The Latino Heritage Festival has been held for more than 20 years at various locations throughout Des Moines.
At the World Food and Music Festival, 30 different cuisines were available for consumption at its 2024 event.
Cajun Fest attendees ate through nearly 2,000 pounds of crawfish during the 2024 event.
CelebrAsian has 16 villages throughout its festival that each represent a different Asian country or ethnic community.
DES MOINES' FOOD FESTIVALS MAKE THEIR MARK
Cultural events deliver cuisine from around the world.
By Cyote Williams
Individuals from around the world call central Iowa home, and with them come celebrations of their cultures and their countries’ cuisines. Events such as the World Food and Music Festival, CelebrAsian, Latino Heritage Festival and Cajun Fest celebrate more than food, but there’s no doubt about the role food plays in each. Organizers share the stories of how the festivals began, the importance of food in their events and cultures, and more.
The who, why and how
While the World Food and Music Festival, held in late August; CelebrAsian, held during Memorial Day weekend; Cajun Fest, held in June; and Latino Heritage Festival, still to come Sept. 21-22, aren’t the only food and cultural celebrations in the Des Moines area, they represent the wide net of cultures and cuisines cast over Des Moines.
Cajun Fest, the youngest of these celebrations, comes from humble beginnings. Stephen and Jacey Smith moved to Des Moines from Louisiana. They missed the tailgate, block-party style of crawfish boils of their home state. What started as a gathering of friends and family in backyards and parks morphed into a full-fledged celebration now held at Cowles Commons.
The World Food and Music Festival (WFMF), an all-encompassing event, was created in 2005 by the Greater Des Moines Partnership and Downtown Events Group to celebrate Iowa’s cultural heritage, according to Amelia Klatt, director of events at the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
The year 2003 was the first one for CelebrAsian, which is organized by The Iowa Asian Alliance. The IAA was in part founded in 2002 by Kim Poam Logan. The festival is currently overseen by Executive Director Nu Huynh.
Slightly older than the other festivals mentioned, the Latino Heritage Festival dates back to 2002. Joe Gonzalez, executive director of the festival, says JoAnn Mackey approached then-Governor Thomas Vilsack about starting a Latino festival. Vilsack challenged Mackey to make it happen, and she did.
The food
Each of the big festivals strives to feature a variety of authentic foods for attendees to experience.
Classic Cajun favorites such as jambalaya, gumbo, cornbread, crawfish and beignets are served at Cajun Fest through the help of volunteers and vendors such as Buzzard Billy’s, a downtown restaurant with Louisiana roots.
“The last two years, we’ve had people say, ‘Well, I’m not an all-you-can-eat person, so I feel like I’m not getting my money’s worth,’ ” Stephen Smith said. “So, crawfish is for the masses, but if you want to try some of these from the vendors, that’s now a thing that we can offer.”
For the masses is right. Stephen says the festival went through nearly 2,000 pounds of crawfish.
“It was the first year we sold out. People are getting the flavor for it, which is awesome to see,” Stephen said.
“A lot of people in Iowa have not had a crawfish before. So, it might be daunting. Now people are starting to embrace not only the dish but what it is. A crawfish boil is all about sitting around at one table with each other,” Stephen said.
To become one of the 30 different cuisines that will be offered at the WFMF in 2024, vendors must apply at the beginning of the year.
Klatt mentioned some of the longest-standing vendors at the WFMF as Taqueria 3 Hermanos, Filipino Store, Puerco Loco and Caribbean Style Pina Coladas, Sugar Daddy’s Lemonade/Simeca’s Italian Sausage, Papillon and Boba Tea 168. Fifteen new vendors joined those staples at the festival this year, including Creme, Fresh Fusion, Good Day DSM, Home Sweet Cone, Hungry Boys, Ma-Der Sap Sap, MinGaLaBar Burmese Kitchen, Off the Griddle, Polish King, Rosechu, Ruby B’s Kitchen and Catering, Sweet Treats, Tarboosh and Vibes Kitchen + Bar.
At CelebrAsian, 16 “villages” represent different cultures including Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Marshallese, Micronesian, Myanmar, Nepalese, Tai Dam, Thai and Vietnamese. Each of those cultures’ cuisines are represented at the festival, but in recent years it hasn’t just been limited to those of Asian descent, with Bosnian, Mexican and other Latino food trucks making their way into the event as well.
“We also want to be inclusive and open, and part of doing this is not just showcasing the traditions, the cultural heritage, but it’s also inspiring others to embrace and to be open minded, whether it’s Asian fusion or somehow put your Asian flair spin on it,” Huynh said.
