As the trend of food festivals at regional parks continues to swell, we found ourselves in the right place at the right time for a preview of Kennywood’s first annual Bites & Pints Food Festival!
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After an amazing day of rides at one of the country’s best traditional parks, it was time to sample some international cuisine at one of seven Bites & Pints booths. Click on photos to enlarge them:
Chinese Booth
The pork potstickers were delicious as expected, but what stole the show were the scallion pancakes. Sweet, savory, and wonderfully crisp outside and tender on the inside. They pair nicely with the Anderson Valley Black Rice Ale, which is great for stout fans.
Caribbean Booth
While we didn’t do any food at this booth, we greatly enjoyed both of their signature beverages: a frozen Hurricane cocktail and Pineapple Coconut Malibu Splash Seltzer.
Japanese Booth
The event’s Asian options are especially strong, with the Japanese Booth offering multiple must-haves: the Soba Noodle “salad” is a refreshing take on authentic cold-served Japanese buckwheat noodles, and the Yakitori is beautifully executed with prime nuggets of steak.
French Booth
The sweet crepes with Nutella and whipped cream and nuts are exactly as expected, but the “Sweet Finley Slushi (Frose)” was a surprise – it tastes like equal parts chilled red wine and grape ICEE.
Mexican Booth
Of course we had to get the Elotes from the Mexican Booth, and they did not disappoint! Everything you want from Mexican-style street corn is present, and they pair great with a mojito or frozen margarita.
German Booth & Italian Booth
The last booths of the night for us offered copious volumes of warm, carb-y, goodness smothered in melted cheese. The German pretzel rods with beer cheese were exactly what you’d expect (though no less delicious), but the the whipped ricotta flatbread was a total shock – we’re not normally ricotta fans, but this dish was out of this world (both in terms of flavor and texture). We washed it down with some Two Robbers Watermelon Cucumber Hard Seltzer and enjoyed some chocolate-covered pretzel rods for dessert!
Full of delicious food and tired from a satisfying day of rides, it was time for us to bid farewell to Kennywood. Thank you to the park staff who do such an amazing job, whether it’s ride operations, food service, or all the other things that make a day at Kennywood great! We’ll be back soon!
Awesome! Great Review! Alexander and Sean! Cheers! Bon Appetite! Ride On!