A Taste of Home
The smell of grilled meat and the sound of Greek folk music filled the air Saturday in Orange as Vic Alfirevic bit into his gyro sandwich and felt transported back to the old neighborhood of his childhood.
“It reminds me of festivals in Chicago,” the 42-year-old Orange resident said, watching as a troupe of Greek dancers strutted in a half-circle along Chapman Avenue. “It’s just a big food fest.”
The historic traffic circle in Old Towne Orange was transformed into a row of ethnic neighborhoods this weekend for the 26th annual Orange International Street Fair. The area is divided into 15 villages where vendors sell cuisine from around the world.
Chow mein and egg rolls were a hit on West Chapman Avenue, while crowds went for the German sausage and beer on North Glassell Street. In addition to the food, visitors were treated to live performances such as Middle Eastern belly dancing and Mexican folklorico.
While dancing to Arabic music, Holly Hillman of Anaheim called to people in the crowd to let down their guard and taste traditional Lebanese food prepared by a local restaurant.
“You don’t know what it is. But try it. You might like it,” she said. “Give it a chance. The baklava is to die for.”
Most of the money raised from the dozens of food booths goes to charities or to pay for community programs.
Frank DeSantis, the national president of Sons of Italy in America, said serving pizza at his food booth gives him a chance to teach others about his heritage.
“We are trying to preserve Italian heritage and culture for our youth,” he said.
For seven years, members of Lutheran High School of Orange have sold bratwurst with German sauerkraut at the street festival.
“We have tons of people come every year for our bratwurst,” said Ken Ellwein, executive director of the school. “We have imported sauerkraut, and the repeat customers know it makes a big difference.”
Doris Hansen, a member of the Viking Club of Orange County, served Danish ableskiver, which are small spheres of cooked bread covered with powdered sugar and a sweet, red sauce.
“We made them all the time in Denmark,” said Hansen, originally from Copenhagen. “In Denmark, they are especially popular at New Year’s Eve.”
Hansen said the volunteers were considering quitting after more than two decades at the fair. But when they took one year off, they were encouraged by fair-goers who noticed their absence.
“We figured that we started a good thing, so we better keep going.” she said.
Fullerton resident Jardnar O’Brien, a member of the Sons of Norway, enthusiastically encouraged fair-goers to try his country’s ale.
“Ice-cold Norwegian beer,” he shouted. “You don’t have to be Norwegian to like this beer.”
O’Brien said he felt it was his duty to expose others to the drinks of his culture. “The best thing [about the fair] is the diversity,” he added. People “have the opportunity to taste the different foods and drinks.”
The fair will continue today from 10 a.m to 10 p.m. at the Orange traffic circle. Officials expect about 500,000 people to attend over the three-day run.