Taste of Serbia

Date: September 2-3, 2006 (Noon to Midnight)
Cost: Free
Organizer: St. Basil Serbian Orthodox Church

What to expect: Plenty of Serbian music, food and culture.

Why to go: Seriously, where else (besides Serbia) will you be able to dance to Serb Tambura music while sipping on Serbian beer and munching on pastries?

Additional info: There will be 8 different bands playing a variety of traditional Serbian music, as well as performances by Serb Folk Dance Troupes. There will also be church tours, and a fun park

Food Offered:

BBQ LAMB & BBQ PORK - Spit Roasted
CEVAPCICI - Char-grilled Serb Sausage (skinless/fresh ground)
RAZNJICI - Char-grilled Serb Shish-Kabobs
PLJESKAVICA - Char-grilled Serb Burgers (spicy or plain)
SARMA - Stuffed Cabbage Serbian Style
PALACINKE - Serb Crepes (cheese, apricot, ground walnut/sugar)
PITA-GIBANICA - Serb Strudels (Cheese, Apple)
BUREK - Serb Baked Meat Pie (Fillo Dough)
KROFNE - Serb Donuts (better than Krispy Kreme)
KREMPITA - Serb Custard Filled Pastry
SERB TORTES, CAKES & COOKIES

Website with more info:
http://www.stbasilchurch.org/index2.html

st basil church
27450 N. Bradley Road, Mettawa/Lake Forest
Tel: 847-247-0077
Fax: 847-247-0088
www.stbasilchurch.org/driving_directions.html

Hi,

This is great especially since it is up by me.

Thanks!

Regards,

Polster,

Thanks again for highlighting this festival. I was a hair away from meeting up Hammond for the Taste of Melrose Park. That is until you posted the 'Taste of Serbia' announcement.

I couldn't make it out there until 8 PM. I used to go up Riverwoods Road when my sisters took horseback riding lessons. What used to be open areas with horses is now pretty developed. Of course there was a sign on the road advising drivers to be alert for horses and bicyclists, though the population density there is much higher than before.

Apparently the church didn't expect the turnout they had. The lamb had been gone for hours and the kitchen effectively closed unless you desired stuffed cabbage. The Burek I was told was outstanding, though it was also long gone. The bakery had apple strudel and crepes when I arrived, though by the time I reached them, it was only strudel. I ended up with a plate of 10 pieces of cevapcici, cabbage salad, chopped onions and bread for $9. To my surprise, there was no ajvar available to eat with it. If I had known, I would have brought a jar from home. In any case, they were cevapcici fresh from the grill and delicious.

For those attending tomorrow, please be advise the roast lamb on a spit will be available at approximately 2 PM. Today they had 8 lambs and ran out faster than expected. My Father especially loves the lamb from this region with a salty skin crust. I had a conversation with a Montenegran about this salt crust. She advised her Mother prepared her lamb by rubbing the lamb with wine vinegar, followed by olive oil and salt. This was allowed to marinate overnight before spit roasting over wood. In the region where she came from, then also fastened bacon on the lamb to baste it while cooking. I asked if this was a universal practice in former Yugoslavia, she advised the bacon was specific to her region.

The music was great. A couple would start to dance, then over time they would be nucleus for a group dance of over 20 people.

While I am sorry I missed the lamb, what I did eat, the interesting conversation on Balkan politics, music and dancing made for an excellent evening.

My parents will be there tomorrow, though unfortunately I will not.

Thanks!

Regards,

Cathy,

I was there as well today and the one big highlight was the FREE Serbian Tour they gave which was only announced in the music tent in the back there. It will be given tommorow as well at the following times according to the women from the food area: 2pm, 4pm, and 6pm.

What the tour included is the following:
1. taken to the cake counter and given samples of Serbian white and red wine as well as Serbian beer. Also samples of Cevapcie and varous Serbian pastries. Also Given an educational lesson on the types of food we were sampling and how there part of the Serbian Culture.

