It’s yet another year of a Winnipeg-based food festival.
The Fried Chicken Fest is back with visitors able to taste different dishes in the province’s capital. According to its website, the restaurants who are participating in the festival offer a unique fried chicken dish only for the week.
The dishes represent the restaurants’ “culinary skills,” according to the website. Festival-goers can then vote for their favourite dish online.
Festival founder Susie Parker told 680 CJOB that the idea for the festival came when she and her colleague looked at what was missing in the many festivals happening across the city.
“It really was a gift from the universe. Here we are, six years later. And Fried Chicken Fest is going strong,” Parker said. “It’s still the only made in Manitoba food festival that’s running this long. We’re really proud of it.”
The local aspect of the festival, Parker said, helps businesses and gets people feeling enthusiastic about trying new things. She added that such aspect is so sweet because she gets to personally know and connect with the businesses participating.
According to her, a festival like this helps to amplify the business of local restaurants. And for those participating, the dishes they offer are creative.
“Our food scene, our chef scene, we’ve made headlines around the world for our cuisine and our creativity. That’s one of the things that really gets to shine through in Fried Chicken Fest,” Parker said. “There’s lots of different interpretations on how to use fried chicken.”
The festival runs from Jan. 17 to 27. A full list of participants can be found online at friedchickenfest.ca.