Pig Out in the Park
What is Pig Out In the Park? Well, lets see... Delicious food from more than 48 different food offerings with nothing priced over $10.
Musical entertainment from over 55 bands taking place in two different concert venues in Spokane's Riverfront Park. What more could you ask for?
It all takes place Labor Day week. Six days of great food and music!
I
know what you must be thinking, the admission must be expensive for all of this
fun and entertainment. Right?
Wrong! Admission is free.
Even the parking is free if you park at the Spokane Arena parking lot. It's only a short 5 minute walk to the park from there.
If you want to cut down on the walking there is a parking lot right next to the park just east of the Flour Mill but it will cost you about $5.00. There is also the River Park Square parking garage or the Bennet Block lot right across the street from the carousel.
As far as what to bring, I would bring a lawn chair or blanket if one of the night time concerts is in your plans. Just get there at least an hour in advance so that you can stake out your spot. When I saw Rick Derringer perform last time I got there a half hour before the concert and I had a hard time finding a good place to sit and still be able to see the stage so get there early.
In case your were wondering, this feeding frenzy started in 1979 and it's been going ever since. The
organizer, Bill Burke (below) originally held it at the end of September but as often happens
around Spokane the weather did not cooperate.
He
ended up changing the date to it's present time which is the week leading up to
Labor Day weekend.
Seattle has Bumbershoot. Spokane has Pig Out in the Park.
The original intent of the event was to promote local businesses and to help to reinvigorate the local community and downtown Spokane. This hasn't changed over the years in fact, according to Bill, it is estimated that Spokane and the surrounding area pulls in about $4.7 million.
The free admission is made possible by the sponsorship of some very generous donors. In 2009 the cost to put on Pig Out was about $320,000.
The
food is provided by 55 restaurants both local and from outside the area. They
say that about 35% of the venders are new to the event.
The cool thing about the food is that it promotes cultural and ethnic diversity in Spokane.
You can find everything from Chinese, Italian, Mexican, Hawaiian you name it you'll find something to satisfy your craving.
The food is only half of it, the music is a huge part of Pig Out. Every year the music acts that come get better and better. Over the years they have presented over 1175 free concerts!
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The Tubes |
Because the reputation of Pig Out has grown over the years they are able to attract some really great bands such as The Tubes (above), Rick Derringer (below), WAR, John Mayall, Tower of Power, and Bo Diddley to name just a very few.
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Rick Derringer |
Of coarse there are many local and regional bands that help make up the roster. Names like Too Slim and Taildraggers and Jr Cadillac are local favorites.
They have also improved the music venues in the last few years. They now have two large festival stages with roofs which make it possible to put on shows even if the weather doesn't cooperate.
Pig Out is one of Spokane's biggest cultural events of the year and it really helps to bring people together. After all, food and music is something we can all relate to.
If you are in town around Labor Day, head to Riverfront Park and check it out. As I mentioned at the top, be sure to bring a lawn chair and plan accordingly for the weather. Normally the weather in September is nice and warm but we can have that occasional wind/dust/rain storm.
Click here to get the complete official Pig Out schedule.
