Sponsors, food vendors sought for Taste of Annandale

Staff from the Annangol Korean BBQ restaurant at the 2016 Taste of Annandale.

The Taste of Annandale, a community festival in the heart of the community on Oct. 14, offers owners of restaurants and other businesses a great way to showcase what they have to offer and draw new customers.

Several thousand people came to the event last year, which features food, live entertainment, a chili cook-off, children’s activities, and a 5K run. A one-mile fun run has been to the 2017 festival. The festival will take place on Tom Davis Drive – between Columbia Pike and John Marr Drive – 10 a.m.-6 p.m. There is no charge to attend.

The organizers are seeking sponsors and food vendors for the third annual Taste of Annandale. The sooner you sign up, the more publicity your business will receive.

For more information about sponsorship opportunities, contact Glenn Decint, [email protected], 703-298-6678.

If you own a restaurant, food truck, or catering business and want to learn more about participating in the Taste of Annandale, contact Mark Cummings, [email protected], 703-966-3890.

For more information about performance opportunities, contact Brittany Burns,
[email protected], 703-533-5701. Several groups have already signed up, including a rock band, African-American swing dance group, traditional Chinese musical group, and an aerial dance troupe.

Once again, the Taste of Annandale will include a full day of children’s programming hosted by the ACCA Child Development Center at 7200 Columbia Pike. There will be puppet shows, song and dance, crafts, and more, says CDC Director Maria-Isabel Ballivian.

Ballivian also invites families to the CDC’s big event, Community Day, on May 20, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., at the center. There will be games, stories, crafts, live entertainment and a workshop hosted by sponsor Home Depot.

This year’s Community Day is expected to be especially big, as 2017 marks the 50th anniversary of the CDC’s parent organization, Annandale Christian Community for Action.

There’s another upcoming event related to the Taste of Annandale local residents are invited to attend: A community dialogue on this topic, “What kind of world will our youth inherit?”

This event, May 3, 6:30 p.m., at the Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center, 3159 Row St., Falls Church, includes a free Middle Eastern dinner. Child care will be provided. RSVP: Brittany Burns, [email protected], 703-533-5701.

A group of high school students who have been exploring their vision for the future through art will join the discussion, and their artwork will be on display. Learn more about this project here.

The youth project is an initiative of the Annandale Roundtable, a collection of local stakeholders who came together a few years ago to explore ways of bringing the community together. The Taste of Annandale is also a project initiated by the Roundtable, so the student artists and their creations will be at the “Taste.”