Third annual event to feature vendors, food, crowning of chicken
queen
For a town well known for its historic Mission, quaint shops and
popular eateries, San Juan Bautista has a surprising, if
unofficial, mascot
– the street chicken.
Third annual event to feature vendors, food, crowning of chicken queen
For a town well known for its historic Mission, quaint shops and popular eateries, San Juan Bautista has a surprising, if unofficial, mascot – the street chicken.
Roaming free through the yards and streets of the city and announcing their presence through their distinctive clucks and calls, these chickens are either a source of pride or a source of consternation for townsfolk, depending upon whom you ask.
Later this month, to honor the uniqueness of the street fowl and to attract more visitors to town, the San Juan Bautista Chamber of Commerce will host the third annual San Juan Bautista Chicken Festival and Parade.
The two-day event, running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 19 and 20, will feature arts and crafts booths, a parade, live music, and various chicken-themed events, such as crowing contests, chicken bingo, a chicken dance contest and the crowning of a chicken queen.
And, yes, an annual chicken barbecue – using store-bought fowl, organizers are quick to point out.
Margot Tankersley, event organizer and owner of Margot’s Ice Cream Parlor in San Juan, said she is hoping for more than 100 booths to be open during the festival.
“The first year’s event was just one day, and everybody loved it,” she said. “There was a lot going on during the day. It was something different and it was family oriented. Last year we were able to expand it to two days. We just hope that it will get bigger and bigger every year.”
Tankersley said her mother first mentioned the idea of a festival when Margot’s opened 13 years ago.
“She had gone to a rooster festival in Oregon years ago and my mother had the idea to have a festival here,” Tankersley said.
“The idea was shot down. It wasn’t really welcomed at all by anybody. About four years ago, people started talking about the chickens and new ideas to attract tourism. I said, ‘OK, Mom, let’s get on the bandwagon here.’ We brought it up to the [chamber] board again and they welcomed it.”
Now, she says, many locals are making the most of the festival, which is co-sponsored by various local businesses.
“Some restaurants take advantage of the opportunity and have ‘Save the chickens, eat beef’ promotions; or pork or fish,” Tankersley said. “Each business has fun with it.”
One participant in last year’s parade drove in a Thunderbird with rubber chickens hanging from its mirrors.
“She had a sign on her car with the image of a chicken in a circle with a line through it,” Tankersley said. “She can’t stand them and some people got offended. Some people don’t like the chickens in San Juan because they are messy and you know when they’ve been in your yard. Still, people are having fun with silly things like that.”
Ironically, on a weekend when they are being honored – even as their brethren are the main course at the barbecue – the San Juan street chickens are typically hard to spot.
“That’s a problem,” Tankersley acknowledged. “They tend to steer clear of the festivals. This week I noticed behind the ice cream parlor that there was a hen with maybe about eight chicks that must have just been hatched. I thought, ‘How can we get these chickens downtown during the festival?’ They’re so adorable.”
San Juan street chickens roam as they wish, however, so no one knows whether they will make an appearance during their special weekend.
In addition to a jump house and kids’ craft zone and a ceramic chicken silent auction, local chef Dorothy McNett will provide a cooking demonstration at 1 p.m. Sunday.
This year’s chicken queen contestants – Natasha Guaracha, Alexis Guiza and Jillian Shaw – have been selling raffle tickets and preparing their two-minute speech on chickens. They will also be judged on a personal interview, with all three winning scholarships of various amounts.
For more information about the festival or to buy raffle tickets, call the San Juan Bautista Chamber of Commerce at 623-2454; e-mail [email protected]; or go to www.sjbchamber.com.
