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Get your spoons ready — Soupfest is this weekend

Deconstructed cabbage roll soup or chicken pot pie soup, anyone? They are a couple of the soups made by the chef at Don Cherry’s Sports Grill for Soupfest
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Chef Mu, left, and Eric Fex of Don Cherry’s Sports Grill show off trophies from previous Soupfest competitions. They are hoping for a three-peat this year. Miriam King/BradfordToday

A crisp autumn day, a nip in the air, and a bowl of homemade soup – that’s the simple recipe that has made the Holland Marsh Soupfest a success for the past decade.

Using fresh, local ingredients – including vegetables from the Holland Marsh and meat from local suppliers such as Bradford West Gwillimbury’s Dingo Farms – restaurant chefs, home cooks, culinary schools and local farms prepare traditional and original recipes, and serve up samples to more than 1,000 visitors.

One local entry is Don Cherry’s Sports Grill, at 100 Dissette St. in Bradford West Gwillimbury. The restaurant has entered soups for the past several years, winning Best Restaurant/Caterer in 2016, and, last year, People’s Choice for their cream of turkey and jambalaya soups.

But this year, Don Cherry’s Chef Mu has decided to “switch things up,” said owner Eric Fex. “We are doing a deconstructed cabbage roll soup. Our other soup is chicken pot pie. We’re looking forward to it. We hope everyone enjoys it.”

Soupfest takes place in Ansnorveldt Park on Dufferin Street on the King Township side of the Holland Marsh, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 29.

Soups are set up within the big tent. Outside, vendors and a farmers’ market provide additional displays and activities.

Admission and sampling require a ticket. Purchase online at soupfest.ca before noon on Sept. 28, and the cost is: $12 for adults for seven samples; $7 for seniors (ages 60 and up) or students (with ID) for seven samples; $5 for five samples for children and youth; and $30 for a family of four (two adults, two children) for 24 samples.

At the gate on the day of Soupfest, prices go up to $15 adults, $10 for seniors and students, $5 children/youth, and $35 for families.

Parking is along Dufferin Street, where staff will direct traffic. Dogs on leashes are welcome at Ansnorveldt Park, but not in the soup tent.

Just a warning: Soupfest is so popular there can be long lineups for some of the soups, and although the event takes place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., many soup makers run out early.


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Miriam King

About the Author: Miriam King

Miriam King is a journalist and photographer with Bradford Today, covering news and events in Bradford West Gwillimbury and Innisfil.
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