Lucky Lion Market brings vibrant Pan-Asian culture and street food to Hamilton
- Michael Kras
- 02 Aug 2023
Following its wildly successful spring event, a vibrant celebration of Pan-Asian cuisines, culture, entertainment, and community is returning to Hamilton this weekend.
Lucky Lion Night Market took over Bayfront Park for three jam-packed days in May, drawing in crowds of locals to partake in a head-spinning array of street food vendors, live performances, and community events.
However, they were just getting warmed up: the summer edition of Lucky Lion Street Market – taking place at Bayfront Park again over the long weekend from August 4th to 7th – promises to be even bigger and better than its spring counterpart.
How much bigger, you ask? Founders Linh Vu and Julia Park – who first launched the market in 2019 through their non-profit Sprout Organization – tell us the August event will be nearly double the size of the May one, bringing about 200 diverse food items to try out as well as vendors, workshops, arcade-style claw machines, a 19+ bar with a DJ, omikuji fortunes, and live entertainment like K-Pop dancing and interactive games.
That entertainment includes the market’s centrepiece Chinese lion dancing: a tradition which sees multiple performers dressed in a massive, eye-catching lion costume while they mimic a lion’s movements and make their way through the crowds. It was a highlight of the May market that Vu and Park can’t wait to revive for the August iteration.
“Lucky Lion Night Market is called that because we showcase the old tradition of lion dance in a modern way – symbolizing and emulating that importance of carrying on tradition from one generation to the next,” they tell us.
“We truly believe you will find the best Lion performance the GTA and City of Hamilton have to offer exclusively at our markets.”
The Chinese lion dancing will be even more elaborate at the upcoming event, with Lucky Lion Night Market debuting new LED lion costumes and LED dragons, which are built to be operated by a whopping 10 people for an extra show-stopping display.
Of equal draw will be Lucky Lion’s exciting array of food vendors, bringing Pan-Asian street eats in an overwhelming variety that will surely demand repeat visits to the market over the weekend for those who want to try as many unique dishes as possible.
There will also be plenty of vendors who weren’t part of the May market, so locals who attended the spring event will have more than enough new bites to try out from vendors specializing in cuisines including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, Thai, Vietnamese, and beyond.
Just a few of the vendors Vu and Park are excited about include Slow Jams with their Filipino BBQ offerings; Wok N Roll for intriguing pho tacos; Yosh.To’s iconic ice cream burritos and LED bucket drinks; Namwan for portable Thai iced tea in a bag; and Golden Bubbles for decadent ice cream bubble waffles.
It’s safe to say that Lucky Lion Night Market is one of Hamilton’s most anticipated and eclectic outdoor summer events, and locals who stop by Bayfront Park this coming weekend will be rewarded with the wide variety of sights, sounds, and flavours the market has to offer. Don’t miss it.
Lucky Lion Night Market takes place at Bayfront Park from Friday, August 4th to Monday, August 7th. The market will also make appearances at Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket from August 11th to 13th, and Victoria Park in London from September 15th to 17th.
See more on their website, and follow them on Instagram and TikTok.
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