I had the great fortune of being a part of the Lowell Food & Wine Festival, it was a great adventure and I was truly excited to be involved. I went to 4 events as included in my All-Access pass:
- Food Truck Madness
- Pop-Up Taco & Tequila
- The Grand Tasting
- Sips & Sweets
I also had a wonderful opportunity to be a guest judge for the first Lowell Chopped Competition in which Fuse Bistro won.
Can I just say how well planned everything was? I was so impressed by the level of detail in every single event and honestly how people just came together and made it wonderful.
Food Truck Madness was my first event I went to, over 10 Food Trucks came together to display an enormous variety of food from all different backgrounds and cuisines. This was held at Kerouac Park in Downtown, Lowell where you could walk around, eat from the different trucks and also take in the history with the small memorials.
Favorite Drink-Choo Choo Punch (Lemonade, Pineapple Juice, Basil and Mint)
Favorite Dessert-Pumpkin Cupcake from Pipe Dream Cupcakes
Favorite Food- Beef Sticks, Crab Rangoon, Chicken Dumplings and Eggrolls from Spiceventure & Clam Chowder from Chowda Heads.
After getting the food, it was nice to sit on the bench next to the memorials and listen to Lux and Hunter Live! Both bands were extremely talented and it was nice to relax and eat while listening to great music.
Pop-Up Taco and Tequila was a fun event, several chef’s from around Lowell made creations from south of the border in their own unique way. The tacos were wonderful and the atmosphere extremely relaxing. This was held at the UMass Lowell Inn & Center which in my opinion was great place to have it considering their lovely outdoor patio area.
The Grand Tasting/Lowell Chopped Competition: I have to say I really enjoyed this event, there were many Restaurants, Wineries and Breweries who took part in this and I have to say my favorite was from Serengeti Catering for food: Curried Chicken, Sweet Plantain, Brocolli/Carrot Slaw and Jollof Rice. Amazing attention to taste and detail. Favorite Wine was from La Belle Winery, their Raspberry Dessert Wine was one of the best I have had.
I came upon the Lowell Chopped Competition after it already began, and Deb from Greater Merrimack Valley Visitors and Convention Bureau invited me to take her spot as a guest judge. It was a great savory experience in which I got to judge two dishes from two great Chefs. Chef Scott Pelletier from Fuse Bistro won for his dish of Salmon over Corn Cakes, Heirloom tomato Relish and Red Sauce. It was a lot of fun; I hope to see it again next year.
Sips & Sweets was an extremely relaxing event to end the great weekend. It was held at UTEC in Lowell and sweets from all over Lowell were displayed. I was glad for the opportunity to mingle with some great guests and to end the weekend on a sweet note.
All in all I had a wonderful experience this past weekend, and I look forward to many more around Lowell!
-Timna Nwokeji
www.lifeasamaven.com