2. Taken to the cathedral room where the Priest gave a really educational speach on Orthodox religion and what they do in the church. The Priest gave info on how Orthodox religion differs from Catholic. Best part of night for me at least.

3. Taken to the bookstore and given a pamphlet entitled "What Orthodox Catholics Believe".

Overall very good experience which I enjoyed immensely.

/polster

Here is 3 pics from the event:

Food Samples from Serb Tour:


Inside the Church:


Dancing:

Taste of Serbia 2007

St. Basil of Ostrog Serbian Orthodox Church
27450 N. Bradley Road
Mettawa-Lake Forest,IL

Live music, Serb Dance Troupe performances, arts and crafts, imported wine and beer and traditional fare.

Sep. 1: noon - midnight
Sep. 2: noon - midnight

Price: Free admission. Proceeds from food sales benefit St. Basil of Ostrog Serbian Orthodox Church
Phone: 847-247-0077

More Info: http://www.stbasilchurch.org/index2.html

Hi,

I was in the neighborhood on Saturday looking for any signage. I am so glad you alerted us to this terrific event.

Regards,

Hi,

Josephine and I went to Taste of Serbia at St. Basil of Ostrog Serbian Orthodox Church in Mettawa-Lake Forest. There is no head tax or parking fee to attend this event. You could skip the food, enjoy the live entertainment and never spend a dime.

Oh to skip the food would mean missing quite a good selection of Serbian food. When we arrived the roast pig was at least 45 minutes from being finished to the crew's expectations:



They had lamb earlier in the day and will have lamb tomorrow starting around noon. They were kind enough to open the refrigerated truck to prove they had the lambs available to cook:



The grills filled with cevapcici, raznjici (Serb shish kabobs) and pljeskavica (serb burgers) looked great:



While waiting for our friend the pig to finish his cook, we went inside to check their prepared food offerings.

Beef filled Burek


Cheese filled Burek


We shared a plate of Sarma, stuffed cabbage Serbian style, which we were pretty sure was made with fermented whole cabbage (not pictured).

There was a very special performance by the "Most Famous Serbian Singer" for merely $10 per person. We were assured it would cost a lot more to see her in Belgrade. I bumped into this lady, I asked her, "Are you the famous singer from Serbia?" "Yes." "May I take your picture?" "Yes." "Thank you." "Yes."



There was also free entertainment of Taburica Music also know as Balkan Folk/String bands. The group we saw playing all through our visit began to tickle a memory.



At first I thought it may be a John Wayne movie, then it occured to me it was a film by Lee Marvin. It then hit me, Cat Ballou with Jane Fonda with the musicians who sang narratives throughout. If this band was not singing in Serbian but in American cowboy vernacular, then they could just as easily been in Cat Ballou. One of the musicians, sadly not pictured, reminded me of Roy Orbison's stiff presentation. I love people watching.

We did go back to visit the pig more than an hour later he was almost finished:



As the carving began, the line began to gather with the choicest bit: the head going to a lucky soul. I was reminded the brain was consider one of the delicacies. As it was trotting away, I asked the lucky claimant if he intended to eat the snout. Unfortunately for me, he was looking forward to eating it. If he hadn't, then I was going to offer to lighten his load!



I was still in good fortune to get a good portion of belly and crackling skin by my shear enthusiasm:



The pig and a plate of cevapcici shared with Josephine made for a very nice meal:



Oddly what was missing was ajvar. I didn't see any available, then again I will admit to not having asked either.

Sunday is the last day of a really nice event without too heavy a crowd.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:I was still in good fortune to get a good portion of belly and crackling skin by my shear enthusiasm:

I'm certain your enthusiasm was responsible for your good fortune, Cathy, but the pig icon on your Kansas City BBQ T-shirt let the guys doing the roasting identify you as a serious student of their art!

