According to Adirondack Green Circle and Farm 2 Fork Founder Gail Brill “All good things come to an end.” In its seventh and final year, the festival that connected people to regional farmers through local food using traditional recipes and techniques will go out with a bang. For anyone knowing Brill and her passion for local food, “over” just means reinventing.

This year’s Farm 2 Fork Festival, a collaboration between the Adirondack Green Circle and Ausable Valley Grange, is bringing local food under the Big Top. This year’s circus themed festival continues to celebrate local food and farmers with other fun activities. In addition to the tasting ticket, there will be stilt walkers, face-painters, live music with Slow Pony and even a dunk booth.

“In years past we have always had home cooks prep and cook the food and that presents many challenges. Finding the home cooks, a commercial kitchen and volunteers all takes time,” says Brill. “This year Chef Craig from Fiddlehead Bistro prepared the menu. We have a Latin style pork, Asian Cole slaw, grilled corn from Juniper Hill, dessert bar, pickle bar and beverage bar.”

Though this year’s Farm 2 Fork Festival is getting ready to take over Riverside Park this Saturday, Brill is already looking into the future. She has pitched an altered version of the festival, but one that doesn’t rely on home cooks and so heavily on volunteers.

“We are going to do something similar to the Chefs and Farmers event we held at the [Saranac Lake] train depot,” says Brill. “We want to close Main Street and have tables line the street. Area restaurants will prepare a menu using local food. People will purchase a seat based on the menu. The details are still being worked out, but people can keep in touch through the Chefs and Farmers Facebook page.”

Currently Brill’s energy is focused on this Saturday’s event. The last Farm 2 Fork takes place in Saranac Lake’s Riverside Park on September 3 from 9 am – 2 pm. Meal tickets are $15 for a carnivore, $12 for an herbivore with children under 12 free with an accompanying adult. For anyone wishing to volunteer, please contact Gail Brill directly at adkgreencircle@gmail.com. Enjoy!

Photo of the Farm 2 Fork Festival is used with the permission of Diane Chase, AdirondackFamilyTime.com