/SOUTHWEST TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — FoodeesFest combined food, culture, and community to give Tallahassee a free, inclusive experience with a lasting local impact.
- More than 40 food trucks and artisans served thousands of people in the Governor's Square Mall parking lot. while boosting small, local businesses.
- Free admission to the festival helped remove barriers, giving families and students a place to gather and connect.
- Watch the video below to see how this traveling festival brought Tallahassee together while boosting small, local businesses.
FoodeesFest fuels local businesses and brings Tallahassee together
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
From the smell of barbecue and tacos, to the sound of music and crowds filling the parking lot, Tallahassee became the place to be this weekend as a worldwide food festival rode through the city.
I'm Lyric Sloan, your Southwest Tallahassee neighborhood reporter. FoodeesFest served more than just plates; they served the community.
FoodeesFest is a traveling cultural festival bringing dozens of food trucks and artisans to cities across the globe.
This weekend, the worldwide experience landed right here at Governor Square Mall, transforming an ordinary parking lot into a shared community space.
"The purpose behind it is really just that unity, that community, just coming together for one weekend, it's three days, and just bringing out the family and kind of just seeing each other too," Mackayla Morgan, Foodeesfest On Site Social Coordinator, said
Over the course of the weekend, more than 40 vendors served thousands of customers, many of them small business owners who rely on festivals like this as a major source of income.
"That is great for local business, for entrepreneurship, for, you know, just income, because it's a time when, you know, money is really hard. So to be able to get out here to work, to be amongst the people we're trying to serve love on the plate," Diamond Lynn, Granny’s Fried Kitchen Co-Owner, said.
And while FoodeesFest has a global footprint, organizers say the real impact is local, creating opportunities for businesses to grow their customer base and connect face-to-face with the community.
"It's also a great way to make a lot of money. There's a lot of people that came through here these past few days. They didn't know about us, but now they do. We also got people that were looking for caterers and vendors to come out to their business. So it's actually a good place to network," Kezia Sharpe, Fryson’s Kitchen Cashier, said.
But the impact isn't just economic.
With free admission and a pay-as-you-go set up, organizers say the festival was designed to remove barriers, giving families and young adults a place to gather without the cost of a ticket, something community members say they want to see more of.
"I think like it'll bring the community closer and kind of give us more things to do, besides, because I'm a college student, so it's not really crazy, a lot of things to do for like people outside of college or like family. So I feel like this is a good event for give us something to do, really," Raqiya Whitley, who attended FoodeeFest, said.
For Tallahassee, hosting a traveling festival like this means more than a weekend of food and fun; it's a chance to be part of something bigger, while keeping dollars, attention, and support right here at home.
"It's really good to see your own community be exactly where you are. You get to see new friends, new faces, the same faces you've seen before. Honestly, it just brings the money right back into the same economy that you live in," Felisa Richardson, who attended FoodeeFest, said.
This is FoodeesFest, first time in Tallahassee.
Organizers tell me the goal is to connect the community long after the festival leaves.
In Southwest Tallahassee, Lyric Sloan, ABC 27.
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