This little piggy went to the market....

but the rest went to the bank. Here is the deal, all the pigs had jobs at Ribfest! One went to the market, while the rest collected money. Four dollars to park, which is not a big deal when you think of other cities. Then it was six dollars to walk into the vending area. So, at this point (for my non mathematical friends, I invested ten dollars to just look at what was for sale). Oh, yeah, one of the pigs was a sign maker. There were signs nearly two stories tall touting how wonderful their ribs were, the awards they won. Speaking of awards, one of the pigs made trophies, because these trophies were as tall as six foot tall. I am talking serious about their trade!

My friend and I decided to squeak like a pig and split samplers. We had two sampler baskets: Griffin (which was a drier style sauce and not one of our favorites). The bet we made was the rib that came out of the trailer, meant for us landed on the table. Of course, we received a fresh one, but 10 to 1 odds, that little rib made its way into the next person's basket! The second was Texas BBQ. A tangy, meaty rib with a very thick sauce. this group seemed to have better ribs.

Every rib sampler was $6.00.

We also split a dessert. If we were in a fancy restaurant, it would have been called Bananas Foster. Rather in a vending style setting, it was called Tropical Delight. Which sounds more whoreish, but for what we paid for it, a whore may have been cheaper and we would have got more whip cream! Anyway, this is a banana, fried with a bit of strawberry, and chocolate syrup, and whip cream and sprinkles. All for the amazing price of $5.00.

Now mind you, festivals are for fun. They are not meant to be looked at a way to save money rather they are investing into a feeling. For nearly two hours, we stood around watching people and talking and we were surprised that nearly two hours went by before we saw anyone we knew! Finally, we did and we felt better about being there ....

Oh yeah, we also received a free sample of a summer sausage which was cooked on a grill. Here is the real kicker, it was cooked on a grill and the outside was crispy and the inside was soft but not in a good way. The outside tasted like a fire cooked marshmallow, and the inside was cold as a marshmallow. Never had I tasted meat that tasted like a marshmallow --- and not chicken!

So, the moral of the story festivals are not for the poor, but I'd be damned to know we had so many rich people in Fort Wayne that I have never met before, or know by appearance.