Mom-and-pop shops and full-scale restaurants are represented at the Latino Heritage Festival.
“Our greatest participant is probably the mom-and-pop type of vendor. Whether it’s a small business or just themselves wanting to do it and go to different festivals to sell their food. They’re important to us because they’re trying to better their lives,” Gonzalez said. “The challenge is getting the right mixture (of cuisines) represented so that people can see that there is a variety of food there.”
Gonzalez says there’s no shortage of Mexican cuisine represented at the festival, but they do pull in plenty of vendors that represent other countries, such as Tullpa, which is Peruvian; 58 Venezuelan; and several Puerto Rican food vendors. To keep up with the demand, two to three El Salvadorian pupusa vendors and two churro vendors will be there.
The festival doesn’t have a vendor that’s been there since the beginning, but several come close.
“Jose’s Tacos has been there a long time. Sabores De Mexico, a lot of years. Those are the two that have been with us probably the longest,” Gonzalez says.
Growth over the years
Food festivals draw big crowds, and those crowds continue to grow, organizers say.
The Smiths’ eventual goal for their Louisiana-inspired festival is to see it become the Mardi Gras of the Midwest. While its rapid growth was unexpected, it has been appreciated.
“It definitely grew faster than we would have anticipated. Just seeing that growth made it that much more exciting to throw the next year. So, though not anticipated, it’s been super fun the entire time,” Jacey Smith said.
The Smiths have been learning on the fly and have been getting help from hundreds of volunteers to put together the growing festival.
Changing venues is something the World Food and Music Festival knows all about.
“The Festival began to grow and moved to the bridges between the East Village and Downtown. To continue to accommodate the growth, in 2017, the festival moved to Western Gateway Park. In 2023, we had the largest attendance of over 105,000 guests over the three days and featured over 50 food vendors,” Klatt said.
That’s quite the growth from the first festival in 2005, which had two dozen vendors and a few thousand guests.
Even more used to changing venues, CelebrAsian was first held at Gray’s Lake, with somewhere between 5,000 to 10,000 people in attendance, according to Huynh. Once it outgrew Gray’s Lake, the festival moved to Water Works Park.
Unfortunately, flooding concerns moved the festival to the Blank Park Zoo with less than a week’s notice. After a few years at the zoo, the festival moved to its current spot at Western Gateway Park.
The festival also moved its date and went from one day to two. Previously, the festival was held in early May, which avoided competing with Memorial Day weekend. Instead of dodging the competition of the national holiday, Huynh and the IAA decided to face it head on.
“Why don’t we give them a reason to stay in town?” Huynh said. “Why don’t we give a reason for people to come here?”
That change has worked out for CelebrAsian, with Huynh noting the success they’ve experienced in not only bringing in Iowans who are looking for something to do during the holiday weekend but also those from out of state.
The Latino Heritage Festival got off to a shaky start, as the tragic events of 9/11 occurred two weeks before the originally scheduled date of the inaugural festival.
The following year, the festival was held on one of the bridges in downtown Des Moines. Intense winds and adverse weather sent several tents into the river. The event has since bounced around from Water Works Park to Southridge Mall, to the Blank Park Zoo, and now to its current location, Western Gateway Park.
Akin to CelebrAsian, the Latino Heritage Festival has a cultural “village” in hopes of representing as many Latino countries, cultures and cuisines as possible.
“We hopefully represent as many other countries as we can. Food is the same way, but it’s a little more difficult. It’s different having somebody come in with artifacts, flags, clothing typical to their country to represent than it is to be there cooking for two solid days,” Gonzalez said.
Plans for the future
Most of the food festivals for 2024 have wrapped up and are already planning for the 2025 events.
Since Cajun Fest is still in its early days as a festival, at least compared to the others mentioned, its future may be harder to predict.
“Do we want to be a 10,000- to 30,000-person Southern rock show, or do we want to be a 1,000 person crawfish boil?” Stephen asked. “Although we had the vision to bring cool events to a cool place that did some cool things, now we’re learning the business side of running a festival.”
This year, Cajun Fest partnered with SingleSpeed Brewing Co. to make the Bayou Brew. That type of innovation and fusion are some of the things the Smiths hope to continue.
“I think, next year, we have some cool vendors who aren’t from the Cajun states who are going to put a Cajun flair on items that are more familiar versus the other way around. I think having that combination will be great,” Stephen said.
The WFMF is closing in on 20 years and has no plans to slow down.
“We plan to continue the strong tradition of hosting this festival. We are always looking to feature new food vendors and always looking to grow and improve on a year-to-year basis. This year, we have a record 60 food vendors,” Klatt said.
