East Texas Has Five of the Best Food Festivals In Texas
All we really need to be happy in Texas is good weather and a food festival.
From pecan pie to tamales to tomatoes, East Texas has several of the best small town food festivals in the state, and they're all coming up in the next two months. Which one is a must-do/eat?
The Houston Chronicle posted The best small town food festivals across Texas, and the list will make you want to gas up the RV and follow the food smells until June. You can hit a new festival just about every weekend, with no calorie counting of course.
The Tatum Pecan Pie Festival - April 29th. This is a city-sponsored festival that started as a way to raise money for mammograms, and they'll offer screenings again this year. Tatum High School will host, and in addition to the pie, they'll get healthy with blood donations with Carter Blood Care.
The Diboll Tamale Festival - May 13th. Even if your picky kids turn up their little noses at tamales, they'll love the festival because of the bouncy houses and kids area. They can play while we eat! A Mariachi band will play too, and that wild and crazy tamale boxing show will be back for the third straight year, featuring teams from San Antonio, Oklahoma, Donna, Houston, and College Station. What happens in Diboll stays in Diboll.
Tomato Fest in Jacksonville - June 10th. Start perfecting your salsa recipe now, and you'll be all set for this one. They're planning a salsa contest, a baseball and softball tournament, arts and crafts booths, a car show, a talent contest, and more in Downtown Jacksonville.
Texas Blueberry Festival in Nacogdoches - June 10th. The blueberry harvest gets a lot of love at this state-sanctioned event, and it attracts about 19,000 people to downtown Nacogdoches each year. Hit this one after Jacksonville's tomato fest, and get a double dose of Vitamin C.
The Caldwell Kolache Festival - September 9th. It's a celebration of the Czech heritage, complete with traditional food, czech music, and slightly uncomfortable dresses and folk costumes for us girls. Can't wait! Registration is open through July 31st, and vendor forms are available on the Burleson County website.
And if you don't mind driving to the DFW area, there's Grapefest in Grapevine September 14th - 17th. Grapes, wine, and plenty to do for the whole family.
Also, don't forget Tyler's Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival that takes place on May 6!
This is the season to chow down on food on a stick or stab it with a plastic fork, dance to fun music that you would never blast from your car stereo, and hang out with a few thousand of your closest hungry friends.
We already knew this, but Texas is a pretty great place to be. And eat!