D.C. is about to get a little tastier, thanks to “The Apprentice” contestant Steuart Martens.
Yeas & Nays has learned that the Tradewinds Speciality Imports CEO and partner of popular food truck company On The Fly is cooking up plans to bring back the District’s most beloved food festival, Taste of DC.
It’s been seven years since the last savory street showcase, but on Columbus Day weekend, Martens tells us, it’s making a comeback.
So why is he taking on this task?
Martens told Yeas & Nays that when he returned from filming, a “friend” (who we hear is D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty) asked him if he’d be interested in doing something for the city.
“With all of the free publicity we are going to get from ‘The Apprentice,’ it is the perfect opportunity to try to leverage this event and try to get it off the ground,” he said.
Martens also said from a business standpoint, it makes a lot of sense.
“I’m in the hospitality business, all of my companies kind of operate in that realm and I wanted a great venue to kind of broadcast what we do and who we do and actually get closer with our customers,” he said.
But Martens assured us Taste of DC is not just some marketing event: About 450,000 people are anticipated to attend the festival and more than 80 sponsors and vendors (including DC Magazine, the Burger Joint, Bobby Lew’s and Edward Marc Chocolates) already are onboard. There will be a beer garden sponsored by the McFadden Group, a separate kid-friendly zone and a section where some big names are expected to perform.
Martens told Yeas & Nays he can’t confirm the acts, but tells us he is “hoping for Katy Perry.”
Twenty-five percent of the proceeds from Taste of DC will benefit the USO.
