Stopped by the booths for Bite of Bellingham (how could I avoid them?). They had closed several blocks in town for this event.
Opinion? Too many vendors considered it a chance to sell stuff on the street, as opposed to the stated mission of exposing local cuisine to the public. Not all, but too many. It was sort of like the Farmer’s Market extended through town, even though the farmer’s market was going on at the same time.
Tickets were $1 each, sold through a central booth (so someone has a full accounting of the day’s profits). Vendors set their prices in tickets. A coffee was 1 ticket (one dollar) BUT it was a mini-cup.. probably 4 oz. That’s not a special opportunity to try their coffee. In fact, the store is right there on Railroad (one block away) and a 16oz coffee would have been under $2 freshly made.
Also Nimbus should be told that not-thin-enough sliced prosciutto, out on a warm summer day, does not make for a good impression. Other notables were shaved ice for $3 (with non-local blue/yellow/red food dyes, naturally), 1/3 pizza slizes from Cicitti’s for $1, Boundary Bay did not have any homemade root beer despite it being in the brochure. Most things were mini, and $3 to $5 was common. A really small desert from Mt. Bakery, for example, for $3.
I’m sure there are plenty of reports of what was good, so read other reports not just mine. Next year I’ll probably pass on the chance to participate, unless it changes to be more of a chef’s presentation (which is what it sounded like to me in the brochure) and less of a street vendor opportunity.