Ohioans love to eat. In fact, on just about any given weekend of the year, you can find a festival somewhere in the state that shows off a given community’s love of — and even pride in — its favorite food.
There are food festivals in the Buckeye State for just about any craving, from apples to zucchini. Depending on the season, you can pig out on pickles, potatoes, pawpaws, or pork rinds; you can gorge on garlic or graze on grapes; and you can savor strawberries and sweet corn at more small-town celebrations than you can shake a stick at.
We found a comprehensive list at www.ohiofestivals.net, but here are just a few of our favorite food-specific festivals happening in Ohio during the year.
Reynoldsburg has been celebrating that tradition since the 1960s with the Tomato Festival.
Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival, Aug. 13–15
Although their ancestors originated in South America, the first tomatoes developed for commercial production were produced in Reynoldsburg, hence its claim as the “birthplace of the tomato.” The Columbus suburb has been celebrating that tradition since the 1960s with the Tomato Festival, featuring events such as Tomato Wars and the Tomato Smash, as well as tomato-based foods of all kinds. The festival offers carnival rides, royalty pageants, and car/bike shows, but the unique and often messy competitions — the dodgeball-like food fight of the Tomato Wars and more family-friendly Tomato Smash, where barefoot contestants stand in barrels to see who can stomp the most juice out of the tomatoes inside — are the most memorable. There’s also a pizza challenge and a spaghetti-eating contest with one rule: no utensils allowed. Food stands abound with each required to feature at least one tomato-based offering.
Durbin Bean Bake, Celina, Sept. 7
What began as a reunion for veterans in 1898 has become a Labor Day tradition at its rustic, out-of-the-way setting west of Celina. The event draws young and old alike for old-fashioned games like running and sack races, slipper kicking, horseshoes, wheelbarrow races, and husband/wife calling. There is even a bald-headed competition — for women as well as men. The day begins at 10 a.m. with musical entertainment, a petting zoo, an inflatable bounce house, flag raising, and a memorial service filling the hours while beans with ham and bacon simmer in 10 wood-fired kettles. Volunteers take turns stirring the large pots with long-handled wood paddles throughout the afternoon, until the appointed 4:30 p.m. serving time. Along with the star of the show, the on-site cook shack offers whole-hog sausage and chicken sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, chili, noodle and vegetable soups, and assorted pies. Attendees should bring lawn chairs as well as sturdy bowls or pots for the beans.
Ox Roast Fair, Mantua, July 17–19
www.stjosephmantua.com/ox-roast-fair
Folks in northeast Ohio never need to ask, “Where's the beef?” They simply head to the Ox Roast Fair at the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Mantua, where volunteers annually prepare some 2,800 pounds of sirloin roast in brick-lined fire pits. After 10 to 15 hours, the meat emerges perfectly tender and flavorful, and ready for purchase on a sandwich, as part of a three-course option, or as an ox sundae — a concoction of mashed potatoes topped with gravy, sliced beef, and sour cream, with a cherry (tomato) on top. There’s also plenty of entertainment — live music, semitruck and tractor pulls, carnival rides, frog jumping and hot dog eating contests, and vendor booths. The festival also features a traditional Ox Run through town, a ceremonial blessing of bikes, and an Ox Land geared for young children.
Poultry Days, Versailles, June 12–14
Versailles will celebrate its 75th annual Poultry Days this year with a brand-new distinction: After serving 40,179 chicken dinners throughout the course of last year’s festival, it’s the “world's largest chicken barbecue.” In fact, more than 1.2 million meals have been doled out since Poultry Days debuted in 1952 as a means of saluting the community's rich history as a leading poultry producer. Other food offerings include hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, elephant ears, and ice cream, but the chicken is far and away the star of the show. Planners also provide a smorgasbord of activities, musical entertainment on two stages, a classic car show, amusement rides, a petting zoo, and a grand parade. The Poultry Days Ultimate Classic draws Frisbee-style disc-flinging teams from near and far, and fireworks close the festival in colorful and booming fashion.
Strawberry Festival, London, June 25–27
Spring is strawberry season, and other than ribs, which seems to be a category all its own, the berries take the shortcake as the most popular festival feature in the state — at least a dozen strawberry festivals take place in May and June. Shandon, near Cincinnati, has the oldest and Troy boasts the largest. Strawberry festival season wraps up the last weekend of June, when the London Strawberry Festival takes over the community’s downtown area. Each vendor must feature at least one strawberry-themed treat, so along with the expected — shortcake, smoothies, ice cream, and donuts — visitors can stumble across more nontraditional strawberry-laced treats like loaded churros, nachos, pizza, and even pickles. In addition to rides and games, each day features a different vehicle show, and there’s also a circus, pageants, arts and crafts, and a festive parade. Live entertainment is also an important part of the schedule, and local talent is showcased in a Strawberry Idol competition.
