Rainbow Toasties are just one viral trend on offer at the festival. Photo: Viral Food Fest.
There’s a viral food festival coming to Canberra, and I’m not sure how to feel about it.
Viral Food Fest – tagline “Taste the Internet” – is coming to Thoroughbred Park for a three-day stint in August. Featuring foods that have gone viral on the internet, punters can expect Dubai bubble waffles filled with pistachio cream and kataifi (shredded filo pastry), as well as Labubu-shaped dumplings.
If you don’t know what a Labubu is, congratulations for not being chronically online.
Rainbow Toasties, Big Mac Tacos “dripping with cheese” and Cheeseburger Spring Rolls all feature on the lineup, along with the promise of local Canberra food trucks. Perhaps this is their big chance to become the next viral trend?
Labubu-shaped dumplings were apparently a big seller at the first Viral Food Fest in Newcastle. Photo: Screenshot, Viral Food Fest Website.
The festival aims to give people a chance to taste the trends they see on Instagram and TikTok, bringing internet sensations into a real-world context. While many stallholders are the real deal, some are offering dupes, aka duplicates (read: knock-offs), of internationally famous brands.
Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers is a popular American fast-food brand that will be ‘duped’ at the festival along with Disney Churros. The churros sold at Disney’s theme parks have become an iconic part of visiting Disneyland (and are even said to be the most profitable part of the business).
For those of us unlikely to visit the Magic Kingdom anytime soon, the churros at Thoroughbred Park might be the next best thing.
The organisers are also promising an array of entertainment from live music to live wrestling, with roving Optimus Prime and Blue the Raptor thrown in for good measure. You definitely won’t be bored. In addition to food stalls, there will also be craft markets and rides for kids.
The organisers are clearly targeting the influencer crowd (along with those who have been influenced) for a selfie-worthy experience that will earn its place on the grid.
Does any of this even taste good? That’s not the point!
It’s all about style, sizzle, and the ol’ razzle dazzle.
Clearly, I am not the target market (I did, after all, have to Google “What on earth is a Labubu?”), But I can see that it will appeal to plenty of people – these foods have gone viral after all!
So perhaps I should get off my high horse, quit being a snob, and eat a Labubu!
The Viral Food Fest will run from 8 to 10 August at Thoroughbred Park, Lyneham. Entry is $7. Follow Viral Food Fest on Facebook or visit their website for more details.
