It’s almost that time of year.
For the next couple of months, you’ll be hard-pressed to make your weekend-morning coffee run (or Walmart run, or [insert various other errand destinations here] run) without running into some sort of street festival.
We, however, like to be a bit more tactical as we navigate the fall festival season in the Delaware River towns. There’s food involved, after all. And we don’t have the metabolism of an 18-year-old anymore, so we need to be conscious of how we pace ourselves. It’d be embarrassing and disappointing to cry “Too full!” a weekend or two in.
What follows, then, is not just guide to the festivals you need to make a point of hitting over the coming weeks but a peek into some of the most delectable foodstuffs that’ll be on the menu at them. It’s always more fun to approach the season like a sampler and try not to eat the same thing twice. (Totally possible, BTW.) And try not to eat too much of any one thing. Remember: Pace yourself.
Your first stop: Yardley Harvest Day, on Saturday, September 15. It’s evolving into the ultimate collection of the region’s most promising small-batch foodstuff makers, with lineups at recent editions including the Bucks County Cookie Company, Carol’s Pizzelles, Gourmet Jelly, and Jak Jeckel Pepper Sauce. Not to mention Brewscuits, for your four-legged best friend. You’ll owe him for panting patiently at your side throughout this shopping/tasting spree.
A week later (sufficient time to burn off excess calories), on Sept. 22, the 32nd annual edition of the Hopewell Harvest Fair unfolds at Hopewell Elementary. There will be your usual carnival fare—hot dogs and burgers, funnel cake, lemonade—but what distinguishes the fair, food-wise, is the bake sale. The smart play is to come around 11:30 a.m. Judging for the bake-off starts at 10:45 a.m., which means it should be wrapping up soon after you arrive at the tent, giving you the chance to eye up the field and plot your gorging before it gets too crowded. At a buck a serving for everything, good luck with that restraint.
The food court at the New Hope Arts & Crafts Festival, on Sept. 29 and 30, doesn’t have a stout reputation, and that’s largely because, for much of the festival’s history, there wasn’t one. It was held on Main Street, within walking distance of any number of restaurants. Now it’s up the hill at the high school, a good 10-minute walk to the nearest lunch spot. But you won’t be disappointed if you come hungry for the right things. And those things are gourmet riffs on the grilled cheese and Jamaican street food.
Catch your breath—really, you’ve been eating a lot of rich food—and then head over to Peddler’s Village, in Lahaska. It can always be counted on for some seasonal gorging. OctoberFEAST, October 13 and 14, delivers an onslaught of German specialties, including, most notably, bratwurst pork schnitzel and the ever-delectable Bavarian crème pie.
A couple weekends later, on November 3 and 4, its Apple Festival, complete with a pie-eating contest, which’ll be divided by age, naturally. I mean, what satisfaction is there in out-eating an eight-year-old—again?
Check out the Delaware River Towns Local event calendar for even more fun during the Fall season!
