Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Photograph by George Sakkestad

Aimee Montgomery (left), teen chairperson of the Great Los Gatos Food Fest, samples the merchandise with a little help from contributing chef Donna De Canti of Pastaria.

Flavor this food fest new and very tasty

By Shari Kaplan

Everything is new about A Place for Teens' annual fundraiser--its name, its venue and especially its "flavor."

Formerly, the traditional Pasta Cook-Off on the Los Gatos High School lawn brought in money to benefit the programs and facilities of A Place for Teens, also known as "The Outhouse."

This year, the event is renamed the Great Los Gatos Food Fest '96, taking place in the Town Plaza on Sept. 8 from 1:30 to 5 p.m. Eleven Los Gatos eateries will prepare some of their favorite foods for sampling, including Chinese chicken salad, gelato, fruit smoothies, several types of pasta dishes, biscotti and coffee.

"Bringing the Food Fest to the Town Plaza seemed like a logical and timely idea," said Los Gatan Aimee Montgomery, the Food Fest's teen chairperson.

"Because the plaza is the center of well-attended activities, such as Music in the Plaza and the Farmers' Market, the committee was in unanimous agreement with this choice," said Montgomery, who attends all meetings, workshops and events at A Place for Teens and is involved in peer counseling.

A junior at Los Gatos High School, Montgomery has served four years on A Place for Teens' board and is currently on the executive board.

"It's really been fun for me and a learning experience. Things kept coming together," Montgomery said, although she recalls initial intimidation three months ago when she began going over the plans with A Place for Teens Co-president Dru Barth. About six other teens have been instrumental in helping Montgomery in recruiting merchants to participate, either by preparing food or donating toward a raffle.

As a sidelight, her efforts to impress businesses to participate brought her two job offers. She accepted a job as a bagger at Safeway, where she said she has wanted to work for a long time.

Montgomery added that past pasta cook-offs were not as successful for several reasons, including being held too early in the summer and the lack of visibility of the LGHS lawn. She said she would chair next year's Food Fest as well, provided one or two younger teens can learn and work alongside her, so they can take over when she graduates.

Tickets for the Great Los Gatos Food Fest '96 are $1 per taste. There will be children's activities, raffles and live broadcasts from KRTY and KARA. For information, call 395-5553.