Greater Alliance Carnation Festival Food Fest has "the goods," now through Saturday

ALLIANCE ‒ Eleven-year-old Ila Hallman and her brothers came to "get the goods" Friday at the Greater Alliance Carnation Festival Food Fest.

The siblings, including 13-year-old Cooper and 8-year-old Nash, enjoyed the summer afternoon at the University of Mount Union Campus Lakes with family, munching on macaroni and cheese, fried Oreos, lemonade and mint chocolate chip ice cream.

They weren't alone.

The Food Fest − which started Thursday − has attracted a steady stream of people looking for some fun eats and cool treats, and a break from the norm. There are numerous food and beverage vendors, including beer, and plenty of places to sit, relax and enjoy the time. Also, there is no shortage of parking.

Photo Gallery: Carnation Festival blooms with Food Fest

The Food Fest, one of the highlights of the 10-day Greater Alliance Carnation Festival, continues tonight until 11 p.m. Liverpool Lads, a Beatles tribute band, will perform from 7 to 10 p.m.

The Food Fest runs noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, its final day, with local band LaFlavour hitting the stage at 7 p.m. All concerts are free.

Bruce, 75, and Denise Lemmon, 71, of Alliance, who live nearby, made the short walk to Food Fest to have a peaceful lunch near the Campus Lakes. Their lunch consisted of a couple of Italian sausage sandwiches, a bucket of French fries and a funnel cake.

The Food Fest moved from downtown Alliance to the Mount Campus last year, and the Lemmons like the location. It previously was held for years at the former Carnation City Mall.

"It's so nice, and handy for us," Denise Lemmon said about Mount Union. "He has a walker, but we able to get here and enjoy some of the activities."

Zaviona Fountain, 24, of Alliance visited Food Fest for the first time on Friday, and gave her lunch, a cheese-on-the-stick and funnel cake, the thumbs up.

"I saw our community was doing something nice, so I decided to come," she said, "because I was able to."

Reach Benjamin Duer at 330-580-8567 or ben.duer@cantonrep.com . On X (formerly Twitter): @bduerREP.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Greater Alliance Carnation Festival Food Fest has "the goods," now through Saturday