Welcome to the Taste of Canton!

Saturday, September 30, 2017 12:00pm – 5:00pm Big Creek Park

Welcome to the Taste of Canton! The Taste of Canton looks to fill a need for a larger scale local food & music festival for the Canton area. Taste will offer the best kind of advertising for your food establishment, which is bringing your delicious fare directly to the people, in the middle of a fun, relaxed event expected to draw a large crowd now in its third year.

The Taste will be held at Big Creek Park, with decorated food vendor booths, an entertainment stage with local musicians, and a dining/socializing seating area, all located in the north end of Big Creek Park near the tennis courts. Approved vendors will offer beer/wine beverages for the over-21 crowd in a designated alcohol area. For the kiddies, children’s activities will be located at the main picnic pavilion. A trolley will provide a transportation loop from the main Taste area to the Children’s area to parking areas in the park and overflow parking at Canton High School, if necessary.

Cost: The entry fee for Canton Area Chamber of Commerce members is $25, and for non-Chamber members is $50. All food sales will be done using Taste Coins, purchased that day from the Taste Coin Booths. Food samples must be sold for $1, $2, or $3. At the end of the evening, each vendor will be issued a redemption check from the Chamber of Commerce for all Taste Coins collected in their booth after a 20% commission fee is subtracted. Participants selling food for cash will be closed down and have $100 deducted from their redemption check. A $50 clean up fee will also be deducted if a booth space is left with trash and debris.

Booth Info: Vendors will have a space of 16’ wide by 12’deep. You are allowed up to four 8’ tables per booth space, 2 of which will be set up across the front for serving from. Participants are encouraged to decorate or enhance their booths so long as it does not encroach or interfere with neighboring booths. The playing of audio equipment from your booth will not be permitted if it interferes with the smooth operation of any adjacent booth or the entertainment stage. Restaurants may not have public seating in front of their food booth or anywhere in the public walkway. You are responsible for providing your own tables and tenting. We will provide electricity at no charge, based on your pre-registered list of equipment and electrical needs.

Deadline: To participate, complete the Application and the Equipment List/Electrical Needs forms along with your entry fee and proof of insurance to the Chamber of Commerce, 209 E. Chestnut, no later than August 25, 2017. We cannot accept late applications nor refund entry fees after this date due to print and advertising deadlines. Advertising: The Taste committee will utilize print, radio, and social media to advertise this new event in every effort to bring a good crowd to sample your delicious menu items and provide the best advertising for your establishment. We cannot be responsible for whatever inclement weather may decrease attendance.

Health Department Licenses: All establishments are responsible for obtaining their own temporary license from the Fulton County Health Department at least 7 days prior to the event. The Health Department will be onsite for inspections, but note licenses must be obtained at least 7 days prior to the event or late fees will apply. (September 22) In some cases, there is no fee for this temporary license- check with the FCHD for details.

Event Basics:  Taste Coins will be sold from the Taste Coin Booths for $1 each. All food samples must sell for 1, 2, or 3 coins, so plan your taste sizes appropriately. The maximum charge for a sample is 3 coins, but we recommend more 1 or 2 coin samples. Smaller portions and less expensive items move fast and tend to be the first to run out. We learned from past years that overall, samples were a little too large, and the goal is to sell many smaller samples, not fill people up too quickly with large samples!  Each booth will be provided with a container for their Taste Coins. Coins will be collected midway through the event or more to start counting for you and shorten checkout time.  At the end of the event (or if/when you run out of food), you MUST CHECK OUT at the Finance Table at the Gary Baker Rec Center. There, your coins will be tallied, the 20% commission fee (and any cleanup fee) will be deducted from your total, and you will be issued a check for your food sales.  Best of Taste Awards will be given to the best samples in the following categories: 1. Best Entrée 2. Best Appetizer 3. Best Dessert.  Best Booth Award will be given to the booth bringing the best design/decoration/ambiance to your booth space, representative of your establishment and/or your food offerings.

Now the Details…

Best of Taste Awards: Near the beginning of the event, numbered sample containers will be delivered to you to fill for the judges. Between 2-3pm, you will need to deliver your sample(s) to the judging areas. Judges will be local celebrities TBA, and they will confer to make their selections of a first prize in each of the three categories. Winners will receive a plaque suitable for display in your establishment. You may enter up to three selections for judging, but no more than two in the same category.

Best Booth Award: We encourage each establishment to get excited and get creative, and have fun decorating their booth. This really adds to the visual appeal and atmosphere of the overall event, and it certainly reflects well on your business to be fun and involved! Throughout the event, the Taste committee members will visit and view each booth to then collectively select a winner for Best Booth. Winner will receive a trophy to display in your establishment.

Marketing the Taste of Canton: One of the primary benefits of this new event is the publicity and exposure the restaurants will receive. The primary marketing tools for this year’s event are *Taste posters displayed at participating restaurants, sponsor locations and throughout the city. * Media blitz to include, radio, newspapers, City of Canton website, Channel 22 local access channel, and social media. We hope and expect to gain coverage with local television and radio media. Licenses/Insurance: Each Applicant must provide a current Certificate of Liability Insurance showing the following coverage limits :

Commercial General Liability (Includes Products/Completed Operations Liability), limits of no less than $1,000,000 per occurrence and $1,000,000 General Aggregate for Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability. DEADLINE FOR PROVIDING PROOF OF INSURANCE is Friday, August 25, along with your application.

Food Items: The Taste of Canton is an opportunity to showcase a particular menu item. A “Signature Item” for tasting by the general public from the participants menu is suggested. All food items and their prices must be designated on the application submitted by the August 25 deadline. There is not a limit on the number of items you can serve, HOWEVER, you are only allowed up to 3 items to be judged and no more than 2 items in the same judging category.

