For this play date review, we’re tweaking it yet again. We’re sharing our first ever girl date!

Once Mary and I settled our spring break plans, we got tickets for the brood to go to Atlanta’s first-ever Panda Fest, an Asian food festival with dates in multiple cities across the country. Panda Fest vendors are mostly local and they specialize in Asian street food and snacks.

Attending were BOTH sets of twin girls, so no boys this round. My husband Troy also came for the food and to be an extra set of hands. H&K are two years younger than A&Z, so now we’re factoring in age gap for this play date.

The OT Part

Food festivals provide a rich learning opportunity for kids, helping them develop a love for food and foster meaningful social and cultural connections. They also encourage kids to step out of their comfort zones and explore new flavors. Just as novel experiences stimulate brain development and learning, trying unfamiliar dishes can have a similar effect. Early exposure to a variety of tastes and textures plays a key role in shaping food preferences and promoting healthy eating habits.

Introducing children to these new flavors and textures early on also sharpens their sensory perception (particularly taste, smell, and touch), and encourages an appreciation for diverse foods. This fosters positive attitudes toward eating and helps build healthy habits, reducing the likelihood of future picky eating. Kids stop eating with their eyes and more with an open mind.

As kids grow accustomed to different flavors, they become more open to maintaining a balanced diet which is essential for both physical and cognitive development. We also think it’s fun when kids decide they like to try new things. Sampling new dishes or new ingredients then becomes a game, growing their curiosity. I think we’ve all experienced the precocious 4-year-old whose favorite food is sashimi.

The Parent Part

Usually, Mary’s son and my girls are the ones in these playdates because of their similar age. This time, we have Mary’s twins. The reason? H&K can be picky eaters and this felt like the perfect opportunity to introduce them to a wider variety of food. It might seem like Mary’s throwing them into the deep end but hear her out. They love playing Little Panda’s Chinese Recipes on their tablet, which introduced them to a few Asian dishes they haven’t tried yet. So when Panda Fest was announced, it felt like the perfect chance to turn their screen-time curiosity into a real-life experience. Plus, they’ve been reading Just Try It! by Phil and Lily Rosenthal, a story about trying new foods at a food truck festival. That made this experience all the more fitting.

We got tickets a bit late, so we were in the Sunday 1pm time slot. As the date got closer, weather was predicting a huge thunderstorm. Sunday morning, we got news that all ticket holders could come at the 10am opening. The event organizers obviously hoped to get as many people in and fed before the storm.

This means that before even getting into the front gate, we had a 45-minute wait. The line was moving steadily, so we opted out of screens and let the girls play around (within reason).

This really was the first time the kids have had to wait in a substantial line; call it preparation for Disney World. Fortunately, the line moved quickly and the girls kept themselves entertained. This was also the only extended time the girls spent with each other. After we got into the vendor area, we had to split up to explore the vendors and get in queue to order.

Once in, H&K knew EXACTLY what they wanted first: Tanghulu, a Chinese fruit snack with strawberries and grapes on a skewer, coated in a hard sugar glaze. They ordered one skewer each, resulting in a $30 bill. Woah, was not ready for that. We were also not ready for the mess that these would make. The hardened sugar began to melt onto the girls’ hands and clothes.

In true little kid fashion, there was a lot of eating with their eyes. They wanted everything, but didn’t end up finishing anything. Even though we wanted them to try dishes they’d never had before, there was no guarantee that they’d actually like or eat it. While there were more hits, like Hawaiian Honey Cones and Korean Okonomiyaki, they were also misses. Luckily, the adults were there to finish everything.

As our time went on, the festival grew more crowded, making it harder to navigate as queue lines began spilling into the walkways. Some vendors operated smoothly, while others hustled to prepare dishes to order (some taking up to 15 minutes to complete). The variety of food was incredible; Dan Dan noodles being a surprise hit with H&K. While they didn’t finish everything they asked for, we were pleased that they at least gave new flavors a chance.

The kids had some time in a mini bounce house and got photos with all of the panda inflatables in between snacks. We did have to sign waivers because another little kid had gotten injured the day before. The bouncing closed once the rain started.

As an adult, the perk of a food festival is the diversity; you can try many different small plates and most of the dishes were not things that would be restaurant entrees. Then came the rain. Paired with wait times, we didn’t get to try as many dishes as we wanted. We left around 1pm and the festival had to end shortly after with a tornado warning.

Our only complaint is that vendors really escalated prices. Things that would be $5-7 dollars on the street were about $15-18 at the festival.

Verdict: Recommended with Help

Smaller kids will need to share plates. Every person ordering their own boba tea or tanghulu is expensive and can be very wasteful if they don’t end up liking or finishing it. You’ll also be waiting longer for the vendors to turn everything over.

Bring another adult. If you are blitzkrieging vendors, you will need another adult to grab food or watch kids. There was a VIP section with picnic tables, and that would’ve been a good option for us to at least have a home base. If there are tables or shade, an extra adult can hold the space while the others are getting food.

This event was in an asphalt event lot, but if we were in a green space, that would’ve made things a bit more pleasant for the kids. But in the rain, that would also mean mud.

Walk around before you make a decision. Because the kids just want to try everything, it helps to know what is available before they start blowing money. For A&Z, this would’ve been a good time to exercise financial responsibility. Give them a set amount of money they can spend; and when it’s gone, it’s gone. This will get them to be more intentional with what they want to eat and shop for. And just like dropping an ice cream cone, their food is their responsibility. If they drop it or waste it, they aren’t getting a new one.

Lines are a given, so go over social expectations before you go. Patience can be hard for smaller kids and parents. Lots of people and navigating crowds can also be overwhelming.

Bring wet wipes and hand sanitizer. Napkins and hand-washing facilities are not a given. Also be ready for port-o-potties.

Bounce house beware. I know lots of parents have real concerns about little kids in bounce houses with older kids, and this was no exception. Definitely watch your kid and pull them out if the inflatable is too crowded or if older kids are rough-housing.

When we left, the girls were still hungry!!!! We tried to get them to eat some protein, but that can be difficult when there are so many desserts around. In between new dishes, we did order Chicken Katsu and French fries, just so we knew they were getting something more filling in.

We still would be up for taking kids to more food festivals and this one was a really fun one. I think if we didn’t have to worry about thunderstorms or the girls being miserable in the rain, we wouldn’t have had to rush and it would’ve been a much more relaxed experience.

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