Celebrating Local Flavor: Vendor Highlights from Rochester’s Lilac Festival

I'm Chris Lindstrom and this is the Food About Town podcast, Rochester.

Well, why Rochester?

Chris Lindstrom was a hoot.

He was just so much fun.

He never stopped talking.

I mean, it was great.

Here's a good idea.

Have a point.

It makes it so much more interesting for the listener and we don't need any characters around to give the joint atmosphere.

Is that clear?

We can, because I'm a pro.

That's what pros do.

I'm a professional.

Look it up in the book.

But now, yeah, I'm thinking I'm back.

And we are back with an episode of the Food About Town podcast.

This is a mini episode of Food About Town bites, if you will, and kind of want to talk about the Lilac Festival.

So we did some really interesting preview episodes for the festival on Lunchadore.

So we did an episode on Just can't not, which published on this feedback, talking about the festival, the history and some of the new things going on.

We had an episode with Magnus talking about his work in the park with the decorations, the laser cut rocks, really cool, the animals that he put around the park for everybody to enjoy.

And then nights and weekends did an interview with Dave Drago, who is curating the music part of the festival and one of the artists as well that's participating and how much it meant to them.

And the other day I actually went around the festival and talked to some of the vendors live to learn about their experience with the festival and do that.

And the other night, I think it was Thursday night, I was prepping to get the episode posted and saw that I had some technical difficulties and I wasn't able to get something out from those interviews.

And I was a bit crushed, to be honest, because I loved that experience.

You know, talking to those vendors was awesome.

I talked to seven different places, two as part of the local farmers market that the festival started this year.

And the fact that I don't, I can't get those out now, definitely hurts a bit.

I pride myself on trying to get everybody's voices out there and do it respectfully and value their time, especially on a day when they're trying to sell to customers and everything else.

So one, apologies to all the vendors, but we're going to talk about them and then come back and do interviews with them individually on the podcast network, saying thanks for talking to me then and coming back to do a full length thing.

So let's start with one of my, you know, one of my older food truck relationships in Rochester.

Let's talk About Rob's Kebabs.

Rob Lankoa, talk to him.

He's in the international food tent with the Rob's Kebabs stand and also has the other trucks going on the Al Dente Italian fresh pasta truck and then Sweet Tooth, which is kind of a novelty ice cream thing.

So if you see them around town this summer or you need something for your upcoming event, reach out to Rob.

He's doing a great job doing the, you know, Puerto Rican style foods hybridized there.

Seems like everything's going pretty well.

So it's great to run into him going back to the Farmers market because that was the one that was more time sensitive and that was really only Wednesday, so you can't go see them there.

But I do want to shout out the two places I did talk to.

So apologies.

I don't have all the names because they were in the recordings and I couldn't get them out of it.

So for the people I talk to, I do apologize.

But Wanda, let people know about the places anyways.

So Farmhouse Table that I am familiar with, I've had their catering at weddings.

I've had their food.

You can visit them at the Brighton Farmers Market every Sunday and get, you know, some to go foods that are pre built.

You can also work with them on meal plan dishes or you can go to their store in Rondequoit.

It's kind of a brick and mortar store where you can, you know, buy meals, buy other stuff, work with them on catering things, stuff like that.

You can also visit them at their cafe.

I'm going to get the address while we're talking.

So I mean, they've been doing this for a while and it's really exciting to see, you know, see a place, figure out really who they are and yes, pivot and do what you need to to survive.

You know, they pivoted during the, you know, during the pandemic and during other things and to see where they've ended up.

I'm really happy for them.

Paul Boulevard.

You can go there and visit.

You can also go to their cafe, Farmhouse Table Midtown.

Let's have that beautiful glass building that's gone through a few different.

A few different hosts over the years.

And I'm really hopeful that this is one that works out long term because I think it's a great fit for, you know, the people that work downtown, for people in the area, even people that, you know, people that live and work downtown.

Great option for people around There, and that's at 90 South Clinton and that beautiful glass little cafe space.

So go visit them, check them out.

Really cool stuff.

Also talk to the Monroe County Public Library.

They were, they're doing outreach that day, which one felt awesome that the libraries there doing outreach.

You know, in these public events, I think it's an important part to let people know what the libraries really have to offer for your town, for your community.

So this wasn't just the Rochester City Library, although someone was there representing that.

There was also representative from the Brighton Public Library there.

And they're talking about all the things that the library has to offer for everybody, whether you have a new kid and you're looking to find, hey, I want to get my kid engaged in reading, or you're an adult and just want to get some media stuff for a low price, something the library offers.

They also have rentals like, I know Irondicroit Public Library.

One of our newer shows on the Lunchadore podcast network, Common Thread, is hosted by Rory Van Grohl from Ugly Duck and also Greg Benoit from the Ironycoit Public Library.

They have rental things where you can record your own podcast.

And libraries have other things too, where you can get free admission to parks, you can get passes to go to other things.

There's so much there, and I could not recommend enough that you go check that out.

You'd want to go to Library Web.

