The weather didn’t cool off enough for Taste of Morgan Hill
visitors to start dancing to the live music until Shane Dwight
performed on the festival’s south stage Sunday evening.
The weather didn’t cool off enough for Taste of Morgan Hill visitors to start dancing to the live music until Shane Dwight performed on the festival’s south stage Sunday evening.
Vendors and downtown businesses reported mixed sales over the sweltering weekend during the 20th annual art and food festival, but visitors seemed pleased overall with the variety of food, merchandise and company offered at the event.
“I think the people who came really enjoyed it,” said Chris Giusiana, President and CEO of the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce, the nonprofit group that organized the event. “The car show was great, and the quilt show was wonderful.”
Overall attendance at the festival was about 35,000, Giusiana estimated, and the event featured more vendor booths than previous years.
Because Sunday was slightly cooler than the 100 degree-plus temperatures Saturday, more people attended that day, Giusiana said. Still, it seemed visitors didn’t stay as long as they would have in cooler weather.
And the heat might have affected attendees’ shopping habits. Mary Hellman, owner of Feeling Gifted, a Morgan Hill jewelry and gift shop that had a booth at the Taste of Morgan Hill, said she didn’t see a lot of people who wanted to linger in a tent and browse for merchandise in the hot weather.
“It’s not really a shopping event. People come to hear the bands, eat, drink and see people,” Hellman said.
She described her sales over the weekend as “steady” and about the same as they were at her booth at last year’s festival, but still lower than she expected.
Carla Fairey, co-owner of Elkhorn Trading Company, another jewelry vendor from Moss Landing, said she was “pleasantly surprised” with sales at her Taste of Morgan Hill tent. She said her numbers were about the same as the 2008 festival, and she added, she plans to return next year.
Most of the 150-plus vendors said they planned to return next year, Giusiana said.
In addition to the vendors, the event also featured a Classic and Custom Car Show, live bands on two stages, beer and wine tents, and a quilt show in the Community and Cultural Center.
Permanent downtown businesses stayed open to serve the crowds during the Taste of Morgan Hill. They too reported mixed results, with air-conditioned bars and restaurants serving full menus benefiting the most from the large crowds.
Sales at Ricatoni’s Delicatessen doubled over the weekend, according to owner Rick Moreno. His restaurant is normally closed Sunday, but he opened to a constant stream of diners during the lunch hours.
The M & H Tavern saw about a “fourfold” increase in sales during the day both Saturday and Sunday, according to manager Deeanna Haygood.
Across the street, Legends Bar & Grill served more customers than usual, but the combination of heat and alcohol consumption ended in some late-night misdeeds. Some patrons there destroyed the bar’s bathrooms and vandalized some of the decorations on the wall, according to owner Shawna St. Cloud.
But business at Hot Java Coffee Shop, at the corner of Monterey and Second Streets, was “terrible,” employee Mary Connolly said. The shop was open during festival hours, and had a booth outside its front door, but Connolly said Sunday’s sales were about $500 lower than the same day at last year’s event.
“I think the heat really got to people,” Connolly said.
Visitors were nonetheless impressed with the wide variety of merchandise for sale, including works of art, pre-packaged specialty foods, trendy clothing, and raffles for vacation getaways and a custom pickup.
Hector Esparza, 57, of Salinas, visited with his wife and a couple of friends Saturday.
“I like these community events, with all the local vendors,” said Esparza, attending his first Taste of Morgan Hill, which closed downtown streets just for vendors and pedestrians. “The sidewalk atmosphere is nice, and it gives the smaller (retail store) owners a chance.”
Natalie Bobuk, 24, and Becky Glasgow, 23, moved to San Jose recently and attended their first Taste of Morgan Hill Saturday. Bobuk is a teacher at Sobrato High School, and the friends decided to attend the art and food festival after hearing all the hype from students at Friday night’s El Toro Bowl football game.
They both said the event was bigger and more diverse than they expected.
“I shouldn’t have brought my wallet,” said Glasgow, commenting on the tempting wares for sale by scores of different vendors lined up on both sides of Monterey Road.
They were particularly impressed with the selections offered by more a dozen different jewelry vendors. “There’s too much jewelry – it’s dangerous,” joked Bobuk.
If there was merchandise, there was also food at the Taste of Morgan Hill. Competing barbecue vendors Trail Dust and Mansmith’s served up smoked tri-tip sandwiches. Shrimp scampi, grilled turkey legs, chicken skewers, and carne asada sent puffs of smoke and sizzling sounds through the air. The scent of fried calamari, zucchini, and garlic French fries was pungent.
Also featured at the Taste of Morgan Hill was the Classic and Custom Car Show, which has also run 20 years concurrently with the art and food festival. This year’s car show featured 168 spotlessly polished cars, including a 1916 Maxwell, a couple of 1973 Panteras, and a variety of Chevrolet Impalas, Camaros and Corvettes, and several Ford Mustangs.
Showing his 1966 Pontiac Tempest that he rebuilt after it sat in a field with the convertible top down for 12 years was Tim Kelso of Morgan Hill. “I finished polishing it last night,” said Kelso, who is also a sponsor of the car show.
Lou Mirviss, co-chair of the car show committee, said in the 20 years she has helped organize the car show, it has grown into the “fourth best” family car show in California, as voted on by enrollees at car shows statewide. The show’s sponsors picked their top 10 or 12 “best of show” participants Saturday afternoon. Sunday’s judges included local public officials and dignitaries, Mirviss said.
The Taste of Morgan Hill raises money for the Chamber of Commerce, allowing them to conduct other community events and provide assistance to Morgan Hill businesses throughout the year. Giusiana did not yet have an estimate of revenues Monday morning.
Morgan Hill Police did not report any significant criminal or medical incidents related to the festival.
