Potomac — St. Mark Orthodox Church will have its annual three-day ethnic food festival and bazaar this weekend, Nov. 2-4.

The bazaar will feature homemade Russian and Eastern European food such as piroghi, piroshki, spanakopita, halupki, beef stroganoff, kielbasa and more.

“Making and serving these ethnic foods not only raises money for our church's operations and educational projects, but keeps the traditions alive for our children,” said Tina Burpee, event coordinator.

Burpee, who has been coordinating this event for the past 32 years, says that they see anywhere from 1,500 to 2,000 people come through over the course of the three days.

“Preparations start right after Labor Day and many of our members help in preparing the food in advance,” Burpee said. “Our piroghi, potato and cheese dumplings, are a very popular item, year after year we get people asking for the recipe for that and other favorites” Burpee said.

There will also be religious books, jewelry, handmade gifts, homemade candy, baked goods, children's clothing, an egg decorating demonstration, a raffle room and a guided tour of the church at the bazaar.

“What I really like is that it brings our parish together and offers hospitality to our community and gives them an opportunity to see the orthodox church in a setting that is positive, warm and friendly,” Matushka Alexandra Safchuk said.

“We offer a variety of ethnic foods that are comforting after a big storm, and we are hopeful that we will see a lot of people over the weekend,” Safchuk said.

St. Mark Church is located at 7124 River Road, Bethesda. Hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday, Nov. 2 and Saturday, Nov. 3 and noon to 4 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 4.

Call 301-229-6300 or visit www.stmarkoca.org. During Bazaar hours, call 301-229-9720.