Pasco’s legendary Fiery Foods Festival returns to Peanuts Park on September 14 with a spicy punch.
Highlights include a pepper-eating contest between local VIPs and a new, separate competition open to the public.
Up to 10 participants can compete in the communal pepper eating contest. Anyone interested can fill out the online form.
There will also be a taco eating contest, with tacos provided by a local Pasco restaurant.
Leading up to the festival this year is the Pepper Pack Journey, a citywide trading card scavenger hunt via social media. There will be 10 of each of five limited edition trading cards with clues on the city’s social media on how to find them.
The series was created by local artist and city employee Ciccone Sanchez.
So far, the cards have been distributed at Cafe con Arte and the Pasco Farmers Market, among other places.
Pasco Recreation Manager Brent Kubalek told the Herald this week that the city expects more than 30 vendors at the event. Vendor registration is open until Aug. 29.
All food vendors are encouraged to offer at least one spicy dish on their menu, such as spicy tacos, fruit sprinkled with Tajin seasoning, and even spicy lemonade.
The number of visitors this year is expected to exceed that of 2023, with over 5,700.
Last year’s visitor numbers were a huge increase from the 4,800 visitors in 2022.
The festival also includes food trucks, live music performances, pony rides and a kids’ zone.
Fiery story
When the celebration began in 1984, it was known as the Pasco Autumn Festival. The name was later changed to provide a more inclusive name.
The Downtown Pasco Development Authority was founded in 2010 and took over the organization of the festival from 2011 to 2022.
From 2023, the city will take over the organization of the event.
The DPDA was then dissolved in April 2024. It was supposed to lead the revitalization of the city center, but had repeatedly run into controversy and financial problems in recent years.
“The city’s planning has gone pretty well,” Kubalek said. “We’re making progress. We’re still learning and trying to build the event.”
The Fiery Foods Festival takes place on September 14th from 11am to 7pm.