LTH-ers who know Cathy's sartorial slant will not be surprised that one fellow even took her aside to tell her that he just had to have a shirt like hers for his home pig roast next year. She obliged by giving him the website of the place where Aaron Deacon found her shirt. (I don't remember the name of the establishment.)

I enjoyed myself immensely, especially because of the friendly crowd and the very earnest priest who gave a talk in the sanctuary about the Orthodox church and the congregation of St. Basil's.

I'm only sorry I did not get to taste the lamb today! Cathy-- did you go back?

This was great! We stopped by and really enjoyed the food! We had a burek with meat - very good, flaky dough, nice filling. We also had cevapcici, I think a note said "looks like sausage, tastes like burger". That was definitely true. It tasted like a very good burger - moist, delicious, hot off the grill.

I wanted to try the sweet crepes for dessert, but was too stuffed. Will do so next year!

It's a few weeks off, but there is a lot of competition for weekends in August, and people might want to plan ahead for this worthwhile event - especially those unfortunates who have not had Hammond's and MikeG's foresight and raised their own pig or lamb.

This year's Taste of Serbia is August 30-31, according to the St. Basil's website.

Cathy2 shouldn't have to keep track of every event, though she does a great job of it!

Hi,

I have already begun dreaming of this event. Too bad you won't be around this year to Josephine to share in the excitement.

Regards,

I'd like to second.... or third.... the recommendation of this event. We spent most of Sunday afternoon there last year and had a wonderful time.

The roast lamb was the primary attraction for me, and it was delicious. While plenty of lamb was available all day Sunday, we also had to sample some of the other dishes available, including the burek and cevapcici--all good! And the desserts! I particularly liked (what I think was) krempita--if it hadn't been such a hot day, I would have bought some extra and taken it home with me. But I was afraid it wouldn't survive the trip in the heat....

Besides the food, the music and dancing were non-stop, and everyone associated with the church was warm and friendly and seemed genuinely glad to have us there. If you go, don't miss the church tour--very informative.

I'm planning a return trip this weekend, and this time I think I'll take a small cooler so I can bring some of that krempita home with me! Well, and maybe some of that lamb too....

BTW, the hours this year are 12 noon to 11 pm on Saturday and 1 pm to 10 pm on Sunday.

I just received a postcard reminder that the 2009 Taste of Serbia will be held Saturday and Sunday, September 5 and 6, from 12 noon to 11 pm both days.

I've really enjoyed going to this small festival the past two years. The first year I went, they spit-roasted the lambs and pigs on-site and sold the meat both as meals and by the pound. Last year they roasted the meat off-site and sold the lamb and pork by the pound only. I think the quality suffered a little from the transportation time, and there seemed to be many suggestions that they go back to roasting on-site. I'm not sure what they have decided for this year--I may give a call to find out. This year they are also offering a new feature--pre-ordering:

"New for this year! Pre-order your BBQ lamb and pork (meat only!) and we'll have it ready for you at 1:00, 3:00 or 5:00, Saturday or Sunday, as specified in your order! Orders are accepted until Sept 1, 2009."

Other than that, everything looks like it is pretty much as in the original post: free admission, continuous live music, and a great menu.

http://www.stbasilchurch.org/taste.html

tarte tatin,

I encourage you to phone to find out their plans on roasting on site or off. It really does impact the outcome of the meat. I was there the last few hours last year. I bought burek at very reasonable prices.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote: I encourage you to phone to find out their plans on roasting on site or off. It really does impact the outcome of the meat. I was there the last few hours last year. I bought burek at very reasonable prices.

Yes, I agree it made a difference. I called last week, and they said they were still determining if they had enough manpower to do the roasting onsite. Evidently, it worked out, because I called again today, and the man I spoke with verified that they will be roasting the lambs and pigs onsite again this weekend.

Hi,

I plan to go on Saturday late afternoon.

Regards,

Hi,

Bumped into GAF at the Taste of Serbia last evening. Learned a bit about cevapcici from the grill masters there. Ate some terrific food: the dessert with two inches of cream was sublime. Sorry I don't have the menu near me to consult.

