photo by: Journal-World File

Tacos from Lawrence's Taqueria La Pasadita. The local taco restaurant is one of about 15 taco vendors expected to participate in Saturday's Taco Fest in North Lawrence.

Lawrence is a full-time taco fest, isn’t it?

With all the new Lawrence taco restaurants that have opened in recent years, it may feel that way. (I’ve even learned how to drive and eat a taco without getting my head caught in the steering wheel.) But come Saturday, longtime Lawrence event promoter Brett Mosiman said, area residents will experience a true taco festival.

And maybe even national harmony.

Tacos really resonate with people, Mosiman said. “It is maybe the the No. 1 positive thing for everybody in America. Young, old, rich, poor, everybody loves tacos.”

Mosiman is expecting hundreds of people to descend upon North Lawrence on Saturday for Lawrence Taco Fest 2022. The event — partially a fundraiser for the Lawrence Humane Society — is set from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Venue 1235, which is the event space on North Third Street just north of the Kansas Turnpike bridge.

The event is expected to have about 15 taco booths from restaurants in Lawrence, Kansas City, Topeka and Wichita. Also on tap will be a tequila tasting tour, a salsa contest, a jalapeño eating event, music, games and several other activities.

But, of course, the main attraction will be the tacos. Mosiman said he expected every vendor to have at least two taco varieties, meaning there will be at least 30 styles of tacos available at the event.

“Eat one or eat 100,” Mosiman said.

To be clear, the event is not an all-you-can-eat buffet function. People buy a ticket to enter the event — $10 in advance or $15 at the door — to enter, and then purchase their tacos and drinks from each vendor station.

“To be able to sample that many tacos in one place will be really great,” Mosiman said. “That’s the concept behind it.”

The festival is a new idea to Lawrence, but it has caught on in several other communities in the region. Mosiman has partnered with the organizer of taco festivals in both Wichita and Kansas City. Mosiman said he jumped at the chance to bring a festival to Lawrence because it is clear that Lawrence likes tacos. Several new taco restaurants have opened in Lawrence over the last couple of years, and Mosiman has been hitting them up frequently — in the name of research, of course.

“We started partaking in them midsummer, and they are just all fantastic,” he said.

Mosiman said that the event invited the taco vendors it wanted to participate, and invitations are limited to “boutique taquerias” that have been hand selected by festival organizers.

That means a mix of new and old in terms of Lawrence establishments. Lawrence restaurants that will be participating include La Tropicana, which is one of the oldest restaurants in town, La Estrella, which has been in the taco business for years but recently moved to a much bigger location and expanded its menu, and Taqueria La Pasadita, which is at 19th and Massachusetts and is one of the newer taquerias in town. Also scheduled to participate is the Lawrence-based food truck J.B.’s Tacos, which normally has a broad menu ranging from traditional beef and pork offerings to Korean-style tacos and even a zucchini and potato vegetarian option.

As for out-of-town offerings, there’s Tacos Pina, a Wichita pop-up taco stand that has won the top prize at the Kansas City Taco Festival; La Jefa, a Kansas City taco truck that appears to have lots of birria style tacos — the magical taco that is both soft yet crispy; and several others.

Part of the money raised by ticket sales will be donated to the Lawrence Humane Society, Mosiman said. The event also is serving as a food donation event for Lawrence-based food bank Just Food. People who bring at least four nonperishable food items will receive a coupon for a free taco.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

Venue 1235 has a large fenced lawn that the establishment plans to use to host a variety of events, ranging from outdoor weddings to farmers markets.

Most of the event will take place outside, in the grassy area next to the Venue 1235 building. But the event also will feature a VIP experience inside the building that will include the tequila tasting expo, among other features.

Mosiman said he planned on the Lawrence Taco Fest becoming an annual event. He’s also using the event as a way to jump back into the Lawrence event business with his longtime company Pipeline Productions.

For years, Mosiman and Pipeline were two of the bigger names in the Lawrence music and event scenes. He previously owned The Bottleneck and The Granada — two prominent downtown music locales — and was the founder of Wakarusa Fest, which for a few years was a big music event at Clinton Lake.

Mosiman told me he was “resurrecting” Pipeline Productions after an extended period of inactivity.

“We are coming back,” he said. “We are into our fourth decade of doing this. We are excited to start bringing amazing events back to the region.”

Mosiman said Pipeline certainly would do a lot with music, but also would do a broader set of events, like the Taco Fest and others that aren’t music focused. Mosiman also told me he was exploring options for owning his own venue again.

“It is going to be a lot of new stuff coming down the pipes real soon,” he said. “We will get back into venues, concerts and events. We will do a broad spectrum of events. We love bringing people together. We love putting smiles on people’s faces.”