The St. Mary Romanian Festival is a celebration at the oldest Romanian parish in the country. Along with a gift market area, there is entertainment and a lot of great food. There are also church tours and a visit to their museum.
2024 DATE: August 16-18, 2024
Location: St. Mary Romanian Orthodox Cathedral
3256 Warren Road
Cleveland, Ohio 44111
Website: https://www.smroc.org
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I first visited the St. Mary Romanian Festival in 2010. You can read that experience here:
https://ohiofestivals.net/47-romanian-festival-cleveland-august-20-2010/
This post documents my experience on August 19, 2018.
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St. Mary Romanian Orthodox Church isn’t only a great church to visit…
…for its beautiful interior…
…and wonderful detail…
…but there’s an annual Romanian Festival that’s not to be missed.
Outside, as kids either jumped on inflatables (Inflatable Nation)…
…got themselves some lemonade…
…or dug into the fountain…
…adults listened to musical performances…
…(sometimes accompanying a Romanian Costume Parade)…
…enjoyed refreshing adult Romanian beverages…
…or got themselves something to eat…
…where they were grilling mititei…
…and serving it with bread slices (that’s mustard and onion in the container).
With a little outdoor exploration, festival goers could also discover a Wine Garden…
…hidden away in a semi-private area…
…where they could peacefully enjoy a glass of their favorite vintage…
…as well as a seemingly secret location…
….where there was a table for scoverzi, or Romanian elephant ears…
…served either plain or filled (cheese or apricot) with powdered sugar as an option.
For the interior part of the festival…
…the main lobby was lined with tables…
…selling festival T-shirts…
…recipe books…
…all sorts of Romanian goodies…
…and grab bags.
And while the shopping did continue in the dining area…
…with some tables that were set up with jewelry…
…most people came here for the food…
…loading their plates with either sausage and kraut…
…chicken schnitzel…
…or some roast pork and delicious mamaliga (polenta and cheese)…
…all which could be washed down with a selection of beverages from the bar…
…and enjoyed while watching a film or the entertainment on stage.
And whether or not you finished your meal with a crepe…
…it was impossible not to stop in the pastry room…
…and check out the Romanian Salami…
…almond blossoms, cupcakes (Romanian flag colors)…
…and popular Romanian Savarin cakes…
…before deciding on what to take home.