After dining, sat for a few hours watching people dancing for a few hours. Songs I did not know or understand, everyone else knew and sang along in Serbo-Croatian. The only cost is your food. I might drop in this evening.

Regards,

We probably left before you got there and missed you. My Serbian in-laws were in town and we took them. The dessert you mention is creme pita. Not sure exactly how that's spelled, but my MIL proclaimed it the best she's ever had. The chocolate mousse cake was also very good. Baklava, the large triangular one, was very doughy and not very nutty, a different style than what I am used to and prefer. I really like the sarma (stuffed cabbage) and cevaps and lamb. My FIL was happy to get two kinds of Serbian beer. I wish I had room for the crepes. The workers and the priest were very friendly and welcoming. It was a nice drive up there, even accounting for construction, and we will definitely check the calendar next year.

I am always thankful to be part of Cathy2's glorious network. While I didn't stay for the hours of Serbian music and dance, I enjoyed the food and I was glad to get some of the last of it (burek, lamb cooked on site). I was told that they will not be serving lamb on Sunday. I don't think that I misunderstood, but I hope that I am wrong about this. Clearly they underestimated the amount of food for the crowd. (The lines weren't too long, but there were quite a number of Serbs and culinary tourists). I can't attest to how this Serbian food might compare (the burek did not match Deta's), but sitting under a tent, listening to music, eating grilled sausage, drinking pear brandy, talking with Cathy and her friend Jean, no evening seemed better.

Marmish wrote:The dessert you mention is creme pita. Not sure exactly how that's spelled....

I believe it's spelled krempita.... That's the dessert I liked so much at 2007's festival that I brought a small cooler with me in 2008 to take some home.
Sorry I missed everyone yesterday (something came up)--it sounds like a fun time. I was just about to head out for there now, but if they are not serving lamb today (per GAF above), I'm going to have to give it a second thought.

Thought I would give a call to double-check on the lamb situation, and they ARE serving lamb today. Because they ran out by 6 pm yesterday, the man said, they are advising people to get there by 4 if they want lamb today.

Our krempita from St Basil's on Saturday

Marmish wrote:

Our krempita from St Basil's on Saturday

Yes, that's it! As someone once remarked, "YUM-O!!!"

HI,

Krempita must be whipped cream folded into custard or something close to that. I am going to do a little research on those.

The crepes could have been better. They were made in advance, the Grandmother overseeing it was very frustrated. The griddle wasn't heating to allow her to gently rewarm them. I ordered a nut and a strawberry jam crepe. They lost a lot of their specialness served cold and not hot. Those who perservered with the Nutella likely had a worse experience.

The cevapcici expert advised those made in Belgrade are mostly pork with some beef. Those served in Kosovo (???) are lamb-beef because of the Muslim dietary beliefs. When I commented I planned to make my own ajvar, he offered a few tips I hope to incorporate. He did not think pita was a good bread to serve with cevapcici. He didn't think any American bread met his expectations for serving with cevapcici.

There were several cevapcici themed t-shirts walking past. One was the Coca-Cola logo refashioned to Cevap-Cici. Another worn by as preteen boy, "My Cevap is bigger than yours!"

Regards,

The 2010 festival is next weekend, 9/4 and 9/5.

St. Basil of Ostrog Serbian Orthodox Church of Lake Forest, Illinois cordially invites you to its Taste of Serbia 2010

http://www.stbasilchurch.org/taste.html

Food and Music Festival
Labor Day Weekend
Saturday, September 4, 2010: noon to 11:00 p.m.
Sunday, September 5, 2010: noon to 11:00 p.m.

