Residents stay busy at area food festivals on Civic holiday

Food festivals in the area have been very popular as people look to make the most out of the Civic holiday Monday.

The day started out a bit rainy in Hamilton but cleared up in time for people to come out and enjoy the Lucky Lion Night Market.

The four day event at Bayfront Park shares Asian culture and cuisine with the community.

“We’ve had such a great response. People are loving the diversity of food options. It’s just something different to experience in the city and very meaningful for the Asian community up here as well,” Julia Park said.

READ MORE: Waterdown’s Oh Canada Ribfest brings ribs, fun and more to Memorial Park

And the culinary adventure continued at the St. Catharines Rotary Ribfest.

Since the event began 22 years ago, they’ve raised about $1.6 million to give back to the city and regional organizations.

“We’re pretty much on track this year to bring in what we brought in last year which was about $96,000,” Melissa Debeau said.

“It’s looking good. We’ve been really lucky with the weather. We were looking at rain yesterday but it was beautiful and we’ve had lots of people in the park having a good time.”

Rib vendors braced the high temperatures both outside and behind the grill, all in the name of good ribs and pulled pork.

READ MORE: Canada’s largest rib fest back at Spencer Smith Park in Burlington

Ryan Mandryk from Camp 31 BBQ said they’ve been here since the very beginning.

“It’s one of our favourite weekends to come out to St. Catharines. So they’re excited that we come out and we’re very excited as you can see even on day four after all these long days just serving the community,” Mandryk said.

Each rib vendor has their own secret to the best rib. For Camp 31, it comes down to the little details.

“Low and slow is the key. Low temperature and take a long time. That adds the tenderness and the three levels: the spice, the smoke and the sauce,” Mandryk said.

The  and the St. Catharines Ribfest wrap up Monday night, but if you missed these events this weekend, they’ll be back again next year.