The New York City Pizza Festival, which is now being called the “Fyre Festival of Pizza,” was held on September 9 and left a lot of people feeling completely ripped off. After paying an admission fee of $74, festival attendees took to social media to report a number of complaints, which included waiting in line for hours, the festival’s lack of pizza, and, for those who did get to eat pizza, the tiny, two-bite slivers of dough and cheese that were being passed off as pizza slices.
A New York City Burger Festival was also advertised for the same day and location, and according to attendees, there were definitely no burgers.
The Pizza Festival in Brooklyn = #fyrefestival. First fifty people got one bite of pizza, then they ran out. There may be a riot. pic.twitter.com/HFn9xZ2ozc
— Chip Shannon (@chipshannon) September 9, 2017
Both festivals were founded by a festival organizer named Ishmael Osekre, who has been building an infamous reputation for organizing faulty events. Last summer, Osekre founded a New York City African Food Festival, which has been called an “epic disaster.”
Following this year’s failed pizza festival, a Facebook group was created called “Pizza Festival Scam Victims.” The group is loaded with people’s complaints about the event.
Posted by Michael Redmond on Sunday, September 10, 2017
The multiple complaints that were made on social media following the event caught the attention of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who has “opened an inquiry” into the event.
Yesterday (September 13) organizers posted on the event’s Facebook page, indicating that full refunds will be distributed to every attendee. Whether or not these refunds will actually be distributed is another story.
Feature photo courtesy amanda via Flickr.