The Pierogi Fest is an annual festival in Whiting,

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, United States, organized by the Whiting–Robertsdale Chamber of Commerce (WRCoC). It gets its name from the

pierogi Pierogi ( ; ) are filled dumplings made by wrapping Leavening, unleavened dough around a Stuffing, filling and cooked in boiling water. They are occasionally flavored with a savory or sweet garnish. Typical fillings include potato, cheese, ...

, a Polish dumpling. It draws more than 250,000 visitors each year. The festival takes place on the last weekend of July, on 119th Street in downtown Whiting. The street is only open to foot traffic during the festival. There are food booths set up along the streets serving pierogi, kielbasa and sauerkraut. There are also live music performances, and carnival rides. Other events include a Polka Parade, Pierogi Toss and eating competitions, and the Mr. Pierogi Songfest, which features food and fest-related parodies of popular songs. It features locally famous characters to bring goodwill, such as Mr. Pierogi, the Buscias, Miss Paczki, Halupki Guy, Polkahontas, and the Pieroguettes. Pierogi Fest has been featured by Oprah, Yahoo Travel, and more. In 2017 the festival's organizers filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in federal court against the organizers of the Edwardsville, Pennsylvania, Pierogi Festival, asking them to change their event's name. At first the Edwardsville Hometown Committee (EHC), who characterized the WRCoC's requested licensing fee as "extortionate", filed a

counterclaim In a court of law, a party's claim is a counterclaim if one party asserts claims in response to the claims of another. In other words, if a plaintiff initiates a lawsuit and a defendant responds to the lawsuit with claims of their own against t ...

challenging the trademark and seeking damages against the WRCoC for enforcing an invalid trademark. By the beginning of June 2018, when the Edwardsville event is held, however, the two sides had reached a settlement in which the EHC recognized the trademark in return for permission to hold its own. 2020 saw the festival get cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

but it was held in 2021.

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External links

* {{Official website, http://www.pierogifest.net/ Tourist attractions in Lake County, Indiana Festivals in Indiana Food and drink festivals in the United States

See also

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