Diverse and healthy eats served up for festival season

The arrival of spring and summer in North America and Europe heralds the beginning of fair and festival season. Millions head outdoors to enjoy midways, music, street performers and more. Traditionally the fare available at these sorts of events has been what my friends and I refer to as "brown food". Sound gross? It certainly can be! While all things deep-fried, hot dogs and hamburgers usually taste good, they don't have much nutritional vale and tend to make you feel heavy and tired in the hours after consumption.

In the last few years however, many of these events have begun hosting a range of food vendors that offer local cultural favorites. Dishes rish in spices and flavor from countries across the globe can be found at many events such as the New Orleans Jazz Festival, where revelers will find vegetarian options alongside sushi and traditional Creole cuisine. In fact, one Toronto Coucilor is going so far as to orgainze an entire event for that city which will promote delicacies from local communities.

Fans of a tasty fry-up have nothing to fear as festivals continue to offer all the usual favorites. But for those looking for something with a different flavor or some additional nutritional value, it's great to know that there are options. Besides, there's nothing wrong with following up a tasty curry with some french fries!