Discover Our Festival

I attended the Astoria Crab, Seafood & Wine festival 2011 for the first time and I was sorely disappointed. The entire event takes place indoors in an "Expo Hall" at the Clatsop County Fairgrounds, a few miles away from town. Simply put, the building was just not large enough to hold the event. It was jam-packed with tourists just like me, and it was frustrating and aggravating just to move around. The name of the festival is inaccurate and misleading; the emphasis is definitely on WINE, as there were too many wine booths squeezed in what little space there was. There was a food court added on at the end of the building, with a tent covering for a roof. I did enjoy some of the seafood available there, such as the crab cocktail, oyster shooters, and especially, the deep-fried razor clams on a skewer (definitely worth the $5). I'm not sure if the festival was ever held outdoors, but it really needs to be. Why not hold the festival later in the year when the warmer weather is almost certain, even a month later would be better. As it is, because it was strictly indoors, the festival just did not do it for me, and unless a drastic change is made I will not be attending it again.