Una Boyle
Executive Director
Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau
800.451.2542
una@funbeach.com
LONG BEACH PENINSULA, Wash. – September 14, 2009 – ‘Red-gold’ cranberries, angel wings, boletes, shaggy manes, chanterelles, Willapa Bay oysters, Columbia River sturgeon, salmon, razor clams, and other locally harvested foods will be the centerpiece of several events happening on the Long Beach Peninsula, beginning September 5, 2009.
Showcasing the talent of the culinary community and the region’s fresh-sourced abundance, the events include the annual Wild Mushroom Celebration and the Cranberrian Fair, as well as two new exhibits, both at Ilwaco’s Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum – Peninsula Eats! Dine at the Source and the Smithsonian Institution’s traveling exhibit, Key Ingredients: America by Food. Details are as follows:
Key Ingredients: America by Food – Now through Feb. 15, 2010 – An interactive, thought-provoking exhibit which explores the wealth of history and culture that shapes America’s dining habits and taste preferences, from a rich, immigrant experience to history and innovation in food preparation technology and the ever-changing availability of key ingredients. The exhibit investigates how culture, ethnicity, landscape and tradition influence foods and flavors enjoyed across the nation. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for youth, and free for children age 12 and under.
Peninsula Eats! Dine at the Source – Now through Oct. 25 – Complementing Key Ingredients, the Museum’s Peninsula Eats! exhibit explores the traditions of food on the Long Beach Peninsula, where the saying "when the tide is out, the table is set" aptly applies. Included will be local artifacts related to home cooking and food production, as well as a tribute to The Ark Restaurant, the cornerstone of ‘Northwest Cuisine.’ The exhibit illustrates why people continue to seek out the Long Beach Peninsula – known for its fresh oysters, salmon, cranberries and the popular razor clam – to partake of the local bounty.
Wild Mushroom Celebration – Oct. 9-Nov. 15 – Timed with the peak harvest of autumn’s natural bounty, this unique event touts the talents of the Peninsula’s famed culinary community and the wealth of the area’s fresh local ingredients – namely, 20 varieties of edible wild mushrooms – during such gatherings as tastings, discussions and winemaker dinners at participating restaurants, inns and bed and breakfast establishments. For details, please go to www.funbeach.com/mushroom.
88th Annual Cranberrian Fair – Oct. 10-11, a traditional fall harvest celebration of the Long Beach Peninsula’s well-established and family-owned cranberry bogs. Watch growers flood the fields, gently beat the berries from the vines and gather the floating berries for local and national distribution. Sample cranberry and other local food products at the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum, where there will be artisan pottery, fine art, baskets, beadwork and more available for purchase. Visit the Cranberry Museum and Self-Guided Farm Tour where the history of cranberry farming can be explored while sipping cranberry juice and listening to live entertainment. Buttons for admission to the event and cranberry trolley are $5. Learn more at www.funbeach.com/events/cranberrian.
Located on the southwestern-most coast of Washington State, the Long Beach Peninsula provides a mouthwatering mélange of restaurants, which share a devotion to the region’s untold natural ingredients. Acres upon acres of cranberry bogs and twenty varieties of edible mushrooms thrive under its ideal coastal conditions of moist sea air, fertile sandy soil and protective evergreens. Surrounded on three sides by ocean, river and bay, the Peninsula has an abundance of fresh-caught fish and seafood readily available, giving diners an unmatched opportunity to dine at the source.
For destination information, please contact the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau at 800-451-2542 or access the Peninsula’s web site at www.funbeach.com