Another change in venue might be on the horizon for CelebrAsian, as rising costs and a growing number of patrons might take them elsewhere in Des Moines.
“When it comes to Western Gateway Park, it’s a beautiful central location. It has the right amount of shade, lawn and concrete, but it’s also getting quite expensive,” Huynh said. “We’re always thinking, what other locations will Iowa or Des Moines build to host events such as this that will also to be cost-effective and friendly for festivals?”
As for the future of the Latino Heritage Festival, Gonzalez mentioned bringing in more musical acts and dance performances from outside of the U.S., even though they focus on bringing in local groups.
“We have a women’s group coming in from Columbia, an all-women mariachi band. We try to rotate the music, and we haven’t had a mariachi band in a long time. We have folkloric dancers coming from Veracruz, Mexico. We have a Brazilian bossa nova group. We’ve never had that type of music or any Brazilian band play at all and they reached out to us with interest,” Gonzalez said.
Why are they important?
Other than being a great way to get outside during the summer months in Des Moines, food festivals provide attendees the opportunity to experience a new culture and taste their food offerings — and perhaps dine in local restaurants they hadn’t tried before. They are also a great way to bring Des Moines’ variety of communities together.
“I feel like the reason we have done well, and continue to do well, is because we are an authentic, super, community-based event. The individuals that come, and the leaders we have that have been there from day one, consistently come and engage with us,” Jacey said. “I feel like we truly built a community. And, for me, personally, that is a priority. Would it be fun to grow into something larger? Of course. Because, the bigger the party, the more fun. I think there’s something to be said about keeping a close-knit group and having it really feel like a community that comes together.”
The 60-plus food vendors at the WFMF give those attending the chance to experience a wide range of cultures and tastes. With more than 100,000 attendees, those vendors and restaurants that get that exposure continue to grow a diverse food scene in central Iowa.
Huynh recalls the Eggroll Ladies, now a popular spot on Des Moines’ north side, got its start with a vendor stall at CelebrAsian, showing how a successful stint at one of these festivals might lead to starting a business.
“It’s really cool to see these small, one- to two-individual stands grow and develop their businesses,” Huynh said.
The Latino Heritage Festival is one of the few festivals that does charge admission, $5 for adults, with children 11 and younger free.
“It helps with administrative costs for the following year. But, more importantly, the more successful we are because of what we get out the gate, beer sales and soda sales, we are then able to give back to the community. So, the last two or three years would have averaged giving back about $25,000 to nonprofits that are specifically in the Latino community,” Gonzalez said.
Individuals from around the world call central Iowa home, and with them come celebrations of their cultures and their countries’ cuisines. Events such as the World Food and Music Festival, CelebrAsian, Latino Heritage Festival and Cajun Fest celebrate more than food, but there’s no doubt about the role food plays in each. Organizers share the stories of how the festivals began, the importance of food in their events and cultures, and more.
The who, why and how
While the World Food and Music Festival, held in late August; CelebrAsian, held during Memorial Day weekend; Cajun Fest, held in June; and Latino Heritage Festival, still to come Sept. 21-22, aren’t the only food and cultural celebrations in the Des Moines area, they represent the wide net of cultures and cuisines cast over Des Moines.
Cajun Fest, the youngest of these celebrations, comes from humble beginnings. Stephen and Jacey Smith moved to Des Moines from Louisiana. They missed the tailgate, block-party style of crawfish boils of their home state. What started as a gathering of friends and family in backyards and parks morphed into a full-fledged celebration now held at Cowles Commons.
The World Food and Music Festival (WFMF), an all-encompassing event, was created in 2005 by the Greater Des Moines Partnership and Downtown Events Group to celebrate Iowa’s cultural heritage, according to Amelia Klatt, director of events at the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
The year 2003 was the first one for CelebrAsian, which is organized by The Iowa Asian Alliance. The IAA was in part founded in 2002 by Kim Poam Logan. The festival is currently overseen by Executive Director Nu Huynh.
Slightly older than the other festivals mentioned, the Latino Heritage Festival dates back to 2002. Joe Gonzalez, executive director of the festival, says JoAnn Mackey approached then-Governor Thomas Vilsack about starting a Latino festival. Vilsack challenged Mackey to make it happen, and she did.
The food
Each of the big festivals strives to feature a variety of authentic foods for attendees to experience.
Classic Cajun favorites such as jambalaya, gumbo, cornbread, crawfish and beignets are served at Cajun Fest through the help of volunteers and vendors such as Buzzard Billy’s, a downtown restaurant with Louisiana roots.
