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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

A Feast For The Senses At Comstock Park Music Fans Mingle With Gourmet Chefs For Labor Day Event

Dorothea and Glen Shoup crammed their picnic basket full of goodies Monday afternoon: bears, bears and more bears.

The 19 stuffed bears, plus a bride and groom bear, weren’t for eating. Dorothea Shoup worked feverishly to set them up for a bear wedding reception at Comstock Park.

The Shoups were married Aug. 12 at St. John’s Cathedral. The wooden bear bride and groom were wed Monday afternoon in honor of the Shoups’ marriage. All the bears clustered around and on a brass table, waiting for the Spokane Symphony Orchestra’s Labor Day concert to start.

“We decided they needed to be cultured,” Dorothea Shoup said.

The concert Monday evening was not only a chance for the symphony to strut its stuff on selections from “South Pacific,” “The Lion King” and “Babes in Toyland.”

It was also a chance for hundreds of people to put out their finest crystal and show off their culinary skills. They cooked gourmet meals, set up theme tables and dressed for the occasion.

The park was dotted with hundreds of blankets and lawn chairs. About 10,000 people listened to music and picnicked. Many opted for easy fare from fast-food restaurants or from booths along the edge of the concert seating area.

Others cooked the extra mile.

A yellow six-person tent was the backdrop for the gourmet-camping bill of fare. The four-course menu included dolmades, chilled stuffed grape leaves, a panache of greens with wild boar bacon dressing and swordfish with cajun barbecue sauce.

Even scarier for camping buffs is that the Panisellos and the Schwartzes have cooked the same meal in the woods while camping in the Shenandoah National Forest in Virginia. They even used the same silver candelabra and silver wine bucket.

“We did get some foul looks from some neighbors,” Susan Panisello said.

“Who were eating cream of wienies or whatever,” Jane Schwartz added. “They were trying to open the can with an ax.”

On Monday, they challenged other gourmet fare in Comstock Park for most attractive picnic setups. They placed second.

Beverly Smick of Grand Coulee, Sandi Remley of Portland and Julie Yake of Spokane combined their cooking to create a woodland feast, which took top prize in the picnic contest.

They served up a salmon glazed with brown sugar and ginger, fresh raspberry jam, herbed Cornish game hen and a mocha log cake. The 8-foot table was decorated with a wooden quail, pine cones and boughs from home and red berries from Comstock Park.

“I get to do the dishes,” Yake joked.

For most, this was no pig out in the park. This was elegant dining.

Just tell that to the five families who put together the luau on the lawn.

They posted up tiki torches and ate shish kebobs of mango, guava and pineapple. They sucked on sugar cane.

They ate cake, shaped like a pig with an apple in its mouth.

“When we set off the volcano, you’ll know,” said Barry Leake, who handed out puka-shell necklaces.

The setup placed third in the picnic competition.

Leake listed several reasons that the yearly event was such an extravaganza for tastebuds and highbrow taste.

“For fun,” he said.

“To be whimsical. Something different. Part of the party atmosphere. Celebrate life. Who knows?”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo