The seafood festival is coming to Key West. Here are 6 things to know before you go
On the hunt for grilled spiny lobster, stone crab claws, Key West pink shrimp or conch chowder?
All of that and more is available at this weekend’s 15th annual Seafood Festival in Key West, sponsored by the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen’s Association.
The festival is at Bayview Park from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. and in addition to food and drink, the event will feature shopping, live music and activities for children.
At the top of each hour, a chef and a fisherman will demonstrate their crafts. Culinary experts from your favorite Keys restaurants will prepare recipes from the fresh catch.
Here are six things to consider before you head on over
1. Parking will be awful
Bayview Park is on the edge of downtown off the 1300 block of Truman Avenue and Jose Marti Drive, where parking isn’t plentiful to start with.
So plan to bike, walk, carpool, ride-share or take a bus to the event. Thinking of parking at the nearby Horace O’Bryant School? That will cost you a donation of at least five bucks, organizers said.
2. It costs $5 to enter
Bring cash and be ready to pay an entry fee. Locals love to complain that the event started charging admission a few years ago.
But organizers point out that the event is a fundraiser that supports “sustainable fisheries management programs on both state and federal levels,” and also college scholarships for students from Key West to Key Largo. Kids under 12 get in for free.
Also, the $5 entry fee gets you a chance to win a seafood basket valued at $250 shipped right to your home.
3. Kids are welcome
The seafood festival will have hands-on marine life-based activities by the NOAA Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Sea Camp and Reef Relief. Also, the bounce houses will be free to enter.
And if your kids are not fans of conch salad, fried clams or any seafood, vendors will have hot dogs and hamburgers.
4. Bring your appetite
The array of food vendors in one Key West spot is a little astonishing. Start with the lobster, fried fish plates with black beans and rice, and stone crab ... and then consider the conch fritters, conch ceviche, conch chowder, Key West pink shrimp with fries, smoked fish dip, creamy lobster bisque.
For festival newcomers, we recommend the sampler platter.
Drinks include soda, beer, wine and several rum-based drinks, such as the “Rumarita.” And dessert time means Key lime pie, flan and other local treats.
5. Expect lots of live music
Your $5 at the gate includes a bevy of bands from a host of genres. It’s not just Tom Petty covers that waft around Duval Street constantly.
The line-up includes the Shanty Hounds’ original and favorite trop rock songs, the swing and New Orleans-style brass outfit Coconut Victrola, multi-instrumentalist Myles Mancuso and his band’s originals that blend roots county and rhythm and blues, and Erasmith, an Aerosmith tribute band that even looks like Steven Tyler and pals. That’s just Saturday’s program.
On Sunday, you’ll hear from The 3 Amigos, the Happy Dog and Fairweather Friends.
6. Oh, and consider your luck
As you’re forking over the cash, remember you are standing in the Florida Keys, home to some of the most diverse and active fisheries in the world.
Commercial fishing generates some $900 million a year for the Keys’ economy and is the second largest economic engine next only to tourism, according to the Florida Keys Commercial Fishing Association. The commercial fleet supports more than 1,600 families, close to 5% of the county’s population.
And 80% of the spiny lobster harvested in Florida comes from Monroe County and that lobster is the state’s most valuable fishery.
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