As the Greek Food Festival entered its 38th year at the Hellenic Community Centre on Vancouver’s West Side, its organizers aimed to make it appealing to everybody. There was a karaoke competition last Friday night for the younger set, and the elders were happy to get them out. Lizette Pappas, one of the festival’s many volunteers, minced no words on this topic during the weekend’s hustle in the bakery: “The young people have got to pick up the ball and start running with it,” she said while putting some food aside to drop off to a local family in need later that day. “Otherwise, we won’t survive.”
In addition to an endless supply of lamb and chicken roasted on the outdoor barbecues, which no doubt lured some of the 10,000 people through the centre’s doors during the three days, there was also traditional Greek dancing put on by six different groups, a cooking demonstration and two separate tributes to the Andrews Sisters.
One of the new ideas organizers had for this year was a loukoumades-eating competition Saturday afternoon. Loukoumades are fried balls of dough that are dipped in honey and are basically a Greek doughnut, not unlike or any less addictive than the ubiquitous mini-doughnut found in concession stands across this nation.
Seated at the long table on the main stage for the competition were five chatty teenaged boys who ran over from their duties at the gyros cooking tent to fill out the spots and competitive eater John “Step Daddy J” Jugovic who had heard about the competition through an event listings website for such things.
Jugovic was stationed dead centre of the table and it was clear he was no amateur. His curly hair was pulled back into a ponytail, his place at the table was accompanied by a 7-Eleven Big Gulp cup full of water, and he ate standing up rather than sitting like the rest. Jugovic scarfed down 40 loukoumades in seven minutes and 30 seconds and graciously took the win at an easy pace rather than borrowing a page out of a Seinfeld script and thoroughly beating his younger competition Kramer kids’ karate class style.
“This is the first time I ate loukoumades and they’re very crunchy,” said Jugovic after the win while two of his five children/supporters celebrated by running around on the stage. “I like meatballs, and I like dumplings because they’re both soft and they go down quick. Crunchy foods are a little bit harder, they’re a bit more of a challenge.”
Jugovic is a familiar face on the local competitive speed-eating circuit, notably having placed first in August’s Dumpling Derby in Chinatown, and second in July’s meatball eating competition as part of Khatsahlano Music + Art Festival. His dream is to one day make it to the big league competitions in the states, especially Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York City.
For now, however, he’ll be eating pizza, pulled pork, pie and burgers, and maybe even loukoumades again.
“My mother is Ukrainian and when I was a kid she always made sure that I hate everything on my plate,” said Jugovic who started competitive eating three years ago. “I love food. And it feels good to win.”
Whether you’re a competitive eater, or just love to eat in general, food is essential to Greek culture, said Effie Kerasiotis, president of the Hellenic Community of Vancouver.
“You go to a Greek house, and they’ll fill the table up. Every time we’re entertaining, it’s around the dinner table,” she said.
The seed of the festival, which is the second-largest for the community behind the Gold Plate Dinner, was sewn by Greek immigrants who had moved to the area in big numbers from 1954 to 1960. Â
There is never an admission fee for the festival; instead it relies on selling full meals throughout the day and evening along with dessert and authentic Greek coffee. While food is definitely a draw, it is much more than that for the Greek community.
“I think if you’re not Greek, you’re coming for the food,” said Kerasiotis. “If you are Greek, you might be coming to support the community and to see some friends.”
@rebeccablissett
