Spiedie Fest Wraps Up Another Successful Run

8/5/2012 (Updated 8/6/2012 1:53:13 PM)

BINGHAMTON -- The music of country band Lone Star was on the menu for the last day of Spiedie Fest.

"I'm a country fan," said Matt Carden, who came from Endwell.  "I've always listened to country.  I really like the old time stuff."

"They interact with the crowd a lot, so I think that's really cool," said festival goer Tori Cary.

There was also the annual cookoff.  Our own Fox 40 Suzanne Goldklang competed against other local celebrities to see who had the best spiedie recipe.

"It was a beef spiedie with lime, cilantro, scallions and garlic, and a little bit of butter with some lime, zest, and garlic to finish it off," said Suzanne Goldklang.  "And it was nice and tasty and juicy, and we got third place."

Officials say that overall, the festival was a huge success, and that the Spiedie Fest brings in about six million dollars to Binghamton's economy.

"We really are getting out there now," said Event Coordinator David Pessagno.  "It's one of the top hot air balloon rallies in the country.  And a great festival for entertainment.  So we're drawing in the top balloonists, we're drawing in the top vendors here.  Great entertainment has really driven the traffic this weekend.  And we're looking possibly at a record weekend."

Over the course of the past 3 days, festival goers had the opportunity to enjoy some good food, including Binghamton's traditional spiedie sandwich, listen to some great music, and also participate in plenty of activities for the whole family.

The festival ended early at 4 pm due to the possibility of severe weather.  The planning for next year's festival begins next week.

In Otsiningo Park, Samantha Mcdonald, Fox 40 news.

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