I think it's libraryweb.org and look up your local library, go support them.

And you know what?

If you just need something, that's what the library is there for.

That is, it's there for us in times when we need it.

And right now, obviously, the libraries and so many of our local organizations are not being supported the way that they need to be supported.

Being vocal about what they can do and being vocal about your love of our local organizations that are being affected by mercurial policies that aren't really thought through.

This is your chance to celebrate, you know, those places that you feel strongly about, and the library should be one of those.

So highly recommend reaching out to them.

And also we'll be doing an event during Fringe at the one of the downtown branches of the Rochester Public Library in one of their event spaces, the main downtown public branch.

We're super excited to be doing that.

We're gonna have a really fun, really fun time there.

And we're gonna be doing a live event, so hopefully you'll be able to join us for that.

And we'll be doing work with Fringe 2.

Oh, and thanks to my friend at Fairport Food and Drink on Instagram who's commenting right now on the live stream saying she was in the Penfield Library recently and they'll want you jigsaw puzzles.

How awesome is that?

That is exactly the kind of thing I'm talking about.

It's not what you think about the library traditionally, but libraries are for everybody and that matters.

So thanks to them and we'll have more with the library soon.

I want to do some preview stuff with Fringe and other things that they're doing too.

So let's talk about some food and drink things I did around the entire area where the food trucks are and other vendors both in town and out of town, you see small businesses.

I saw a beautiful display from Magnus there talking about his whole project, which was great.

It looked awesome.

Shout out to my buddy there doing great work.

But I want to talk about some of these places that I talked to for the first time.

There was and I'm super excited to invite them over to the studio to learn more about what they're doing.

So let's talk about El Capitan.

So El Capitan is a Puebla Pueblo based Mexican food restaurant on Park Ave.

So that's El Capitan Roc on Instagram.

E L K A P I T A N R O C on Instagram.

Was really, really enjoyed talking to them because something I'm thrilled about is how much more visibility Mexican restaurants are getting here in Rochester.

That means a lot to me as somebody, you know, I'm passionate about, you know, seeing more people appreciate regional Mexican food because it's so, you know, so diverse and so many different subcultures of Mexican food.

So this place is 695 Park Ave, right down the street from Sinbad's, right across the street from Burns basically.

So definitely recommend you go talk to them.

Had a great chat with one of the people who was serving that day and talked about how great it was to see people start to learn about their food, their culture, the Pueblo culture.

So excited to talk to them in the future.

Great conversation with them, so definitely check them out.

El Capitan.

Rock on.

Instagram also wanted to shout out Edgemere Coffee.

So something we've been talking a lot about recently on dialed in our coffee show, we recently had a tasting episode where we talked about a fascinating coffee from Black and White Roasters in I think it was Raleigh, North Carolina.

We've been talking a lot about different sourcing, different stuff like that and talking about new coffee shops opening in Rochester.

It's amazing how Many things have opened in the last two or three years.

For so long we had like three specialty coffee shops and then it's just exploded since, you know, 20, 21.

How many places have opened?

It's really hard to keep track of, to be honest.

It's something, you know, I used to know so much about everything going on when it came to every place in every place in Rochester, and it's almost impossible to keep up.

Now I'm busier than I've ever been and it's hard to keep up.

And that's why I love going to events like this to talk to people and learn about their passions and learn about why they're doing what they're doing.

So Edgemere is open for about a year.

Recent convert to drinking coffee.

So you can go to edgemerecoffee on Instagram to follow them or edgemerecoffee.com to check that out.

I had an espresso there and I love that they were doing something a little bit different than what a lot of places are doing right now.

The trend in specialty espresso is definitely edged towards a longer pull.

So, you know, usually a two to one water, you know, water out or coffee out versus the coffee in, and sometimes even more two and a half to, you know, two and a half to one.

So I know when I started drinking specialty coffee at the old Joe Bean, shout out to our sponsor, Joe Bean Coffee over, over on Blossom Street.

Chopinroasters.com to check out and get your perpetual Joy coffee subscription.

I remember, you know, that at the time, espresso shots were very dense.

It was like one and a half to one.

You're really thick and rich and intense.

And when I tried it, I was like, oh, this is a really nice throwback to that.

And that was really pleasant.

So shout out to them, you know, for doing that.

Again, I apologize, I don't have the name in front of me, but I was really happy to talk to them and hopefully you'll get a chance to interview them in full very soon.

You can find them at festivals and events around western New York.

They're sourcing their coffee from a place in Brooklyn that they really liked and it captured what they were trying to do.

So appreciate that and move on to the next one.

So the other one I wanted to talk about was the Munchies food trucks.

So this is Munchies Empanadas.

And I know that's a little bit of an awkward way to say it, but it's munchies, and instead of empanadas, it's empanadas.

So no E at the front.

And I was talking to the owner, Luis, who I just had a delightful conversation with.

He's telling me about his history and his efforts to, you know, build something he was proud of from growing up in, you know, growing up in the city of Rochester and, you know, seeing.

Seeing the environment around him.