“The last two years, we’ve had people say, ‘Well, I’m not an all-you-can-eat person, so I feel like I’m not getting my money’s worth,’ ” Stephen Smith said. “So, crawfish is for the masses, but if you want to try some of these from the vendors, that’s now a thing that we can offer.”
For the masses is right. Stephen says the festival went through nearly 2,000 pounds of crawfish.
“It was the first year we sold out. People are getting the flavor for it, which is awesome to see,” Stephen said.
“A lot of people in Iowa have not had a crawfish before. So, it might be daunting. Now people are starting to embrace not only the dish but what it is. A crawfish boil is all about sitting around at one table with each other,” Stephen said.
To become one of the 30 different cuisines that will be offered at the WFMF in 2024, vendors must apply at the beginning of the year.
Klatt mentioned some of the longest-standing vendors at the WFMF as Taqueria 3 Hermanos, Filipino Store, Puerco Loco and Caribbean Style Pina Coladas, Sugar Daddy’s Lemonade/Simeca’s Italian Sausage, Papillon and Boba Tea 168. Fifteen new vendors joined those staples at the festival this year, including Creme, Fresh Fusion, Good Day DSM, Home Sweet Cone, Hungry Boys, Ma-Der Sap Sap, MinGaLaBar Burmese Kitchen, Off the Griddle, Polish King, Rosechu, Ruby B’s Kitchen and Catering, Sweet Treats, Tarboosh and Vibes Kitchen + Bar.
At CelebrAsian, 16 “villages” represent different cultures including Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Marshallese, Micronesian, Myanmar, Nepalese, Tai Dam, Thai and Vietnamese. Each of those cultures’ cuisines are represented at the festival, but in recent years it hasn’t just been limited to those of Asian descent, with Bosnian, Mexican and other Latino food trucks making their way into the event as well.
“We also want to be inclusive and open, and part of doing this is not just showcasing the traditions, the cultural heritage, but it’s also inspiring others to embrace and to be open minded, whether it’s Asian fusion or somehow put your Asian flair spin on it,” Huynh said.
Mom-and-pop shops and full-scale restaurants are represented at the Latino Heritage Festival.
“Our greatest participant is probably the mom-and-pop type of vendor. Whether it’s a small business or just themselves wanting to do it and go to different festivals to sell their food. They’re important to us because they’re trying to better their lives,” Gonzalez said. “The challenge is getting the right mixture (of cuisines) represented so that people can see that there is a variety of food there.”
Gonzalez says there’s no shortage of Mexican cuisine represented at the festival, but they do pull in plenty of vendors that represent other countries, such as Tullpa, which is Peruvian; 58 Venezuelan; and several Puerto Rican food vendors. To keep up with the demand, two to three El Salvadorian pupusa vendors and two churro vendors will be there.
The festival doesn’t have a vendor that’s been there since the beginning, but several come close.
“Jose’s Tacos has been there a long time. Sabores De Mexico, a lot of years. Those are the two that have been with us probably the longest,” Gonzalez says.
Growth over the years
Food festivals draw big crowds, and those crowds continue to grow, organizers say.
The Smiths’ eventual goal for their Louisiana-inspired festival is to see it become the Mardi Gras of the Midwest. While its rapid growth was unexpected, it has been appreciated.
“It definitely grew faster than we would have anticipated. Just seeing that growth made it that much more exciting to throw the next year. So, though not anticipated, it’s been super fun the entire time,” Jacey Smith said.
The Smiths have been learning on the fly and have been getting help from hundreds of volunteers to put together the growing festival.
Changing venues is something the World Food and Music Festival knows all about.
“The Festival began to grow and moved to the bridges between the East Village and Downtown. To continue to accommodate the growth, in 2017, the festival moved to Western Gateway Park. In 2023, we had the largest attendance of over 105,000 guests over the three days and featured over 50 food vendors,” Klatt said.
That’s quite the growth from the first festival in 2005, which had two dozen vendors and a few thousand guests.
Even more used to changing venues, CelebrAsian was first held at Gray’s Lake, with somewhere between 5,000 to 10,000 people in attendance, according to Huynh. Once it outgrew Gray’s Lake, the festival moved to Water Works Park.
Unfortunately, flooding concerns moved the festival to the Blank Park Zoo with less than a week’s notice. After a few years at the zoo, the festival moved to its current spot at Western Gateway Park.
The festival also moved its date and went from one day to two. Previously, the festival was held in early May, which avoided competing with Memorial Day weekend. Instead of dodging the competition of the national holiday, Huynh and the IAA decided to face it head on.
