MIDWAY, Utah. - The young boy entered the Swiss Days festival with eager anticipation. Bright colors and delicious smells surrounded him, tempting and inviting. On one side, kids ran and jumped in an inflatable bounce-city that sported a larger-than-life Spiderman and a Disney princess tower. On the other side, children’s voices sang lighthearted Swiss songs that echoed from a distant stage. But this boy’s eyes were trained on a small booth off in the distance. He pulled on his father’s sleeve with tangible energy, dragging him full-force towards a tantalizing, succulent scent: Swiss pies.
In the late 1940’s, Swiss Days began as a celebration of harvest, when local farmers and ranchers would gather at the end of the season to enjoy the food and festivity of their “Harvest Days.” After several years, the name and theme were changed to Swiss Days in order to incorporate the town’s unique ancestry and to attract larger crowds to the event. Even after 60 years, however, Swiss Days remains, as always, a festival of food.
Gania Harshbarger, 43, a tourist from Provo, Utah, who visited Swiss Days with her family of six on their way to a camping trip, found the food the best part of the festival.
“My Knockwurst sandwich is the most authentic food you can find at Swiss Days,” she said through flavorful mouthfuls, “It’s delicious.”
Other guests, on the other hand, specifically chose their food selection because of its non-Swiss resemblance. Joshua Hansen, 19, also from Provo, said he picked his Swiss taco simply because it reminded him of a Navajo taco.
The community worked hard to make sure all locals and tourists were abundantly fed. With their constant commitment, the outdoor food court became alive with enthusiastic children, bustling strollers, and, of course, the sigh of satisfied foodies.
Each booth beckoned to the crowds, gathering quick-paced lines of hungry guests. The festival’s “World Famous” Swiss Tacos attracted a line that snaked in between tables and booths for nearly half an hour. Knockwurst sandwiches and Kraut dinners offered a more traditional Swiss fare, as well as the homemade Braztzilies – Swiss cookies – that were sold at surrounding stalls. A centralized booth fried hundreds of fresh scones, with which the pleased populace lathered spoonfuls of honey-butter or berry jam.
The pie booth, the fervor of the little boy, however, was not localized. Out of the way, though many people visited the stall, the crowd was significantly smaller than those at the other vendors. But the boy instinctively knew that this booth would be incomparable.
Nestled between the Swiss dogs and the Swiss shaved ice, the pie booth was saturated with sugary sweet scents. Rows of thick slices of berry, peach, apple, rhubarb, pumpkin and pecan snuggled in crowded racks. Tourists pined over the selection of decadents, struggling to make a decision. The most popular pie, Berrylicious, had already sold out by late afternoon.
Lamont Jones, 53, a local of Midway and runner of the pie booth, personally recognizes food’s fundamental role during the festival. For the past 12 years, Jones has spent each Swiss Days dishing out plates of steaming pies and hamburgers to the thousands of locals and tourists who come every year.
When asked what was his favorite part of the Swiss Days festival, he said, “Seeing all the people, and all the activities that are going on. And also, community; it’s pretty cool to see everyone show up and come together, it’s pretty neat.”
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