| Norfolk Seafood and Beach Music Fest | | Print | |
| Written by Jeff Corriveau | |
| Sunday, 24 September 2006 | |
 I have to admit, I grew up in the northeast on the ocean and this is the first time in my life I have been to a seafood festival. On my way there I was thinking “the weather is okay but looks like rain.” “Should I go?” “What can I expect and is it going to be worth my time?" I love seafood so that alone was worth it. However, there is even more than seafood amongst the festivities, so what should you expect?
Ladies and gentle, the next time Norfolk hosts a Seafood and Music Festival (which will be number 6 by the way) find the time to grab your family and friends and head to Town Point Park for a crab pickin’, fish fryin’, shrimp boilin’, cold beer drinking (okay keep the kids away from that part), fish cleanin’, children playin’, critter racin’ good time down by the river, while enjoying all types of seafood and one of the East Coast’s official pastimes.
When I first arrived and finished dealing with the downtown parking issues here in Norfolk (and you all know what I mean), I noticed the music in the background. It was the fun and sometimes soothing beach music from Coolin Out, The Showmen, and The Foundations.
Speaking of food, how is this list of offerings? After all when you are told there is a Seafood Festival, you expect lots of seafood. The main foods to mention were the broiled and/or fried crab sandwiches, soft shell crabs, shrimp, scallops, mahi mahi, fried fish (different varieties), lobster meat, crawfish (not rated amongst my favorite), and much, much more. Don’t worry parents - there are other offerings that the children will partake in if your child is not the seafood connoisseur. Let’s try corn dogs, fries, barbeque sandwiches and again much, much more. Plus desserts such as soft serve ice cream, snow cones and the ever present funnel cakes.
To help keep yourself and your children entertained, there were a variety of vendors selling everything from jewelry to t-shirts, even tattoos. Again no need to worry parents they were air brushed not permanent.
My favorite event of the day was watching all the children participate in the critter races. What is a critter race, for those who don’t know? Well, you take a large bull’s eye and place it on top of a table. You then take 20 hermit crabs and number them 1 – 20 and assign one to each child. Then you place all the hermit crabs in the center of the bull’s eye and the first hermit crab to make it to the outer edge of the bull’s eye wins and so does the child who has that number hermit crab. What does the child win? Well he/she gets to take home the hermit crab and a plastic house for it to live in. Yes parents you are now the proud owner of a hermit crab. But don’t worry it’s not just first place that receives something... 2nd, 3rd and so on up to 20th place get to take home their hermit crab as well. I don’t think you get the little plastic house for it but
I would suggest that the next time this Seafood Festival comes around you pack up some chairs, blankets and the family and take a trip down to Town Point Park to participate and partake in the fun and festivities that Norfolk has to offer.
This season the Seafood Festival ran Friday – Sunday Sept. 15 – 17 at the Town Point Park in Norfolk and was Free & Open to the Public.
This event was sponsored by: The City of Norfolk, Cingular Wireless, Norfolk Waterside Marriott, Chrysler/Jeep, Budweiser, CFE Equipment Corp., Cox Communications, AutoTrader.com, Apartment Movers of Virginia, AL&M, Executive Limousines, Soundings, WNIS/WTAR, 92.1 Cool FM, 107.7 Lite FM, and Hampton Roads Magazine.
For further information on Festevents programs E-mail: Festevents@festevent.org
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All great music to listen to while you sit down on the grass with a blanket, take in a drink and some great food. 