Taste of Syracuse Recap

Sampled at the Taste of Syracuse this year...

Asti : Cheese ravioli in vodka sauce
Caribbean King : Jerk wings
Eva's European Sweets : Potato salad
Eva's European Sweets : Ruskie Pierogies
Lao Village : Vegetable pad thai
Rescue Mission : Jim's doughnuts
Sakana-ya : Shumai
Sakana-ya : Ika salad
Thai Flavor : Shrimp rocket
Zonies : Cheesecake calzone

I kind of got distracted by wine on the second night, so I'm wishing that I had tried a few other places in addition to the ones listed above. Overall, I'd have to say the jerk wings were by far the best out of these. They were done with a dry rub that was close to Cornell Chicken but with a really spicy kick. And two big drumettes for $1 wasn't too bad of a deal either. I'll have to make a trip over to Caribbean King at some point because it was really good. As always, Eva's never disappoints, and the desert-style cheesecake calzone from Zonies was tasty. Rescue Mission's doughnuts were a pleasant surprise as well. They fried them right in front of you in a mini-doughnut machine. It was pretty cool to see them being made right there.

I said this last year and probably sound like a broken record, but I'm still wishing they'd organize the layout a little better. A few things did get shuffled around this year, but I'm not so sure how much it accomplished as people got jammed up in the little corridoor along Water St between Clinton and Salina near the wine slushies and wine tent. I'm not really sure what they can do to improve this though, as you wouldn't want to intrude on traffic flow and parking. They could spread out the vendors a bit and trickle some of the activity into the northern edges of Armory Square near Clinton Street Pub. That way, if it's really hot, or rainy, or crowded, people can filter into the surrounding shops, restaurants, and bars for a bit of a break.

At any rate, it was a great time. It's a really positive event for Downtown, the city, and the region and seems to only get more enjoyable each year. Say what you want about Syracuse, but if the messy street from Sunday morning was any indication, it can throw one hell of a party.