Arkansas Pie Festival returns April 27
by April 22, 2024 1:09 pm 1,650 views
The Arkansas Pie Festival is set to return to Cherokee Village, Ark., on Saturday (April 27) as a partner of the World Food Championship, the biggest Food Sport event in the world.
As an official qualifying event for WFC, the Arkansas Pie Festival will award one Golden Ticket to its champion making them eligible to compete in the Dessert category at the international cooking tournament this fall.
It will host a competition between commercial pie makers, home chefs, and students. Judges and attendees will be able to sample pies of all varieties before crowning a people’s choice and champion baker. Pies will also be displayed and auctioned to support the Spring River Innovation Hub.
“The Arkansas Pie Festival is back and bigger than ever”, said festival co-founder and Cherokee Village community developer Jonathan Rhodes. “We’ve seen the excitement building around the local community and throughout the state thanks to our partners like The World Food Championship. The Arkansas Pie Festival gives us an opportunity to promote Arkansas, bring people together in Cherokee Village and support our small businesses. And…who doesn’t love pie?”
In addition to pie tasting, festival goers will enjoy live music entertainment on the FNBC Stage, food trucks, pie eating contests, shopping at the Arkansas Pie Pop-up Shop and the opportunity to meet Miss Arkansas 2023 Cori Keller. The festival also includes a Pie Day 5K race sponsored by White River Health and the Pie Fest Pup Parade.
Kat Robinson, Arkansas travel writing and leading authority on pie, serves as Festival co-chair. Kat has written a book about Arkansas pie, “A Delicious Slice of the Natural State,” and recently released a second edition, “Another Slice of Arkansas Pie.”
Robinson will be available to sign her guides and other Arkansas food-related books. Robinson will lead judging with a host of Arkansas celebrities including Arkansas Supreme Court Chief Justice John Dan Kemp, Director of Arkansas Tourism Dalaney Thomas, and Arkansas Democrat Gazette Restaurant Writer Eric Harrison.
Festival proceeds will support STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) programming and education through the community’s Spring River Innovation Hub.