Tristan Williams
There was no shortage of tomatoes at last summer’s inaugural Tomato Tomato Fest—just not always in the way you’d expect.
Held at The Little Market at Lampo, the one-day celebration of the humble summer fruit drew an estimated 800 to 900 people, many dressed in shades of tomato red, angling for one of the event’s free bumper stickers. Some attendees arrived in full costume. “My favorite outfit was the group of people who showed up as all the components of a BLT,” says organizer Olivia Gabbay. “I also was partial to the multiple young children in tomato berets.”
The idea for the festival began in Nashville, where organizer Kendall King attended the city’s famous Tomato Art Fest during a pre-wedding trip with friends. “We attended an annual tomato festival there with a huge and awesome emphasis on tomato-themed art,” she says, “but we couldn’t find a single real tomato!”
The joke quickly became a real plan. King and her husband run September Sun Produce and launched The Little Market at Lampo in 2025, making the venue a natural fit for a tomato-centered gathering. Soon, Lampo, New City Arts, and a roster of local farmers and makers signed on. “Voila,” King says, “Tomato Tomato Fest was born.”
The event, now in its second year, embraced both whimsy and earnest appreciation for local agriculture. September Sun Produce, Whisper Hill Farms, and Bellair Farm arrived with what Gabbay calls “the most beautiful tomato harvest,” while the women leading those farms judged the festival’s Home Gardener’s Competition. “It was really special to see three women who, on paper, might be competition, but have a history of collaborating and learning from each other celebrate the harvest of people’s backyards, porch pots, and community gardens,” Gabbay says.
Lampo leaned into the theme with tomato-focused pizzas and a BLT sandwich Gabbay says she’s “still dreaming about.” Other vendors got creative, too: Splendora’s Gelato made tomato cupcakes, Caromont Farms created a tomato cheese, and Little Gold Farm sold tomato-honey lollipops. The Pie Chest’s tomato pies sold out in less than an hour, while Yes& Candles offered heirloom tomato candles, and Emily Ruth Prints’ tomato-themed artwork developed “its own cult following.”
The festival’s art show, organized with assistance from New City Arts, helped elevate the event from quirky market night to full-fledged community happening. Gallery manager Tori Cherry hung the show, which Gabbay described as “the perfect mix of beautiful and wacky.” Organizers printed 500 ballots for the People’s Choice competition and received more than 480 votes.
For King, the festival also offered an opportunity to acknowledge the labor behind Virginia’s tomato harvests, particularly on the Eastern Shore, where migrant laborers and advocates continue pushing for improved working conditions. Last year, organizers invited the Legal Aid Justice Center to participate in the event and share information about farmworker advocacy.
“It was just good fun pulled off by a handful of people who have deeply invested in this community,” Gabbay says.
