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Zone 18
No. 13 Vol. 12
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www.mypaperonline.com
June 20, 2016
Second Taste Of Butler Event To Gather Community And Promote Businesses
By Anya Bochman
n Thurs., June 22, the Borough of Butler will hold its second “Taste of Butler” event at Ramstein Brewery from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Hosted by the Butler Economic Development Committee and the Butler Public Library, with proceeds equally benefiting both organizations, the festive gathering is a chance to unite the Butler community while promoting local businesses. Sandi Liss, chair of the Economic Development
Committee, is looking forward to this year’s event, which is seeing an influx in ticket sales after the success of last year’s inaugural Taste of Butler. With an increase from 200 attendees last year to 300 this time, the event’s organizers are now hosting it outside of Ramstein Brewery to accommodate for space. In fact, the original gathering proved so popular that it is now planned to be held twice a year - in June and November. “I was at the door [at the last Taste of Butler]
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and was able to talk to people going in and out – they all said they had a good time,” says Luis Rodriguez of Butler Public Library. “There was energy and interaction between people, it gave people from Butler a sense of community.” Taste of Butler is an event featuring live music by New Jersey bands and tastings from ten local restaurants, with refreshments from the brewery and Boylan’s Bottling Company. The restaurants on the roster are AJ’s Pizzeria, Applebee’s, B&B Deli, Butler Family Restaurant, La Quinta de Reyes, Outback Steakhouse, Panda World, QuickChek, Trackside Bar & Grill and Three Brothers Restaurant – with three of the venues being new additions from last year’s event. The fundraiser follows on the heels of the borough’s Summer Concert Series, which kicked off on
June 2 and is another community-organizing event. Liss states that the idea stemmed from similar festivities held in other New Jersey towns. “A lot of other towns do it,” she says. “We can’t have things like a Food Truck Fight because there’s not enough space – so we do this instead.” Liss points out that the event is an important boost for Butler economy, as residents are exposed to the local restaurants and pubs, while Rodriguez explains the value that it has for the library. The proceeds from Taste of Butler allow the Public Library to acquire new materials, such as educational STEM kits for children, as well as programming to help both children and adults. While attendees can expect much of the same program that was at the inaugural event last year, with
Photo by Greg Ziccardi.
the exception of a larger outdoor gathering this time, the attraction is enough to draw a crowd twice a year. Greg Ziccardi, president of Ramstein Brewery, speaks of the idea of Butler residents getting to sample products in a traditional, rustic environment of a bar. “This year, we’re just as excited to bring in the community and have them see the local businesses,” Zic-
cardi states. Musical entertainment will be provided by Lake of Orchards, a band from Morris Plains that combines an alternative vibe with folk motifs. “Hopefully people will have a good time, like the last time,” Rodriguez says. “There’s an opportunity for people to sample food, but there’s also a social and community aspect.”
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