2020 Bite of Seattle canceled for first time in 38 years!

Since 1982 when short shorts and big hair ruled at the first Bite of Seattle at Green Lake Park with 75,000 people celebrating food and summer fun, to 38 years later at Seattle Center, 300,000 guests, three live music stages, over 200 vendors, chef battles, and craft beer and cider tasting, the Albert Lee Appliance Bite of Seattle has remained one of the great iconic free-to-attend community festivals in the Northwest.

People from all walks of life coming together to celebrate summer, with three days of festivities, great food, entertainment, chef demonstrations, Bite Movie Night, kids activities, and so much more, all made possible by invaluable partnerships with sponsors like Albert Lee Appliance, BECU, Emerald Queen Casino, NW Beverages, Xfinity, and, many more.

Festivals Inc. the event production company behind the Bite of Seattle, had been trying to reschedule the Bite for a later date, and, had successfully secured a tentative date in late August, however most recently had been notified that the City of Seattle Special Events Committee voted and approved the following:

“The City of Seattle is not issuing permits for major events until further notice – adhering to guidance from the State of Washington and Public Health – Seattle & King County.  These include major cultural events, run/walk events, street events, festivals, and vendor fairs.”  This lasts in a best-case scenario through Labor Day.

Furthermore, recently the State Public Health Department and Governor Inslee issued the following guidance which states in part:

“The changes between Phase 3 and Phase 4, especially with regards to gathering size and occupancy rates, could further increase the spread of COVID-19 in our state, even in communities that have very low rates of disease. The progress we’ve made thus far is at risk, therefore we are making the prudent choice to slow down our phased approach to reopening.”

The vote by the City of Seattle Special Events Committee, in addition to Public Health mandates, and the Governor’s continued restrictions on gatherings into the unforeseeable and unpredictable future, and, for the safety of all involved, the 2020 Albert Lee Appliance Bite of Seattle will be forced to cancel.

“Despite this devastating news, not only for the Bite of Seattle, but for the hundreds of thousands of guests who attend the Bite each year, our top priority remains the health and safety of our guests, vendors, employees, bands, chefs, and all who help make the Bite of Seattle the summer festival of the year,” said Brett Gorrell, President of Festivals Inc.

Behind the scenes, the Albert Lee Appliance Bite of Seattle takes months of planning including securing sponsors, media partners, food and craft vendors, chefs, craft breweries, cider houses, over 90 entertainment acts, in addition to the extensive onsite infrastructure that sprawls across the Seattle Center campus.

The Bite of Seattle has become “the” free-to-attend community food and entertainment festival of the summer, and recently featured as part of the Food Paradise “Best of the Fests” across America series, on The Cooking Channel.

In its 38-year history, the Bite of Seattle has won numerous ‘best of’ awards, and in 2019, founder Alan Silverman was inducted into the Washington Festival and Events Association Hall of Fame.

The Bite of Seattle has secured itself as one of the best food festivals in the world; a long way since 75,000 people attended the first Bite of Seattle at Green Lake Park in 1982.

Seattle’s ‘Original Foodie Festival’ the Albert Lee Appliance Bite of Seattle, would like to thank all who have supported the Bite over the years, and although will miss celebrating this year, look forward to the day when live festivals and events can be celebrated again.