TORONTO'S FAVOURITE FESTIVAL OFFERS FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

Friday, August 10, 2012 - Sunday, August 12, 2012

Every year in August, the city of Toronto flocks to GreekTown on the Danforth. Celebrating its 19th year, the Pilaros Taste of the Danforth is Canada's largest street festival, welcoming over 1.3 million visitors.

This year's festival begins on Friday, August 10th at 6:00pm and runs through to Sunday, August 12th at 8:00pm.

A Decima Research poll indicated that 90% of respondents identified "The Taste" as their favourite GTA festival event -- beating out such iconic events as the Toronto International Film Festival, Caribana and Pride Week.

The festival's title sponsor is Pilaros International Trading Inc., a leading importer of Mediterranean food products, primarily olives and olive oil, what the ancient Greeks refer to as "the Essence of Life".

The GTA lays claim to more than 200,000 residents of Greek ancestry, the third largest Hellenic community outside of Greece, and between August 10th and 12th, 2012, everyone who comes to the Danforth gets to be "Greek for the day".

The Taste of the Danforth was founded 18 years ago in 1994 by the GreekTown on the Danforth BIA. The first festival featured 23 restaurateurs and an eclectic mix of tastes from tasting tables. Approximately 5,000 people attended in the inaugural year. In its second year, attendance had grown to 100,000 and by 1996 the festival had become so large that the Danforth had to be officially closed down to accommodate its over 500,000 visitors. Today over 1.3 million attendees flock to the Danforth -- from Broadview to Jones Avenue (approximately 3 kilometres) -- to enjoy food, entertainment and culture, providing them with a 'taste' of what the Danforth area has to offer year-round.

The festival is produced and presented by the GreekTown on the Danforth BIA, representing all the restaurateurs, merchants and professional services. The festival is organized by the GreekTown on the Danforth BIA Board and a volunteer committee led by Constantine Voidonicolas, who devote their private time to make the festival happen. Without their outstanding efforts, the festival simply could not take place.

In 2010 the festival commissioned an Economic Impact Study which revealed that the Taste of the Danforth makes a significant impact on the local economy, generating $32 million in economic activity. Event-related spending alone supports the equivalent of 158 full-year jobs. The festival also generated approximately $4 million in tax revenue.

The PILAROS TASTE OF THE DANFORTH is a proud supporter of the Toronto East General Hospital. A portion of our proceeds every year traditionally goes to supporting the hospital.  The Taste of the Danforth has exceeded its goal of donating one million dollars to its community hospital, Toronto East General.  This past fall the Greektown on The Danforth BIA pledged an additional $250,000 towards the hospital’s new Paediatric Clinic.