The Taste of Elk Grove | Mad Lad Visuals

Elk Grove is a big small town. Everyone knows everyone. There is always something going on, but it still feels like home. The Taste of Elk Grove is one of those events that proves exactly that.

The Taste of Elk Grove is an annual fundraiser put on by the Laguna Sunrise Rotary Club. If you do not know the Rotary Club, they are the kind of people who show up when it matters. Food drives for the Elk Grove Food Bank. Programs that build up local youth. International projects that have brought clean drinking water to communities in Africa. The Taste of Elk Grove is one of the ways they bring the community together while raising funds to keep doing that work.

I had heard of it, but honestly did not know much about it until Lilian asked me to come.

This is what a big small town looks like. 2026

We arrived around 6 PM when the doors opened. There was a band playing outside and a few booths set up near the entrance. Walking in, members of the Rotary Club were handing out plates and wine glasses with the club logo. Isaac and I both declined. We were there to work.

Within the first few minutes, we had already run into people we knew. Shennel, the owner of Sactown’s Finest Print Company. Cherise from The Popcorn Store, which has locations in Elk Grove and midtown Sacramento. When I say Elk Grove is a big small town, I mean it. You cannot walk twenty feet without running into someone familiar.

We made our way through the crowd toward Lilian’s booth. When I finally reached her, she greeted me with a hug. That is just who she is. I told her to give me a few minutes to get set up. Once the camera was ready, we got to work.

Isaac started roaming the floor. I stayed close to Lilian.

What happened over the next hour and a half is the reason I do this work.

Her smile never left.

Lilian’s smile never left her face. People were drawn to her booth. The lines grew every few minutes. You could see the nervousness underneath her joy. Hoping they would love it. Hoping the food would speak for itself.

It did.

People came back for seconds. Some came back for thirds.

Watching it all unfold, it was hard not to think about what this could become. The kind of thing that doesn’t stay small forever.

They came back for more.

I focused on her smile. The way she served each person. The expressions on the faces of people tasting Nigerian cuisine for the first time. That curiosity. That moment of surprise when something is better than expected. These are the moments that a storytelling photographer lives for.

Before the evening was over, the event coordinator had tracked Isaac down and asked if we could cover the broader event. Then she found me and asked the same thing. We had not planned on that. But we were prepared, so we said yes.

That is the thing about showing up ready. Opportunities have a way of finding you.