Heavy rain couldn’t stop local foodies from turning out for the annual Dine Around Downtown food fest at 28 Liberty Plaza on June 8.
Wall Streeter Chris Chen said he usually doesn’t go out for lunch, but he couldn’t resist coming out for a steak sandwich and a lamb chop on Wednesday, despite the rain.
BY TEQUILA MINSKY
Locals may love the annual Dine Around Downtown food festival, but this year, the weather spirits did not look on kindly. About halfway through the event, the sky opened up and steady and cold rain came down.
Residents could see the clouds gathering, however, and swooped in to nab their knoshes early.
“We had a large turnout during the first 90 minutes —before the rain,” said Jessica Lappin, President of the Downtown Alliance, co-sponsor of last Wednesday’s food fest at 28 Liberty Plaza that offered tastes from over 40 Downtown restaurants for about $5 a portion.
By 1 p.m., the umbrellas popped up, but the downpour didn’t stop the hardy, hungry local foodies, who still formed lines around many stands, even in the rain.
People took shelter under the plaza’s sculpture or pedestrian arcades of the Fosun building and on the Liberty St. side of the plaza, some eaters sat at outdoor tables under the protective overhang.
Chris Chen visited two restaurant stalls and happily chomped a lamb chop and steak sandwich. Chen has been working on Wall St. for four years and said that normally he doesn’t go out for lunch but there he was with two friends who came from Connecticut to join him at this food festival.
Jasmine Rivera made the soggy trek over from Brookfield Place because she wanted to get this cookbook by celebrity chef Alex Guarnaschelli.
Jasmine Rivera trudged through the downpour from Brookfield Place to meet this year’s celebrity host.
“I came specifically because I heard that chef Alex Guarnaschelli would be here,” Rivera said as she finished up her charred swordfish taco.
Balancing her umbrella and shopping bag, she pulled out Guarnaschelli’s cookbook, proudly pointing out the “To Jasmine” inscription on the title page.
Guarnaschelli is a Food Network star and owner and executive chef of a number of NYC restaurants. She was the host and event emcee, and she greeted the crowd around noon. Her “Old-School Comfort Food” cookbook sold out.
The National Jazz Museum Allstars band also performed before the rain.
For one brief, shining moment, Lower Manhattan workers could spend their lunch hour enjoying the best tastes of Downtown, but due to thunder and lightning, the event itself was called off around 1:30 p.m.
Though some have said that pedestrian arcades are a waste, people took full advantage of the public spaces at 28 Liberty St. to nibble their noshes during a downpour at the food fest co-sponsored by the Downtown Alliance.
Food Network celebrity chef Alex Guarnaschelli signed books for fans until she ran out of copies early in the festival.
Even in the middle of Wednesday’s downpour, people still lined up for a taste of local cuisine.
