Maybe all these cultural festivals in Toronto aren't your cup of tea, but with the summer season nearing a close the best may very well have been saved for last. The Festival of South Asia held on Gerrard Street East (between Greenwood and Coxwell Avenue) starts this Saturday at 2 p.m. and continues through to Sunday. With a short list of sponsors and a couple of them companies that actually sell Indian products, this experience already seems more authentic than Taste of the Danforth.

There is only one stage with entertainment and each act has a South Asian influence. Dance and music take up most of the slots with a fashion show on Saturday filling in the remainder. More entertainment will be provided for children and the ever-popular Henna artists will likely be ready to draw their beautifully detailed work all over your hands for a small fee.

Food tends to be one of the highlights of these cultural events and seventeen restaurants are listed as offering some type of tasty fare. Lahore Paan Centre provides the widest breadth of options with nearly half of them as drinks. If you ended up like we did and missed out on the dosa at the Street Treats Festival, grab one from Udupi Palace as they're the only restaurant listing it on their street food menu.

Not enough enticement? Jet Airways, one of the sponsors, will be holding a contest to win two tickets to India. If you don't glean enough knowledge about South Asia from the festival, a trip to India will certainly do the trick.

Photo by Qehven from Flickr.