CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The shops and eateries of Charleston’s South Hills section were showcased Tuesday night with the annual BridgeFest event.
Admission was free but $1 bought a food ticket to sample some of the food of the area with a Taste of Bridge Road. Husson’s, Yarid’s, Sarah’s Bakery, South Hills Market & Café, Wheelhouse and Lola’s participated.
Lesley McCallister, the event coordinator, said the event has become very popular and has great participation.
“This is a great family friendly event that we put on every year to benefit the community,” McCallister said. “It’s the shops’ way of saying thank you for supporting us year round. It’s a great summer event we look forward to every year.”
Sarah’s Bakery hosted a pie eating contest as part of the event. There was also activities for younger children including crafts, face painting and balloon animals. The event used to be a part of Charleston’s FestivALL but branched out on its own recently.
“The community loves it. They’ve asked us to do it more than once a year,” said Rick Rubin, one of the coordinators. “It’s a fundraiser for the beautification of our South Hills shops area. Everybody loves it and it’s become a community event.”
The area has recently added sidewalks, new lighting, more parking and landscaping. McCallister said BridgeFest brings exposure to an area of the city that is somewhat of a well-kept secret.
“Anytime you can get folks to come up who may not have ever been up here is a good thing. We hope for people to come from all over the (Kanawha) Valley.”