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Kentucky’s Foodie Festivals

Chicken Heritage

You may never have heard of London, the small town in south-central Kentucky, but you have almost certainly heard of one of the area’s most famous figures: Col. Harlan Sanders, founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken. Sanders established his first fried-chicken restaurant there in the 1940s, and his nephew who worked with him went on to found Lee’s Famous Recipe Chicken. Today, London’s annual World Chicken Festival is a tribute to the area’s culinary heritage.

The celebration takes place each year during the last full weekend in September (September 21-24 this year) and has been recognized as one of the top events in the state by the Kentucky Tourism Council and the Southeast Tourism Society. The highlight of the festival is, of course, fried chicken, which is prepared in the world’s largest skillet. At more than 10 feet in diameter, it can cook up to 600 quarter-chickens at once.

Festival attendees will also enjoy music and entertainment, a parade, and tours of the Colonel Sanders Museum.

www.chickenfestival.com

Newport’s Menu

Situated just across the Ohio River from downtown Cincinnati, Newport is one of northern Kentucky’s premier destinations for cuisine and entertainment. The city highlights its cultural heritage and culinary scene throughout the warm-weather months with a variety of events, any of which would be exciting for groups.

Festival season starts June 4 with A Taste of Newport. During this one-day street festival, local restaurants and other businesses offer samples of their most popular items at low prices, allowing visitors to taste the best of the city. A few days later, Newport Italianfest, June 8-11, highlights authentic Italian food and features Italian music performed by artists from around the country.

On July 14-16, the city hosts the Bacon, Bourbon and Brew Festival, which celebrates the area’s histories and connections to the brewing and pork industries, as well as Kentucky’s bourbon heritage. The Great Inland Seafood Festival takes place August 10-13, and the season wraps up with the Newport Oktoberfest, which runs September 22-24.

www.newportky.gov

Apples in the Mountains

Though it doesn’t get the kind of publicity that other apple-producing regions of the country do, eastern Kentucky has a variety of orchards and farms that grow apples, and the Kentucky Apple Festival in Paintsville showcases the area’s bounty with a variety of foods, entertainment and other activities.

Taking place October 6-7, this year’s festival will be the 55th installment of the celebration, which was started by a local orchard owner as a way to market his apples. A variety of apple food products make this a tasty event: Visitors will find traditional apple pies, candied apples and old-fashioned apple butter cooked in a cast-iron kettle. Other favorites include seasonal goodies like candied corn and barbecued chicken.

In addition to the food, visiting groups can expect to enjoy many of the traditional hallmarks of agricultural festivals in small-town America. Highlights include folk dancing, a car show, a parade and a variety of musical performances by locals from around the region.

www.kyapplefest.org

Brian Jewell

Brian Jewell is the executive editor of The Group Travel Leader. In more than a decade of travel journalism he has visited 48 states and 25 foreign countries.