Travel the world at diverse Tacoma food fest with K-pop show and fire-dancing
Sample foods from around the world, sip drinks in the beer garden, catch chef demos and a K-Pop Demon Hunters mini concert all in one place this weekend.
The sixth annual Savor Fest PNW returns Sunday, July 19 to the parking lot outside Mi Centro, 1208 S. 10th St. From noon to 5 p.m., about two dozen vendors will serve everything from Cambodian snacks to Trinidadian doubles, Filipino noodles to Venezuelan arepas.
Organized by local pastry chef Lydia Mendez of Little Miss Sweets NYC, a gluten-free bakery specializing in New York-style cheesecakes, tres leches and pastelitos, the family-friendly, free-to-enter event moved to the Mi Centro location last year. Mendez’s vision has centered on “celebrating the diverse tastes, talents and cultures of the Pacific Northwest.”
In April, the City of Tacoma’s events and recognitions committee honored Mendez with the 2026 City of Destiny Award for economic development, focused on her work “that uplifts BIPOC-owned businesses and celebrates Tacoma’s diverse communities” through Savor Fest.
This year’s festival will add a 21-and-up beer garden area with beer, wine and cocktails, including gluten-free options, from the team at Manuscript, a modern Italian restaurant and bar known also for weekend brunch in the Stadium District.
“It is a family-friendly event, but we want adults to have some fun, too!” said Mendez in a phone call this week.
Performances kick off at 12:30 p.m. with Vision Step Team, a local dance and girls empowerment group. Toa Malosi, a young men’s Samoan fire-dancing troupe, takes the stage at 1:30 p.m. Throughout the event, Magic in the PNW, a local Disney character mother-and-daughter company, will host a meet-and-greet, and at 3 p.m. their K-pop group, Huntrixx, will lip-sync away.
Food vendors hail from as nearby as Tacoma as well as Puyallup/Sumner, Seattle, Everett, Portland and various points in between. Many are return vendors, but as in years past, Mendez has gathered a diverse slate of largely women-owned businesses.
Fill up on savory plates from Seven Sons BBQ, Gigo’s Jamaican Grill, Jan Parker Cookery (seasonal Filipino), Trini Plate, Green Steamer (dim sum) and Jumpin Jambalaya. Newcomers this year include Bocao, a Venezuelan street-food stall usually stationed on Sixth Ave; aHHa Snack Cart, which plans to serve Cambodian “New Age Amoke” wings, pork belly wraps and chicken cha kreung; and Matcha Man, who will have taiyaki and onigiri.
Sweets are both cold and cooked, including Puerto Rican treats from Tropical Baking Sweets, cookies from Ube Overload, fresh-fruit popsicles from Ma & Pops, and K2 Frozen Custard.
There also will be a mercado with refreshments of aqua frescas, lemonade and matcha, plus take-home jams, island hot sauces, Hmong beef jerky from Vuetastic, Halmoni Kimchi and Japanese fermented foods like koji and natto from Gig Harbor-based Walabo Kitchen.
Tiny Tats by Kat will be on site for exclusive flash tattoos, and last but not least, chefs Susan Burbano of Umma’s Cooking and Shawn Tibbitts of Tibbits at Fern Hill will host cooking demonstrations on the main stage.
Also happening this weekend, July 18-19, is Tacoma Porchfest less than a mile away between Sixth Ave and 12th Street, from Steele to Alder.
Savor Fest PNW
- When: July 19, noon-6 p.m.
- Where: Mi Centro, South 10th Street and the parking lot between South M and L
- What: family-friendly food fest with live performances and take-home mercado; free to enter, most vendors accept cash or card
- Extras: new 21+ beer garden, seating area to recharge/dine, on-site restrooms
- Getting there: nearby street parking, overflow in Tacoma Housing Authority lot at 902 S L St.; public transit encouraged via Link or bus