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2
Thursday, June 4, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
NEWS
Taste of Ann Arbor
exhibits dishes
from local eateries
Due to weather,
vendors make last-
minute changes to
menus
By JACKIE CHARNIGA
Daily Staff Reporter
The annual Taste of Ann
Arbor event took over Main
Street on Sunday, despite rainy
conditions.
A ticketed event, Taste of
Ann Arbor featured delica-
cies from more than 40 of Ann
Arbor’s well-known eateries
such as the Arbor Brewing
Company, The Blue Tractor
and Silvio’s Organic Ristoran-
te with food types ranging
from
greasy-spoon
to
the
high-end culinary creations.
Several restaurants entered
dishes that were considered by
six judges for the annual “Best
of Show” prize.
Ticket sales for the event
were coordinated by volun-
teers from the Michigan The-
ater, to whom a portion of the
proceeds will be donated.
Mary Kerr, president and
CEO of the Ann Arbor Con-
vention and Visitors Bureau,
was one of the six judges
at this year’s competition.
Responsible for the selection
of this year’s entrees and Best
of Show, Kerr described what
goes into a winning dish at the
festival.
“The restaurants do a really
good job of showcasing their
overall business, so from food
to presentation, hearing the
knowledge about the food,
their enthusiasm working at
the booth,” Kerr said. “I think
it really depends on what
really stands out that day, it’s
important to talk to the chefs
about their ingredients and to
have the opportunity to say, ‘I
can really taste that.’ ”
Server Kayla Samolewski
and pastry assistant Danielle
Valentine of La Dolce Vida
added hot chocolate to their
lineup to combat the cold.
“The hot chocolate was def-
initely a last-minute adaption.
So we had ice cream sand-
wiches originally and then oh
my gosh, it was raining, so we
decided to add hot chocolate
shooters instead,” Samolewski
said.
La Dolce Vida’s pastry chef
of two years, Jordan Conn,
said the shooters were made
of unsweetened cocoa powder,
sugar and whole milk. Conn
added salt to the mix, giving
the drink a bolder taste.
Main
Street
Association
executive director and full-
time event organizer Maura
Thomson has participated in
Taste of Ann Arbor since 2005
and said she has noticed an
increasing spike in popularity.
“We have, assuming good
weather, doubled in atten-
dance since 2008, and last
year’s Taste of Ann Arbor had
over 15,000 people,” Thomson
said.
Thomson attributes the dra-
matic growth of the event to
that of social media.
“Social media has changed
everything,” said Thomson.
“So now the exponential value
of having 40 restaurants pro-
mote their section is what has
increased awareness overall of
the event.”
Thomson also spoke to the
importance of sustainability
in the food community of Ann
Arbor, and said Taste of Ann
Arbor is sensitive to cutting
down on waste. “We need to
take steps to be a ‘zero-waste
Taste,’ ” said Thomson.
“It’s
about
keeping
the
downtown area vibrant and
healthy. At the end of the day,
BEN SCHECHTER/Daily
Business and Music Theatre & Dance senior Alex Brown orders food from the
Grizzly Peak Brewing Company at Taste of Ann Arbor on Sunday.
TA STE TEST
@MICHIGANDAILY
See TASTE, Page 3