Taste of Downtown brings mouth-watering food

Get your taste buds ready for a variety of mouth-watering foods from downtown Lansing’s favorite eateries at the Taste of Downtown.

The annual event runs Saturday from 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the 100 South block of Washington Square.

Think of it as restaurant-hopping.

“We’re going to do a variety of our mini-donuts, which are typically about three to four bites or about a third to half the size of our normal donuts,” said Glazed and Confused owner Pete Counseller. He wanted to participate in Taste of Downtown last year, but the shop wasn’t quite open. “The cool thing about that is it gives you the ability to have a couple different donuts to try, and you won’t feel like, ‘I just ate four donuts.’”

This will be For Crepe Sake’s second year participating. The restaurant had savory options at last year’s event, so this year, it’s all about the sweets, with gelato and dessert crepes.

“We want to make sure people know we have different options,” said Deborah Owen, who owns For Crepes Sake with her husband, Mark.

“We’re still all about the crepes,” she said, while adding that new additions at the restaurant include gelato, a 22-item chopped salad selection and Zingerman's Coffee.”

This year’s event will have more than a dozen restaurants dishing out their specialties. Taste of Downtown will also have live music and more than 100 wines available for tasting.

The event benefits the downtown by supporting its "local Main Street program, which focuses on design, beautification, promotions, organization and business development," said Mindy Biladeau, Downtown Lansing Inc. executive director.

For information on Taste of Downtown, head to www.tasteofdowntown.org.

Contact Anne Erickson at (517) 377-1006 or aerickson@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter at @AnneErickson.

How to go

Taste of Downtown, 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday in the 100 S. block of Washington Square. Advance tickets available for a limited time online via www.tasteofdowntown.org at the discounted price of $20 for adults and $5 for children (plus fees). Tickets at the event are $25 for adults and $5 for children. Children under 2 years of age enter for free.

Participating hotspots: American Fifth Spirits, Capitol City Grille, For Crepe Sake, Tavern & Tap, Glazed and Confused, Grand Traverse Pie Company, Domino's, The Beer Grotto, Lou & Harry’s, Jersey Giant, Juice Nation, Lansing Brewing Company, Firehouse Subs and Whipped Bakery.

Live music: Taylor Taylor, Avon Bomb, Phil Denny, Air Margaritaville