Film Feastival Brings over 280 Locals Together to Enjoy Local Fresh-from-the-Farm Food

Over 280 locals flocked to Clark’s Elioak Farm last night for the 4th Annual Howard County Film Feastival and Farm-2-Table Restaurant Weeks Kickoff.
 

The annual feastival,  started in July 2010,  has been gaining momentum over the past few years.  The scenic Clark’s Elioak Farm with its restored Enchanted Forest fairy tale buildings and characters and petting farm lends itself quite well to the feastival which brought together six local restaurants, local farmers and local people to experience local food.

Six Howard County restaurants gave samplings of their local food made with locally grown ingredients: Mango Grove, Woodstock Inn, Aida Bistro & Wine Bar, Town Grill, Iron Bridge, and Baldwin Station. Four local farms - Love Dove Farm, Sharp’s at Waterford Farm, Friends and Farm CSA, and Clark’s Never Sell the Land Farm - were selling their vibrant and tasty fresh-from-the-farm products inclusive of fruits and vegetables.   A mini-film festival was running up the hill in a nearby building. Live Country Bluegrass filled the air with sweet rhythmic sounds. 

Other feastival exhibitors represented included: the Howard County Bee Keepers; Howard County 4-H Dayton Club; Howard County Extension; Howard County Soil Conversation; Linganore Winecellars, Simplistic Wholistic, and Larriland Farm.

The feastival activities culminated today at Howard County Library’s Miller Branch with a screening of “The Maryland Harvest,” a documentary produced by Maryland Public Television. The documentary is “about Maryland farms and farmers and the chefs who love them, takes us on a gastronomic tour of farms throughout the state with talented chefs Cindy Wolf of Charleston, Spike Gjerde of Woodberry Kitchen, David McCallum of the Tilghman Island Inn, and Rob Plant of Blue Wind Gourmet."

Following the film, a panel of Howard County farmers and restaurateurs shared their experiences with farm-to-table, what they’ve learned, and how it works. Guests were invited out to the Wednesday Howard County Farmers’ Market open from 2 to 6pm every Wednesday this season through November 20.

The 2013 Howard County Farm-2-Table Restaurant Weeks runs through August 5.  It overlaps the Buy Local Challenge which runs from July 20 through July 28.

The Howard County Film Feastival was a joint production of the Agricultural Marketing Program of the Howard County Economic Development Authority, Howard County Tourism & Promotion, the University of Maryland Extension-Howard County and Clark’s Elioak Farm. The media sponsor is The Business Monthly newspaper.