What would you do for a deep-fried pickle?
Judging by the long lines at Downtown PG's Summerfest on Sunday, the general consensus was: to wait.
The Tourism PG Taste Pavilion, featuring samples from 18 restaurants, was bursting at the seams.
Neil O'Farrell catalogued the wait times for Downtown PG and found the longest queue took 35 minutes to get deep-fried pickles or kobe beef sliders from Twisted Cork. Summerfest attendees also waited up to 20 minutes for samples from White Goose Bistro.
"People were in a good mood, jolly," said O'Farrell, noting that despite the waits he didn't witness anyone cutting in line or complaining. "Everyone was happy and having a good time."
"Try it out" seems to be the unofficial motto for Summerfest every year, and this was no different.
First-time attendees Jeff Froude and Marci Bismilla are regular downtown visitors, but were surprised by the crowds and the options.
"It's a good way to try a little bit of everything," Bismilla said.
Jimmy Sacher, 10, used the day to try speed-eating on for size. He walked away with a Wendy's gift certificate after making his way through one and a half Frosty samples in one minute and 30 seconds.
"It felt so cold," Sacher said, who winced and rubbed at his forehead as he powered his way through the iced treat.
The Rated PG Rollergirls turned the intersection of Quebec Street and Third Avenue into an temporary rink to give a roller derby demonstration early in the afternoon.
That sent an influx of people to the team's booth, said Alicia Lock (a.k.a. Lockdown).
"There's a lot of interest in Fresh Meat," she said, referring to the program for new skaters that will run on Mondays from Sept. 29 to Dec. 15 at the Roll-A-Dome. Those unsure if the sport is for them can test it out at the team's Try-It Night on Sept. 22.
The team's junior squad (for skaters between the ages of nine and 18), the Spruce City Roller Brats, also begin their season on Sept. 29.
While the majority of the action was happening outside their doors, Summerfest can spur business in the future, according to a City Furniture and Appliances sales associate.
Don McGivern said he had to park five blocks away from the store due to the crowds on Sunday and while an event like Summerfest might stand in the way of customers focused on big-ticket items, there's plenty of people walking through the store that will come back another day.
"There are no negatives," McGivern said. "[Earlier] there were eight to 10 couples, all new people that had never been in here."
