photo courtesy of Texas State Veggie Fair
It’s time to get your green on at the 3rd Annual Texas State Veggie Fair which returns to Dallas on Sunday, October 21, 2012. We visited last year and loved the simpleness of it all. It was a gathering of families, vegetarian or not (we’re not) with lots of food, live music, carnival games and art at grassroots level. No big fanfare but good wholesome fun and definitely not as crowded as those at Big Tex. Last year 2500 attendees packed Winfrey Point, a reason why this year’s location is at the 46 acre, Reverchon Park near Turtle Creek.
Founder James Scott conceived the Texas State Veggie Fair in 2010 as a tongue-in-cheek nod to the annual State Fair of Texas, notorious for its Big Tex awards, in which vendors prepare oddities such as fried butter and fried bubblegum.
“The State Fair of Texas’ annual fried-food awards were what inspired me to begin the Texas State Veggie Fair in the first place,” says Scott, who is also founder of DallasVegan, the premiere online destination for vegan information and activities in Dallas-Fort Worth. “I knew from eating at vegan restaurants that chefs from around Texas could easily top that.” The Texas State Veggie Fair has seen many delicious entries, including vegan renditions of Chocolate-Pecan Fried Pie, Fried Pina Colada, and even a Fried Cinnamon Roll and last year’s winner, Fried Banana Pie.
This year, the Fair is excited to welcome more vegan vendors, including beloved local food trucks such as Zombie’s Food Truck and Good Karma Kitchen. Panels will cover topics such as starting a vegan business, vegan fashions, and getting involved in animal rights. Speakers include Gene Baur, nationally renowned vegan activist, author, and co-founder of Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
A small note to organisers : We love the Texas State Veggie Fair but have to say that the PETA ‘kids’ stickers that were given to my children last year were a little gruesome where one had a picture of Ronald McDonald with a bloody knife in his hand. I think there’s many ways to get the message out to kids. Just sayin…
Till 0ur next Happy Meal!
