos on the event, it made our State Fair visit so much better. We hope Festival of Nations returns next year bigger and even better.

In the meantime, don’t forget the Celebration of Cultures happening Saturday, October 3 from 10 am - 6 pm in Centennial Park. The admission is free and they too will have many ethnic food vendors on hand. http://www.celebrationofcultures.org/