“Why don’t we give them a reason to stay in town?” Huynh said. “Why don’t we give a reason for people to come here?”
That change has worked out for CelebrAsian, with Huynh noting the success they’ve experienced in not only bringing in Iowans who are looking for something to do during the holiday weekend but also those from out of state.
The Latino Heritage Festival got off to a shaky start, as the tragic events of 9/11 occurred two weeks before the originally scheduled date of the inaugural festival.
The following year, the festival was held on one of the bridges in downtown Des Moines. Intense winds and adverse weather sent several tents into the river. The event has since bounced around from Water Works Park to Southridge Mall, to the Blank Park Zoo, and now to its current location, Western Gateway Park.
Akin to CelebrAsian, the Latino Heritage Festival has a cultural “village” in hopes of representing as many Latino countries, cultures and cuisines as possible.
“We hopefully represent as many other countries as we can. Food is the same way, but it’s a little more difficult. It’s different having somebody come in with artifacts, flags, clothing typical to their country to represent than it is to be there cooking for two solid days,” Gonzalez said.
Plans for the future
Most of the food festivals for 2024 have wrapped up and are already planning for the 2025 events.
Since Cajun Fest is still in its early days as a festival, at least compared to the others mentioned, its future may be harder to predict.
“Do we want to be a 10,000- to 30,000-person Southern rock show, or do we want to be a 1,000 person crawfish boil?” Stephen asked. “Although we had the vision to bring cool events to a cool place that did some cool things, now we’re learning the business side of running a festival.”
This year, Cajun Fest partnered with SingleSpeed Brewing Co. to make the Bayou Brew. That type of innovation and fusion are some of the things the Smiths hope to continue.
“I think, next year, we have some cool vendors who aren’t from the Cajun states who are going to put a Cajun flair on items that are more familiar versus the other way around. I think having that combination will be great,” Stephen said.
The WFMF is closing in on 20 years and has no plans to slow down.
“We plan to continue the strong tradition of hosting this festival. We are always looking to feature new food vendors and always looking to grow and improve on a year-to-year basis. This year, we have a record 60 food vendors,” Klatt said.
Another change in venue might be on the horizon for CelebrAsian, as rising costs and a growing number of patrons might take them elsewhere in Des Moines.
“When it comes to Western Gateway Park, it’s a beautiful central location. It has the right amount of shade, lawn and concrete, but it’s also getting quite expensive,” Huynh said. “We’re always thinking, what other locations will Iowa or Des Moines build to host events such as this that will also to be cost-effective and friendly for festivals?”
As for the future of the Latino Heritage Festival, Gonzalez mentioned bringing in more musical acts and dance performances from outside of the U.S., even though they focus on bringing in local groups.
“We have a women’s group coming in from Columbia, an all-women mariachi band. We try to rotate the music, and we haven’t had a mariachi band in a long time. We have folkloric dancers coming from Veracruz, Mexico. We have a Brazilian bossa nova group. We’ve never had that type of music or any Brazilian band play at all and they reached out to us with interest,” Gonzalez said.
Why are they important?
Other than being a great way to get outside during the summer months in Des Moines, food festivals provide attendees the opportunity to experience a new culture and taste their food offerings — and perhaps dine in local restaurants they hadn’t tried before. They are also a great way to bring Des Moines’ variety of communities together.
“I feel like the reason we have done well, and continue to do well, is because we are an authentic, super, community-based event. The individuals that come, and the leaders we have that have been there from day one, consistently come and engage with us,” Jacey said. “I feel like we truly built a community. And, for me, personally, that is a priority. Would it be fun to grow into something larger? Of course. Because, the bigger the party, the more fun. I think there’s something to be said about keeping a close-knit group and having it really feel like a community that comes together.”
The 60-plus food vendors at the WFMF give those attending the chance to experience a wide range of cultures and tastes. With more than 100,000 attendees, those vendors and restaurants that get that exposure continue to grow a diverse food scene in central Iowa.
Huynh recalls the Eggroll Ladies, now a popular spot on Des Moines’ north side, got its start with a vendor stall at CelebrAsian, showing how a successful stint at one of these festivals might lead to starting a business.
“It’s really cool to see these small, one- to two-individual stands grow and develop their businesses,” Huynh said.
The Latino Heritage Festival is one of the few festivals that does charge admission, $5 for adults, with children 11 and younger free.
“It helps with administrative costs for the following year. But, more importantly, the more successful we are because of what we get out the gate, beer sales and soda sales, we are then able to give back to the community. So, the last two or three years would have averaged giving back about $25,000 to nonprofits that are specifically in the Latino community,” Gonzalez said.
