Toronto is about to host the first Jamaican patty festival in the world this weekend
Toronto Patty Fest is making its inaugural debut in Little Jamaica this weekend with an afternoon dedicated to the cherished meat-filled snack and the cultures that brought it to this city.
Organized by the team behind the Afro Caribbean Farmer's Market, this edition is a reboot after the event was postponed (and ultimately cancelled) last summer.
With a busy schedule of Caribbean-themed celebrations queued up this weekend, Patty Fest will offer an outpost for the party to continue, bringing together a group of emerging vendors from across the city to showcase unique interpretations of the tried-and-true patty.
According to the festival's lead organizer, Lori Beazer, the vendors come from a broad cultural background, with each serving patties that represent their respective cultures' variation of the iconic snack.
GABEE'S, for example, will offer the Haitian treatment, while Le Bercail will come stocked with the West African iteration of the dish, which exists somewhere between a patty and an empanada.
As for the signature Jamaican approach, Spike Your Food is taking the lead with traditional menu options of stewed beef, salt fish, and jerk chicken.
With so much variety, Beazer told blogTO that the festival will capture the full cultural scope of Caribbean patties, giving attendees a chance to try something new.
As the first event of its kind not just in Canada but in the world, Beazer is hopeful that Patty Fest will be a lively addition to Little Jamaica’s summer programming, and an event that can become an annual staple in the community.
Running from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., the event will be held in the Green P parking lot on Eglinton Ave. West, just east of Oakwood Ave., with a DJ spinning R&B and reggae music all afternoon.
