Labor Day Culture Festivals!

Well it’s Labor Day weekend in Louisville again and that means some exciting celebratory festivals! Two festivals will be going on simultaneously this weekend and both will be offering Louisville’s music and culinary communities something unique to get them going. The Kentucky Bluegrass Music and Burgoo Festival will be held at the Water Tower while WorldFest 2012  is taking over the Belvedere. Both festivals will be offering music, food, and plenty of cultural entertainment that is sure to be high energy and lots of fun.

Burgoo, is a traditional Western Kentucky stew that is relatively unknown outside of Kentucky.  Most burgoo recipes have been handed down through generations of family members and are often kept secret within the family. The most traditional burgoo recipes consist of varmint meat, such as squirrel, possum, or weasel, whatever is available to the cook at the time. Today, most burgoo recipes you will find will be made with chicken or other fowl. Burgoo is a popular meal for impoverished areas of Kentucky, largely because of it’s cheap cost to make. Burgoo is usually made by the gallons, feeding many people in a family or a community for a small amount of money. Some towns in Kentucky have special machines to churn their burgoo and appointed burgoo chefs in charge of cooking it. Burgoo is taken very seriously in many parts of Kentucky and is often challenged in Burgoo contests.

The 7th annual Kentucky Bluegrass Music and Burgoo Festival will give you a chance to try some delicious burgoo made from local BBQ joints like Frankfort Avenue Beer Depot and some out of town guests like Tony’s Barbeque of Lawrenceburg. Traditional barbeque fare, such as pulled pork and BBQ ribs, will also be served along with customary festival foods. The music at this year’s festival is going to be bigger and better than any year before. The band Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, winners of three International Bluegrass Music Awards, will be headlining the festival. Ten other bands will be playing throughout the festival including Newfound Road, Hog Operation, Hickory & Friends, and local favorite, Whiskey Bent Valley Boys.

WorldFest 2012 will also be going on across town at the Belvedere. WordFest is a celebration of Louisville’s cultural diversity. The three day festival will offer food, music, dance, art and much more cultural education from a variety of countries. There will be three stages set up with performances ongoing throughout the festival. Native cuisines will be represented from all over the World. Be ready to sample plenty of new foods, like those from Germany, Ethiopia, Jamaica, and Thailand. On Sunday, the second day of the festival, there will be a Parade of the Cultures, where you can see representatives from nearly every country. Music, dance, clothing, and other artists from the countries will be part of the parade. There are a variety of opportunities for children to participate in activities and learn about the various cultures throughout the weekend. WorldFest is going to be a great event!
This Labor Day Weekend is filled with amazing things to do with the community so get out there and celebrate! For date and ticket information on either festival, go to:
http://www.louisvilleky.gov/MetroParks/specialevents/WorldFest/ for WorldFest or
http://kentuckybluegrassfestival.com/ for the Kentucky Bluegrass and Music Festival.