The room was filled with excitement as drums pounded and the aroma of paprika and tomato filled the air. A lover singing, a queen in dazzling colors, a child laughing, a plate of steaming food, a hug long delayed, a burning sensation on the tongue. The symphony of humanity lifts the soul and bends mouths into smiles.
Students, faculty, staff, and community members gathered together and enjoyed music and food from across the world at the Los Medanos College Multicultural Food Festival April 9. The event served food from seven different restaurants in the Pittsburg area and provided entertainment from seven different entertainment groups.
The festival was a jubilant affair, and nearly every face had a smile. Those without were too busy eating, enjoying the tastes of the world.
Event planners wanted a broad range of foods that people might not have tried before.
“It was hard to narrow down the options,” said Jennifer Saito, LMC Honors coordinator and organizer of the event. “We knew we wanted a good spread but not just things people have tried before.”
The planners tried several different Mexican restaurants before making the final selection.
“Instead of just burritos and tacos we wanted something that was different,” said Saito.
In the end, Oakley La Costa was selected to serve their ceviche and it was a hit.
When asked what they were most excited about, attendees were in broad consensus.
“The food,” said Charlotte Adams, a graphic communications major at LMC. “More specifically the Nigerian food.”
“I was most excited for the food,” said Savannah Hughes, a psychology major at LMC. “My favorite was probably jollof rice.”
Nigerian wasn’t the only favorite, however. An informal poll conducted among festival goers revealed a tight competition. The Vietnamese food was the favorite among the crowd but was followed closely by the Creole, Afghan, and Nigerian specialties.
By the end of the night most of the booths had only rice, and whatever was left was happily accepted by the remaining attendees.
Food was far from the only experience to enjoy, however, attendees were treated to several different bands, dance groups, a drag performance, and even a taiko dan drum battery.
“I felt like I was in a trance watching it. I don’t know, it was amazing,” Hughes said about the taiko dan group. “To be honest I was most excited for the food but the performances were really amazing.”
For many, the festival was their first time seeing a taiko group, and it made a lasting impression.
“We knew we wanted to do taiko, and there aren’t many in East Contra Costa County,” Saito said. “We actually saw them at another event and that’s how they got on our radar. We reached out and they were happy to do it.”
On the whole, the planning board was happy with how it went, said Saito.
The festival was the culmination of three months of work by a committee of more than 20 students, faculty, and staff. The committee worked together to choose the menu and schedule performers, and all was done as a group, according to Saito.
“Lots of programs pitched in, the big ones were LMCAS and the Office of Equity and Inclusion, which also paid for a significant portion,” said Saito. “We weren’t sure we were going to get the funding at first. It was really nice that we could do it for free.”
Each person who came got four tickets, which each could be used to try one of the seven dishes. All that was required was a name and a student ID, if applicable.
Because of this, members of the community and students showed up in droves to get some free food.“We don’t do a lot of things where we see lots of members of the community show up. This event really got people out,” Saito said. “We would love to do it again next year.”
