Bacon lovers rejoice: RVA Bacon Festival this Sunday

Thousands of Richmonders will gather this Sunday around the altar that is BACON!

June 7, 2013; 9:57 AM • by RVANews staff

Sunday, June 9th from 12:00 – 5:00 PM
17th Street Farmers’ Market
Delicious bacon treats, from over 25 different restaurants, are $3–CASH ONLY.
Beer and cider will be provided by Devils Backbone Brewing Company and Bold Rock Hard Cider, with 22 different drafts available for $6–again, CASH ONLY.

Join the rest of RVA’s bacon loving populace down at the 17th Street Farmers’ Market for a couple of hours of baconing and beveraging. Expect people and parking issues, but also the delicious smoky smell of frying bacon wafting across Shockoe Bottom.

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One of the more than 20 local restaurants that are participating in the festival is The Naked Onion.

Chef and co-owner Greg Comstock put it simply: “We’re a big fan of bacon,” he said. “We do a lot with the pig in general.” Their Cuban comprises pork butt, and the Banh Mi uses grilled pork belly.

In May, the restaurant premiered its BLT sandwich made with homemade bacon. Comstock said they prepared enough food to last several days, but the sandwich proved so popular “we sold all the orders in three hours.”

Shortly after the successful launch of the bacon sandwich, Comstock heard about the Bacon Festival. “The timing was perfect,” Comstock said. “We thought it was a great idea.”

He said that The Naked Onion will set up a tent and sell bacon and pickle sliders. He and his partner, Lauren Jurk, decided against offering a BLT at the festival because they assumed several other vendors would offer BLTs. “We wanted to make sure we were doing something different,” he said.

When asked why bacon appeals to him and others so much, Comstock said it’s “the smokiness, the crispiness, the saltiness…it’s the perfect cut of meat.”