The Kaustinen Folk Music Festival feeds an incredible number of people in the restaurants and cafes built for the event. Just in the festival restaurant, 1,800 breakfasts and 7,500 lunches are eaten, if the number of people arriving during the week is the same as last year, which is approximately 54,000.
Festival Operations Manager Valtteri Valo is satisfied with how well the food service has worked in recent years.
– What’s the matter here when we have some of the best customers around? Everyone is cheerful and eats a lot. The players are always excited about going to the next gigs, Valtteri Valo smiles.
The new salad bar complements the diverse offerings of the festival's restaurants and food court.
– The audience has been asking for salad bowls for sale, but in addition to that, it was decided to establish our own salad bar. There, the staff will build the desired composition using fresh ingredients.
Of course, the performers eating at the salad bar also have their own specialities. Mäsä-Duon Kyösti Järvelä & Lauri Kotamäki On Thursday they tested tuna salad and Greek salad. The duo turned out to be true experts in combining food culture and folk music, as they have been at food fairs and even abroad with chefs at various events.
A salad bar is available from the food court, At this restaurant, where Asian food is also available until late at night, you can enjoy oven potatoes, fish dishes, pork kebabs, squid kebabs, and a variety of grilled dishes and vegetarian dishes. For sweet moments, there is ice cream, sweets, and even waffles.
Restaurant manager of the festival Kai Kangasmetsä says he had pre-ordered a huge amount of goodies from the local Pesola bakery and 5,000 bottles of beer, and that probably won’t be enough for anything. – Last year too, more of them were ordered after the closing times.
PHOTO: The musicians of Mäsä-Duo Kyösti Järvelä (left) and Lauri Kotamäki tested a light salad lunch at the festival food court. Photographer: Usva Torkki