Crowd/numbers to expect: Last year’s Taste saw an estimated 1600 patrons, with vendors averaging 500 samples sold. We expect higher numbers for this third Taste, but perhaps not as high as a long-established downtown event like the Cruise-In, which brings in the thousands. You are welcome to bring “take-out” containers to allow patrons to purchase extra samples to take home.

Event Day Set Up: Vendors are allowed to begin set up at 8:00am on the day of the event. Vehicles can drive in to the Taste parking area, unload and set up from 8am-11:00am. ALL VEHICLES MUST BE REMOVED FROM THE TASTE AREA BY 11:00am. Vendors should park vehicles/trailers in a designated area TBA until the event is over.

Vendor locations will be marked that day, but you will receive a map showing your location and your power source prior to the event as well. Vendors will be placed based partially upon electric needs as well as other factors. CACC reserves the right to change a restaurant’s location if their power needs cannot be accommodated in a current location.

Electric/power will be provided by generators, as there is no in ground electricity in that specific area of the park. It is important that you accurately complete the Equipment List for electrical appliances you plan to bring, and then abide by what you designated. All equipment should be thoroughly inspected to be sure it is in good working condition before bringing it to the Taste. Vendors should also plan accordingly with adequate length and weight/duty of extension cords to reach your power source. We want to avoid power issues, so these are crucial components to the success of the day.

Grease and Hot Coals: Please plan to remove any hot grease yourself from the park. Hot coals can be dumped into provided 55 gallon drums onsite and then extinguished with water.

Water is available at the Gary Baker Rec Center and the Pavilion. Extra refrigerator space will also be available on event day at the Gary Baker Rec Center. Please have food products well marked with your establishment’s name in stackable containers or bags. A designated Gator or golf cart vehicle will be running to help you quickly transport your product back to the event site. Miscellaneous:  Food vendors may not sell alcoholic beverages of any kind. This requires a long approval process with the local and state liquor commissions, so only our selected approved vendors will be selling alcohol. Vendors are not allowed to have alcoholic beverages in your coolers at your booths. It is a violation of the Canton Park District regulations to have any alcohol in the park except in the designated beer/wine area.  Food vendors must provide signage. We suggest a large sign displaying your name and menu items/prices. Signs placed high, on a tent canopy overhead are more visible and help customers find you in a crowd. Think about handing out menus, business cards, giveaways with your website…  Vendors may begin set up no earlier than 8:00am on the day of the event, and must have vehicles/trailers removed from the area by noon. The Taste runs from noon-5:00pm. Please try to plan accordingly if you run short or run out of food.  Vendors are welcome and encouraged to bring pop-up tenting for their booth space. Canopies make booths much more visible as well as provide shade or cover in case of rain.  Restaurants are responsible for paying State and City Sales Taxes. This is your responsibility.

Deadlines: Please note that it is your responsibility to meet all deadlines and provide us with application materials. CACC will not be responsible for making numerous attempts to follow-up and collect required documents or information, etc. We are all volunteers doing this in our free time, which is limited because we all work full-time jobs ourselves. We appreciate the time you put into this event, and we strive to make this develop into a success for all of us.

 Application and Equipment List and vendor fee and proof of insurance are due Friday, August 25 to the CACC office, 209 E. Chestnut St., Suite 2, Canton.

 Fulton County Health Department License is due no later than September 22nd.

Any questions~ contact Amanda Atchley, CACC Director @ 647-2677x3 or [email protected]. Application for Booth Space Booth Fee Paid- $______

Taste Of Canton 2017 □Chamber member-$25

September 30 noon-5pm □ Non-Chamber member-$50

Restaurant Name: ______Address: ______City/State/Zip______Restaurant phone: ______Manager’s Name: ______work ph: ______cell ph: ______Email address: ______

You may sell as many items as you wish; however for the judging competition, you may only enter up to 3 items, and no more than 2 in the same category. Please list below each item that you are entering for competition, the price, and the appropriate category. Categories are: Entrée, Appetizer, and Dessert. Be sure to list your items exactly as you would want them to appear in any advertising.

______Menu Item 1 for Judging Price Category

********************************************************************************************** Other items being served, but not judged:

______Menu Item Price

______Menu Item Price *list any additional items on back of this sheet → Number of free posters requested for display at your business: ______

I have read all of the material provided by the Canton Area Chamber of Commerce (CACC) and agree to all the terms and conditions. I understand that no refunds can be made, and no vendor names added or withdrawn after the application deadline of August 25, 2016. Electrical/ power supply is based upon my completion of the Equipment List and my abiding by what I have pre- registered. I am responsible for my own equipment being in good working order.

______Owner/Manager Signature Date Taste of Canton 2017 Equipment/Power List

Restaurant Name: ______

List all the equipment requiring electrical service. Keep in mind, electricity is limited so bring only what is truly needed. All equipment should be thoroughly inspected before the event day to be in good working order. You are responsible for providing adequate length and size/duty extension cords. Defective equipment may be removed from service.

Item Quantity Type Volts Amps Watts Phase Plug Type 1. ______Freezer ______2. ______Freezer ______3. ______Refridg. ______4. ______Refridg. ______5. ______Fryer ______6. ______Fryer ______7. ______Oven ______8. ______Oven ______9. ______Warming Tray ______10. ______Warming Tray ______11. ______Other ______

______Charcoal grill(s) ______Propane gas grill(s)

The quantity, type, volts, amps, and watts of each piece of equipment are necessary to determine total electrical power usage and placement of each vendor. Inaccurate information may cause a vendor to be relocated or to remove equipment not accurately listed above.