The brand new, first-ever ShrimpFest shot out of the gate and immediately established itself as a smashing success. The youngest member of what is now a triumvirate of wildly popular food festivals that call North County home – first frogs, then clams and now shrimp – brought a happy, hungry crowd to Fellsmere’s historic old school grounds last weekend.
“Epcot had less people than this!” laughed one attendee.
The weather was Chamber of Commerce perfection. Dozens of tents housed vendors, nonprofits, churches, businesses and service clubs, all offering info, freebees and all sorts of alluring items for sale. Home Depot had a special area just for kids and Keep Indian River Beautiful provided recycling containers. From the big stage over in the ballfield early Saturday afternoon, hundreds stood toe-tapping, and in some cases dancing, to the kick-butt country sounds of the Cheyenne Band. Other popular groups kept the music rolling all weekend.
Of course, the stars of the weekend were the shrimp, all of which were born and raised at Florida Organic Aquaculture. ShrimpFest committee member Sandy Gehrke explained that Pat Rivizzio, a behind-the-scenes kind of guy, had not only designed the user-friendly event layout, but had also come up with the brilliant idea of how best to showcase the sought-after crustaceans.
Six top area restaurants participated in a competition to see which shrimp dish was tops with the crowd. Samples were $1 each, and festival-goers received a ticket to vote for their favorite. The lines were long all day, but no one was complaining.
All six restaurants brought their “A” game: Osceola Bistro, Shrimp and Grits; Marsh Landing, Shrimp Creole; Old Fish House, Fried Shrimp Cocktail; the Tiki Bar and Grill, Garlic Shrimp; Capt. Hiram’s, Shrimp and Grit Arepas and Shrimp Cakes; and Squid Lips, Fried Shrimp with Seasoned Batter. To wash it all down in style, there was plenty of craft beer and wine.
The two-day celebration of America’s most beloved seafood, which will now be an annual event, was organized through a partnership between the Rotary Club of Sebastian, the Exchange Club of Fellsmere and Florida Organic Aquaculture’s Florida Aquaculture Foundation. How it all came about was purely serendipitous.
ShrimpFest committee member Sandy Gehrke explained that the Sebastian Rotary Club and the Fellsmere Exchange Club had coincidentally scheduled visits to the Florida Organic Aquaculture facility on the same day. During the tour, both groups simultaneously had an “aha!” moment; “Hey, we should do a Shrimp Festival!” The community-spirited FOA chief, Cliff Morris, immediately got on board and – faster than you can say “pass the cocktail sauce” – the project was off and running.
The comment most frequently voiced by the delighted event organizers was: “This is beyond our wildest expectations!”
Proceeds from ShrimpFest will support North County youth sports organizations. This year’s recipients are: Boys and Girls Clubs of Sebastian and Fellsmere; Sebastian Soccer League; Sebastian River Crew; Treasure Coast Pirates Rugby Club; Sebastian Sharks Youth Football and Cheerleading Association; and boys and girls lacrosse.
