Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival Is Returning to Centennial Park

It’s hard to believe it’s been 30 years since Mayor Bill Purcell's administration and Nashville Metro Parks first established the Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival. That is indeed the case, and the joyful celebration of our city’s diverse cultures will return to Centennial Park on Saturday, Oct. 1, from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. for a daylong festival.

It will actually kick off an hour earlier with the inaugural Celebrate Nashville parade, with marching bands, community groups and musicians in traditional attire parading through Centennial Park and concluding at the Global Village Stage with a high-energy five-minute performance. They will also introduce an original anthem celebrating Music City’s international community, and attendees will learn simple, inclusive choreography to be a part of the debut.

The day will include musical and dance performances, an open-air market, a dedicated children’s area, an arts showcase and games on the field. But this being Bites and all, you’re probably here to find out about the food.

You’ve come to the right place, because the Cafe Stage and Food Area will be the place to be, with more live music and more than 20 food vendors from around the city representing cuisines from around the globe. That includes some Cajun offerings from Off the Hook Concessions and down-home barbecue from Soul of the City, but most of the roster represents dishes from further afar.

Aminta’s Homemade will be serving up West African and Senegambian jollof rice and chicken yassa alongside Guyanese jerk sandwiches from the Pepper Pot. If you like your food rolled up, try the Kurdish dolmas from Roj Organization, the Serbian stuffed cabbage rolls from The Milja's Kitchen Corner or even the churros from The Burro Churro.

Many cultures have their own versions of the humble hand pie, and Celebrate Nashville will feature several of them, from the arepas at Foodlamo and Caracasville to The Sambwich Company’s Palestinian sambusas, and empanadas from Taste of Puerto Rico, Delicias Colombiana RR and Taste de Lima. Peru is actually very well-represented. In addition to Taste de Peru, you can score some waaaay South American food at The Inka Trailer and Nelly’s Peruvian Sweets.

This is just scratching the surface of the variety of international delights that will be available at Celebrate Nashville, so get there early and come hungry!