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In case you’ve been hiding under a sun-warmed rock today, the organizers of the Budweiser Taste of St. Louis announced this morning that the annual event would be moving from the city proper to Chesterfield, a decision that caused quite a stir.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the city’s namesake food, art, and music festival will take place Sept. 19-21 at Central Park, a 38-acre park that includes the Chesterfield Amphitheater, which, according to the release, was a major factor in the decision to relocate.
The news, first reported by the P-D's Ian Froeb here, generated a whopping 207 comments in its first six hours after publication. Whether pro, con, or in the middle, suffice to say the decision to move the event has re-salted the forever-open city vs. county wound.
When asked to address the issue, Vito Racanelli (right), owner of Mad Tomato in Clayton and boniface emcee for the multi-day Chef Battle Royale at the annual event, sees the Taste “as a food event that benefits the entire metro area,” and eyeing a glass half-full, added philosophically, “maybe it represents a solid step in breaking down that city/county wall.”
K. Sonderegger, organizer and media contact for the Taste, largely agreed, reiterating to Relish that “St. Louis is indeed a region” and the Taste of St. Louis should be viewed in that same light.
She has a point. When asked by an out-of-towner where home is, both city dwellers and St. Louis County suburbanites say the same thing: “St. Louis.” To Sonderegger, “it’s all St. Louis,” which is why she was surprised at the amount of discussion and backlash.
The release stated that “national culinary stars from Food Network, Cooking Channel, and Bravo” would be showcased on the Amphitheater main stage” and that the event would “include a more geographically-diverse Restaurant Row, featuring dozens of restaurants” from St. Louis city and the surrounding counties.
There are naysayers who think the suburban locale might not appeal to St. Louis city and outlying county restaurants, but if the national acts (and the venue in general) attract large and diverse numbers of people, the new location may, in fact, be a boon to those restaurants, exposing them to a new group of potential customers.
Sonderegger summed today’s events up by saying that Taste “has always been—and always will be--a pioneer. We’re simply pioneering in a new area.”
This writer's viewpoint: The relocation issue has deep, city/county roots--the hundreds of comments and reponses reflect that. Had the name of the event been "A Taste of the Gateway," chances are no one would have even shrugged. The Taste organizers (Entertainment Saint Louis) made a business decision. They decided to move the 10-year-old event elsewhere, and while it's unfortunate the city is losing a major food festival, the owners of the event were free to do so. If the Saint Louis Art Fair can be held in the suburb of Clayton, then I suppose the Taste of St. Louis can go about its business in Chesterfield.
If a new food and entertainment festival should emerge in its place--it may have to be called "A Taste of the City of St. Louis"--that may work out, too. Years ago, when Schlafly was prevented from selling its beer at Clayton's art and food fair, the city's second largest brewer organized a parallel event, an alternative festival focusing on local artists, entertainment...and beer Now in its 11th year, Art Outside is still held at Schlafly’s Bottleworks location in Maplewood, on the same weekend as the Saint Louis Art Fair. Both events are successful and only a few miles apart.
