Taste of Joliet, city’s biggest summer fest, starts Friday

Taste of Joliet starts Friday, and vendors were setting up Thursday for the biggest summer festival in the city.

For Octavio Del Rio, owner of Backyard BBQ in Joliet, it’s his first appearance at Taste of Joliet and a benchmark moment for him.

“I’m from Joliet, and I’ve been coming to Taste of Joliet since I was a kid,” Del Rio said.

Del Rio promises Taste-goers “the best brisket sandwich that they’ve ever had.”

Torrence Ly with Lee Concessions believes he’s been at every Taste of Joliet since the start.

“I’ve been doing concessions for 30 years,” said Ly, who also runs a Vietnamese restaurant in Chicago that features dishes like raw beef that can’t be served in an outdoor concession setting.

His Lee Concessions business will be in three places this weekend. The best seller at his stand, which offers a wide selection, is a grilled chicken dish that comes with rice.

One change at Taste of Joliet over the years, Ly said, is “more vendors,” which is good for Taste-goers but cuts into vendor revenue.

Taste of Joliet will have more than 20 food vendors, including local longtime favorites like Cemeno’s pizza, new arrivals in town like Crave Cookies, ethnic foods like pierogi from The Dumpling House, and Taste traditions like corn on the cob made by Joliet firefighters.

The event opens at 3 p.m. Friday at Memorial Stadium, 3000 W. Jefferson St. in Joliet. It continues Saturday and Sunday opening at noon both days. The event runs until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and until 9 p.m. on Sunday.

General admission tickets cost $25 the day of the event. Seniors 62 and over cost $10. Children 11 and under accompanied by an adult get in free.

The event includes a carnival and other attractions for family entertainment.

There will be about as many music acts as there will be food vendors at Taste.

Six bands play Friday when Taste features rock music headlined by Billy Corgan and the Machines of God, which takes the stage at 9:15 p.m.

Another five performers take the stage on country music Saturday, which is headlined by Brett Eldredge, who performs at 9:30 p.m.

Five Latino music performers will be at Taste on Friday, which features Los Rieleros Del Norte as the main act.

The full lineup of performers and other details about Taste can be found on the Joliet Park District website at tasteofjoliet.com.

For all the planning that goes into Taste, the biggest factor of the success of the event can be the weather.

“It looks like the weather is going to be good,” said Brad Staab, executive director of the Joliet Park District, which holds the event.

The forecast is for hot temperatures in the 90s on Saturday and Sunday but no rain, according to the National Weather Service. Showers are possible on Friday but only until about 4 p.m. at the latest, and Taste starts at 3 p.m.

“That’s the one variable we can’t control,” Staab said. “It looks like we’re in for a good weekend.”