FREE Admission
Roast Lamb and Pork
Specialty Grill & Serbian Cuisine
Tortes, Pastries, & Strudels
Beer Garden
Kiddy Amusements
Live Music and dancing:
Saturday:
Prazna Flasa Tambura 1–6 pm
“Cowboy” Sveta Tomic 6-11 pm
Sunday:
Ostrog Orchestra 1-6 pm
DJ Spaz 6-11 pm

Back by popular demand! Pre-order your BBQ lamb and pork (meat only!) and we'll have it ready for you at 1:00, 3:00 or 5:00, Saturday or Sunday, as specified in your order! Orders are accepted until Sept 3, 2010.

Directions to St. Basil
Exit I-294 (94) at Route 60 West (Townline Road)
Turn North (right) on Riverwoods
Continue North on Bradley Road
Church is at corner of Bradley and Old School Road

Hi,

Arrived with Mom2 in the early evening for a light supper of Sarma (stuffed cabbage), mashed potatoes (with Sarma sauce on top) and salad of tomatoes, cucumbers and onions plus three slices of bread. They ran out of burek, though more is expected tomorrow. I ordered a plate of salad and mashed potatoes, then shared a stuffed cabbage. We shared a Krempita for dessert.

We sat at the edge of the dance floor for a fine meal and excellent people watching. We shared a table with a Serbian journalist who showed us her latest article in a recent paper. She got up and started a line dance on the floor. I told Mom2 to keep an eye, because this line could easily grow to 20-30 people. In a few minutes, it became this snake of people. Mom2 leaned over inquiring when would it stop. I suggested once the musician tired of playing, which took about 10 minutes.

We missed the tambura band. They are playing tomorrow, too, from 1 - 6 pm. AFter that, it will be a DJ. It could be interesting to hear what are the current favorites. Rap in Serbian?

When I was in line waiting for the food. I struck up a conversation with the ladies behind me. I like playing the idiot savant of knowing more of their culture than they expect any American to know. There was an almost gotcha moment, when they wanted to know which region in the former Yugoslavia was nicer. Too loaded to even bother answering. Instead I told of the Serb woman who worked for me whose husband was Croatian. On a visit to Slovenia, she was denied the opportunity to purchase some goods. Instead everything was handed to me to purchase, which nobody could even consider denying.

Yep, it was a fine evening of time travel for me. I hope to make it back tomorrow.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote: There was an almost gotcha moment, when they wanted to know which region in the former Yugoslavia was nicer. Too loaded to even bother answering.

The obvious answer, "Yours."

Hi,

GAF - Yeah, that's a good answer. I just don't like fueling the discontent between any of them.

Mushroom club's event at the Botanic Gardens finished promptly at 4:30 pm today. Tired to the core, everyone cleaned up the place super fast. I found myself on the road before 5:15 pm. Knowing the live music concluded around 6 pm, I beelined to Mettawa.

I'm glad I did because I discovered I had missed the open pit where the lambs and pigs were roasted:


Sept 5 2010 003 bbq by cal222, on Flickr


Sept 5 2010 006 lamb side by cal222, on Flickr

They can cook up to 8 lambs or pigs simultaneously from one motor driving the spits. They clearly use wood charcoal. There is no special pit made, this was set up on a section of grass.

I chatted up the guy carving up the lambs. He gave me a few cook's treats: the crispy skin and meat on the lamb's ankles. I later bought a lamb dinner, though no cut was as fine eating as the cook's treats offered for free.

I noticed a savory cheese pastry on someone's plate. I studied the menu more to find it was Gibanica. The first time I was in line, they had run out with more expected 30 minutes later. I returned at the appointed time for this lovely piece of cheese and homemade filo dough:


Sept 5 2010 007 Gibanica by cal222, on Flickr

The live band played a rhythmic song that brought people to their feet. Three lovely young girls began the line dance that quickly jumped to 50-60 people. Once they finished some 10-15 minutes later, dancers were fanning themselves as they exited the tent.

Can't wait for next year!

Regards,

Discovering this thread a little too late, as that looks and sounds like one heck of a festival. I will do my very best to make it next year. Thanks for letting us live a bit of it through the great pictures and descriptions.