Bacon fest, bacon camp — it’s a bacon extravaganza
It’s the B in your BLT. The streaky rashers of brunch. The raison d’être of breakfast. Now bacon has moved beyond the morning realm and sandwich world to take over entire arenas. That’s not hyperbole. Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium hosted a Bacon and Beer Classic earlier this year, with bacon-centric food booths, 40 breweries and activities, including a Hormel bacon-eating contest. There were pork belly nachos from Loma Brewing; draft-beer marshmallows topped with chocolate, bacon, pretzels and potato chips from 240 Sweet; and “Elvis the Fat Years” ice cream from the folks at San Francisco’s Humphry Slocombe. Banana ice cream with bacon-peanut brittle. You even had to ask?
Sacramento’s February Baconfest, held at venues across town and named one of the world’s best food festivals by CNN Travel, includes everything from bacon milkshakes and bacon doughnuts to a ramen party (with bacon, of course) and a best-chef bacon competition. Also: Death Muffins, a breakfast sandwich creation at Samuel Horne’s Tavern in Folsom that fills an English muffin with an over-easy egg, cheddar cheese, grape jelly and a bacon-stuffed pork sausage patty wrapped in bacon. And also: A Kevin Bacon Soundtrack Tribute Show, featuring music from the actor’s films, including “Baconloose.” Er, “Footloose.”
That’s just the tip of the porky iceberg. The last year has brought bacon festivals to Oakland, Long Beach, San Diego and Lathrop, where the two days of festivities had Food Network stars presiding over “Bacon Alley” stages, a bacon bar, food booths and pig races. (Although the thought of nibbling bacon within the little oinkers’ view ... Let’s just say, we wouldn’t want to be the entertainment at a cannibal cook-out.)
Don’t let those feelings of FOMO-OPD — fear of missing out on porky deliciousness — overcome you. You can still live high on the hog this summer and fall. The town of Kelseyville, near Clear Lake, is hosting its second annual Beer, Wine & Swine Bacon Fest (www.beerwineswine.com) from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 17, complete with chef competitions, people’s choice awards, live music and local wine and beer.
You can go hog wild at the Monterey Bacon Fest — 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Aug. 11-12 at the county fairgrounds (https://www.facebook. com/Monterey Bacon Fest/). Or head for Bakersfield’s philanthropic Bacon and Craft Beer Fest (baconandcraftbeerfest.com), 1-5 p.m. Nov. 10. Oorganizers say ticket-holders will have access to 25 bacon-centric food booths serving up unlimited samples of bacon-inspired dishes, as well as unlimited samples from scores of breweries and — so sorry, we can’t focus when the words “unlimited” and “bacon” are in the same sentence.
And if that’s not enough bacon for you, there’s a five-day Bacon Camp in Ann Arbor, Michigan. One can only dream.