And he wanted to find his way to building something that he could, you know, be proud of with his kids and his grandkids.

And he feels like he has really built that.

So he has multiple food trucks with these, you know, fusion upstate New York, Puerto Rican empanadas.

And I brought some home for my wife, who definitely enjoyed them.

We had some really tasty, really tasty food.

And, you know, somebody I knew was around for a long time, but I've never actually run across and had a chance to talk with.

This was really a delight and reminded me of how similar so many stories are.

And when we were talking about his journey into being an entrepreneur and the sacrifices that he's made to do that, how much it reminded me of my dad's story, how much it reminded me of the sacrifices that he made to make us better and to make now his grandkids better because of those efforts.

Not that anything's perfect, not that the journey was perfect, but that.

That effort and that dedication and that sacrifice really impacted me, really impacted me that day.

And I just want to shout out to Luis, seems like he just went viral on TikTok for having his grandkids in there, tasting the food while he was doing that.

And I had, like 400,000 views when I talked to him on Wednesday, and he was so proud of that, and that just made me feel great.

So definitely check out what they're doing over at Munchies Empanadas, and they'll be opening in Webster in June over on.

I think it's on Main Street.

So we're going to call Luis over and talk about that launch because he's so proud, and I am super excited to have that in the area where I work.

I work in Webster over.

Over off of Publishers Parkway.

So something in the area that I can go to and see, you know, that Puerto Rican culture and that influence in Webster is super exciting.

So shout out to Luis and Munchies empanadas.

And let's finish off with.

Was one of the last places.

I think it was the last place I visited on the way out of the festival.

And that was Lemon Love Stand.

So that's lemonlove Stand on.

On Instagram.

And I want to talk about this for a second because this is.

This is a lemonade stand.

And I don't say that in a reductive way.

I say that with the utmost excitement.

And my conversation with them was just so much fun.

You know, the person I talked to was such a blast, and I absolutely loved my conversation with her.

I do apologize in advance, I don't have your name written down, but Lemon Lovestand is the Instagram.

And talking with her, I just saw that passion.

I saw and I felt that passion for creating something, for creating a brand, too.

She's professional, professional in branding.

And you could see it and you could feel it when you tasted, you know, tasted what they were doing.

So they're trying to go after Southern kind of Southern lemonade.

So they have some Southern roots to that.

And you know, the one that she served me, she recorded a video there.

I don't know if it's got posted, but I hope it did.

So we had.

We had a little video while we were there live, and we were talking about it, and she said, I have the best lemonade that exists.

I'm like, one love the confidence.

I absolutely adore that.

It makes me so happy.

It's my favorite experience is doing nominate when I would talk to people, how much pride they had in what they were doing.

And that's exactly what I felt talking to her.

So she served me the one she wanted to serve me, which was hibiscus and mango.

So the hibiscus, you know, they made in house.

Mango was kind of a regular syrup.

And I was leery.

I don't love a lot of the regular syrups, but damn if it wasn't really delicious.

It was so good.

You know, I let the water melt a little bit.

It was a little sweet for my taste.

But she told me, hey, this is the style we wanted to make using organic cane sugar.

So I had a little bit of that molasses, that brown taste in the best possible way, and this was fantastic.

So they're gonna be doing festivals all over during the summer.

So they're fairly, fairly new and a little bit new on Instagram too.

So I think they're doing Lucky Flea.

They're doing other things like that.

So follow them and check them out.

Lemon Love Stand.

And I'm really hoping to catch them either at another event or bring them over to the studio.

Because the thing I need most in my life right now is that positivity, that passion.

Because, you know, I'll be honest, it's been.

It's been a rough go the last couple months.

You know, I'm keeping my head above water, but not by much.

And, you know, things are good, but it's been a struggle.

And going out and talking to these vendors at the YUAC Festival was help.

Helped me a lot, you know, to feel.

To learn those stories and talk to them about their passions, about their positivity, about what they're trying to create, and how excited they are about that.

I'll be honest, it hit me pretty hard that day.

And it was.

I was.

I was really excited to bring those interviews to everybody.

And it kind of crushed me the other night when I realized I couldn't do that.

So I wanted to follow up with this.

And I really hope everybody who's listening, you know, I'll get the video up as well.

I think everybody can catch it on the archive, but I'll try to get that published, too.

And it might not be in time for you to catch the Lilac Festival, but to go visit these people after, visit other festivals, you know, follow the places you believe in and go visit them in person.

And I just want to thank everybody for their support on Food About Town on the Lunchadore Podcast Network.

Really appreciate it.

And for all the shows, thank you so much for being a part of what we're doing.

So much more to come.

And thanks to the entire team at the Lilac Festival.

Jenny lamaglio, Reagan Burns, for helping us get in touch with all these people.

And just wanted to say thanks to everybody for listening.

And we'll be back next time with more on the Food About Town podcast and the Lunchadore Podcast Network.

This has been a presentation of the Lunchadore podcast network.

Thanks, McKenna, for the outro.

And we're gonna kill the video right here.

Thanks for tuning in, everybody.

Live cheers.