Greek Food Festival — Local services in Garden City

My friend and I arrived at 10:45 a.m. on Friday, May 30, 2025. The line was already long as everyone waited with anticipation for the festival to open at 11:00 a.m.

Once people entered the festival grounds we separated into three food lines. Each person picked up a tray and placed their order. When we got to the end of the food line we were able to pay with debit or credit cards or cash.

Seating was plentiful. The seating areas had large tarps overhead so we were not sitting in the sun. There was a pleasant breeze while we enjoyed our delicious food.

We had pastitsio, green beans, and dolmades. My friend bought several desserts to take home. I had the baklava sundae, a new offering this year. Everything was delicious.

A gentleman was playing what I believe was a bouzouki and he sang several beautiful songs in Greek.

(Derived from the Turkish bozuk and closely related to the Turkish saz and the Asian tanbur, the bouzouki was traditionally used for dancing and entertainment at social gatherings. It became a featured instrument in rebetika, a type of improvised early 20th-century music associated with the Greek underworld. Since gaining a wider audience, the bouzouki has become the major popular-music instrument of Greece. It is also played in a variety of musical genres throughout the world, including jazz, bluegrass, rock, and folk music. ...Britannica.com)

A group of young people performed Greek dances while we were enjoying our food.

I bought a block of goat cheese made in Cypress. The gentleman selling the cheese was grilling the cheese and cutting it into small pieces so that we could sample the fried goat cheese. It is saltier than the feta I have purchased in the grocery store but it was delicious.

Before we left we went into the Greek Orthodox Church to listen to the Father give the history of the church and explain the various images and other items in the church.

The Greek Food Festival is an annual event to raise funds for the church and for their various charitable activities that benefit the Treasure Valley community.

There is street parking only so you need to plan for the time it will take to find a parking place and to walk to the gate to the venue.

If you haven't been to the festival, you should go. Take your children. Take your parents. Take everyone you know! I guarantee you will...

Well run festival, excellent Greek food, pastries were 🔥, they had a few cool wines and overall it was a fun afternoon. There is a Greek market and dances as well, great family event, but also great for some adults like us just looking for something fun to do while we hang out. The volunteers were all super super friendly as well. Solid event in Boise, I hope...

This was so fun! We ate over $40 in food, sampling everything from the meals to the desserts. The Gyros were great! The baklava was great! All the little tastes and tidbits were so wonderful. We stayed for the music, and enjoyed the whole experience. Definitely add this to your To Dos when it comes around!...