Opa! Fest Set to Ignite for the 20th Year

Kessie Kaltsounis can still remember the first Opa! Fest 20 years ago.

Since then, the festival has grown from attracting a few hundred fans to pulling in 10,000 attendees last year, said Kaltsounis, the public relations chair for the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, which hosted the Greek culture festival for two decades.

Known as one of the largest Greek Festivals in the Metro Detroit area, Opa! Fest is served by a group of dedicated volunteers who cook all of the food—from loukoumathes, or honey puffs; to saganaki; to cold Frappes.

"Each year we try to bring up something different and more exciting," Kaltsounis said, adding that a loukoumathes-eating contest is certainly in the works.

Among this year's attractions will be Enigma, a local band that performs Greek music, and Three Greek Sisters, a Toronto-based group who will offer cooking demonstrations on Saturday.

General admission is $2, and children younger than 12 attend for free. Admission is free with three cans of food to benefit Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan. Military families will be allowed free of charge.

Free parking and shuttle service is available from Walsh College, 3838 Livernois, south of Wattles, to and from the festival. Gyros will be sold for half-price from 12 noon-4 p.m. June 22-23.