A taste journey around the world

GEELONG’s ethnic community groups are looking forward to showcasing their cuisines in Pako Festa’s new format.

The February 27 event will showcase the cuisine of 19 of Geelong’s ethnic communities across 13 locations.

Traditional street vendors in Pakington Street will be replaced with a broader offering of dine-in and takeaway food across a number of different locations.

Locations will feature cultural displays and a program of entertainment.

Proceeds raised from all online food purchases will be donated back to the ethnic communities, helping to ensure the ongoing sustainability of these communities.

After 38 years, Pako Festa has been forced to make the change due to the continuing impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

Eventgoers are now invited to place takeaway or dine-in orders online, where they can browse the locations and menu items on offer from each of the 19 participating ethnic community groups.

“We hear time and time again how much people enjoy the multicultural food at Pako Festa each year, so we are delighted that we can continue to offer this for people to enjoy in 2021 in a COVIDSafe way,” Pako Festa event director Luisa LaFornara said

“We need people to pre-book online for a few reasons – it allows us to stagger the arrival times and control numbers, facilitate contact tracing if required and to send out COVIDSafe information to patrons prior to the event as required by the government.”

Timeslots are available for February 27 from 10.30am-4pm. With numbers limited in each timeslot at each location, eventgoers are urged to book early at bookings.pakofesta.com.au to avoid disappointment.

For COVIDSafe reasons, eventgoers can only dine in at one location, but can book takeaway orders at as many different locations as they like.

The full list of locations and cuisines
Diversitat Hub
25-41 Arunga Ave, Norlane
Cuisines: Dutch, Filipino, Japanese
Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-Op
62 Morgan St, North Geelong
Cuisines: Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-Op
West Town Hall
153 Pakington Street Geelong West
Cuisines: Bangladeshi
Ukrainian Club
57 Pakington Street Geelong West
Cuisines: French, Ukrainian
Macedonian Club
465 Ballarat Rd, Batesford
Cuisines: Macedonian
Polish Club
46-48 Fellmongers Rd, Breakwater
Cuisines: Polish
Cloverdale Community Centre
167-169 Purnell Road, Corio
Cuisines: Thai
Serbian Club
240 Plantation Rd, Corio
Cuisines: Serbian
Croatian Club
172/182 Cox Rd, Corio
Cuisines: Croatian
Greek Club
1/3 Taliska Ave, Hamlyn Heights
Cuisines: Greek
West Park
207 Pakington Street Geelong West
Cuisines: Bosnian, Iranian
Pettit Park
7-13 Beauford Ave, Bell Post Hill
Cuisines: Fijian, Indonesian, Pakistani
Centenary Hall
1-9 Cox Rd, Norlane
Cuisines: Nepalese