America’s Best Kept Secret: The Cherry Blossom Festival and Presidential Family Reunion
Glorious, Glorious Food!
by Mary Achor, Presidential Family Historian
As if the camaraderie of the Cherry Blossom Festival weren’t enough, there is food. Glorious, glorious food!
There is the English Tea on Thursday afternoon, where ladies come from all around, wearing their red and purple hats (the gentlemen come, too, but they don’t wear red and purple hats), and all line up for cherry tarts and scones and crustless cucumber sandwiches and deadly chocolate things…and steaming tea from dozens of vintage teapots.
Last year, Paul Burrell came from England, bringing real English biscuits (read: cookies) for each of us. Paul was Queen Elizabeth’s butler, and then was Lady Di’s butler and confidante until her death.
When he first got word that he was to interview with Queen Elizabeth, he knew he’d have to pass muster with her Corgis, so he stuffed his pockets with sausages. Smart man. He got the job. Paul brought one of Lady Di’s dresses for us to see, plus his very own sterling silver service to show us how to make proper English tea.
On Friday night, there is the Hubble Banquet, named after Marshfield’s favorite son and brilliant astronomer, Edwin Powell Hubble. This night, folks are honored for exemplary public service. The smiling faces from Sheila’s Place cater, par excellence, until we are as stuffed as a crepe. Afterwards, a real life auctioneer, complete with cowboy hat and boots, auctioned off cherry pies from the cherry pie contest. I get to emulate Vanna White, to scurry around the room, waving pies under noses to amp up the bidding. Sometimes they go for a hundred dollars.
Saturday night is the State Banquet. Tickets sell out in 24 hours now, because everyone has learned that Mark and Dixie Dawson at the Blackberry Creek Bed and Breakfast will wow us with Mark’s deadly delicious corn chowder…just for starters. Kami Cotler, our beloved red-haired Elizabeth from “The Waltons”, grins and dons an apron, and serves up plates to diners lucky enough to be in her path.
And, if all this weren’t enough, we breakfast and lunch at Freda’s Uptown Cafe–relaxing times with friends from the festival and Marshfieldians who have befriended us CherryFesters over the years. We sit around long tables, drinking countless cups of unexpectedly delicious hot coffee, laughing and teasing, and taking silly pictures of each other.
From the outside, Freda’s looks like the quintessential small town cafe (which it is). Inside, it has that homey, warm atmosphere where everybody knows everyone else, and greets each other with a wave and a grin. The food (as well as the coffee) is first rate. During the Cherry Blossom Festival, Freda serves up cherry crepes, and cherry chicken salad, and cherry-stuffed French toast, and cherry cobbler. Hot, with ice cream. Groan… I cannot wait.
–Mary Achor
For more information, please go to www.cherryblossomfest.com
Mary – You are too kind with the words and praise. Now STOP IT! H, ha. The success of the Cherry Blossom Festival is the community, and attendees, not so much our small role in it. By the way, to set the record straight, it’s Blackberry Creek Retreat’;s Signature Chowder, the “corn” is not the center stage, rather the Chicken and Wild Rice, but heck, EVERYONE calls it Corn Chowder, even Nicholas! Love your posts, keep it up. Looking forward to seeing you again this year.