One of Saskatoon’s summer festivals is taking a break this year.
Taste of Saskatchewan, which is put on by the SaskTel Centre, said on its website that it will not be running in 2023.
Scott Ford, executive director for the SaskTel Centre, said they’ve operated the festival for 25 years.
He listed a number of reasons they decided to put the food festival on the back burner.
“What we’re finding now is there are unique challenges … it’s been more challenging to get restaurants to confirm into the festival,” Ford said.
He said restaurants are struggling on several fronts, whether it be inflationary costs, staffing or taxes.
Ford noted the festival isn’t immune to those costs either.
“To operate the festival, the operating costs continue to climb.”
He said he loves running the festival, but the volatility of the market has made them consider giving the event a rest and allowing things to level out.
The event has been held at Kiwanis Memorial Park, with the Taste of Saskatchewan website saying roughly 100,000 people visit the event each year.
Admission was free for the festival, with food and drinks in the $2.50- $7.50 price range.
Ford said it’s been hard to put a price point on food at Taste of Saskatchewan, noting they saw some issues last year.
“The price of food, it’s so inconsistent right now.”
He noted they’ll be looking to see if the festival is viable next year.
“We’re just going to rest it for one year, evaluate, and take a look and see if it’s something to continue with down the road.”
Arshad Aziz, owner of Spicy Time in Saskatoon, planned on being part of Taste of Saskatchewan.
He said Taste of Saskatchewan is a good place to market your business.
“It’s a good tool to market our product over there. We meet a lot of new customers, new guests all around Saskatchewan,” Aziz said.
He said he was expecting news from Taste of Saskatchewan, as this is about the time they plan and communicate with restaurants.
Aziz added he’ll miss the festival this year.
When asked about pricing and inflation, he said that is something he’s dealing with, but he was willing to deal with it for the festival.
“For the festival I’m OK, I can do that. It’s manageable for me.”
Aziz said the festival wasn’t particularly profitable for him, but the opportunity to advertise his business made it worth it.
“It definitely boosts our business.”
He’s been taking part in the festival since 2015.
Aziz hopes Taste of Saskatchewan comes back in 2024.
“My personal experience is very excellent over there. I always enjoy it, and we always get very good feedback.”
“It’s a good platform for us,” Aziz added.
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