Nearby Fun at the Grainger County Tomato Festival July 29-31, 2016! Don’t Miss the Famous Tomato Wars!
If you’re in the Great Smoky Mountains July 29-31, 2016, you’ll want to head over to nearby Rutledge, TN for the 24th Annual Grainger County Tomato Festival and the Famous Tomato Wars! Grainger County tomatoes are well-loved by the locals for their superior sweet, tart flavor and homegrown texture. This fun festival pays homage to the fabulous fruit that we eat like a veggie! The tomatoes from Grainger County, TN have been compared to be the equivalent of the famous onions from Vidalia, Georgia!
At the Grainger County Tomato Festival in Rutledge, TN, not only can you load up your basket with the tastiest tomatoes in the Smoky Mountain region, you’ll also enjoy fresh peaches, wonderful peppers of all kinds, peas, beans, potatoes, onions, beets, berries and more! There’s fried green tomatoes, burgers and sausages, and then the homemade ice cream…oh so good! Go hungry and ready for some good fun in rural East Tennessee!
What Makes Grainger County Tomatoes So Delicious?
It’s the limestone soil that’s mainly responsible for the distinctive and delicious flavor of Grainger County Tomatoes. While the farmers of Grainger County do supply the nation with a superior shipping tomato grown in the county’s 600+ greenhouses, the locals can enjoy the vine-ripened garden varieties also grown by the farmers on approximately 500 acres in Grainger County. The Grainger County Tomato Festival is your opportunity to get the freshest tomatoes and produce that Grainger County farmers have to offer!
Free Admission & Free Parking! And there’s even a Festival Street Dance on Thursday, July 28 beginning at 6:30 p.m. on the grounds of Rutledge Middle School. On Friday at 6:30 pm, be sure to see the 10th Annual Grainger County Opry featuring several bluegrass and gospel music performers from around the region.
Friday, July 29, 2016
12:00 pm – Festival Opens: Living History and Agricultural Show of Antique Tractors
6:30 pm – 10th Annual Grainger County Opry
8:00 pm – Festival Closes for the Day
Saturday, July 30, 2016
7:30 am – Mater Madness 5K Run
9:00 am – Festival Opens: Art & Authors Show and Children’s Activities
9:00 am – Main Stage: The Mason Dixon Boys
10:00 am – The Famous Tomato Festival Wars (behind the Vo-Tech Building)
10:15 am – Reggie Coleman (Main Stage)
11:30 am – The Matthew Hickey Band (Main Stage)
1:30 pm – Shotgun Railroad (Main Stage)
2:15 pm – Mary Kutter (Main Stage)
3:30 pm – Dan Deel (Main Stage)
4:00 pm – Icy Holler and Primitive Quartet (School Gymnasium)
5:00 pm – Wild Blue Yonder (Main Stage)
7:00 pm – Festival Closes for the Day
7:30 pm – Kentucky Headhunters (Football Field – Gates open at 5:30 pm)