Reading Terminal Market was temporarily transformed into a carnival last Saturday, July 13, for the annual Sidewalk Sizzle and Ice Cream Freeze festival.
The event, sponsored by the Reading Terminal Market Corporation and Center City District, took place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on 12th and Arch Streets.
Vendors on the sidewalk outside of the Market featured selections such as grilled food, Chinese cuisine, sushi and Middle Eastern food in addition to goodies like cotton candy, pastries, and homemade lemonade. Also, various merchants sold items ranging from jewelry to kitchenware.
In addition, the crowds of attendees were greeted by Pickles the Magic Clown and entertained by The Dixielanders Traveling Show Band. And children were amused as well -- the Center City District treated them to free face painting.
Inside the Market, long lines stood outside Bassett's Ice Cream, where people eagerly awaited tasty ice cream cones and sundaes from the renowned 110-year-old establishment.
Customers who bought ice cream were eligible to participate in Ice Cream Ping Pong. Players aimed ping pong balls at a platform of ice cream cones. Landing a ball into a cone entitled the winner to a free ice cream cone, while those who hit the "bulls eye cone" took home a free quart.
Contestants and onlookers were given stickers that read, in the spirit of the event, "I Love Ice Cream."
And ice cream enthusiasts could win ice cream in another way -- answering questions in Bassett's Ice Cream Trivia Questionnaire, which featured historical questions about ice cream and characteristics unique to the company, such as the number of flavors produced by Bassett.
Michael Strange, the current owner of Bassett's Ice Cream, explained his original ideas for the events that took place in the Ice Cream Freeze.
"I tried to think of carnival games and then translate those games into ice cream," Strange said.
The Center Court of the Market also featured ice cream eating contests, in which the fastest person to down a scoop of vanilla or chocolate without using their hands won a Bassett's gift certificate. All participants were also given a coupon for a free cone or dish.
The festival drew in people who had never even been to the Reading Market.
Jay and Barbara Miller, residents of Horsham, PA, were visiting Reading Terminal Market for the first time. Their daughter, Courtney, was a winner in the ice cream contest.
"My favorite part is the excitement of the contest," Barbara Miller said.
"This place is awesome!" added Jay Miller.
Carol Renne of Pleasantville, NJ took time out of the conference she was attending in Philadelphia to go to the festival with fellow members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.
"Obviously, I'm enjoying myself" Renne remarked while sampling a dripping cone of butter pecan. "It looks like everyone has been having a wonderful time."
