This year’s Taste of Calgary sizzled more than it has in years.
The four-day food festival involving 45 different food and beverage companies and thousands of willing tasters was full of rain, shine, and ultimately, success.
“This has been our best year since 2005, which was a huge year for us. That was when Calgary had a summer,” quipped festival producer Dave Van Aalst.
Despite Thursday’s and Friday’s steady stream of rain, Van Aalst said sales didn’t suffer.
“We were at about the same sales as we have been the last three or four years, which was really encouraging. It led us to believe we were going to go crazy Saturday,” he said.
Although Van Aalst won’t have official numbers until the end of the week, he believes Saturday set a festival attendance record, judging by the amount of tickets and food sold.
“It was awesome,” he said. “Right from the minute we opened until we closed, it was a good crowd.”
Yesterday brought another solid crowd, with long lines of ticket-holders anxious to sample ribs, skewers, and spicy foods.
