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Breaking the mold is part of the Bay Area's DNA, and that tradition will be furthered later this summer, when with California's first festival dedicated to halal food.
The Halal Food Festival is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 17, in the NewPark Mall main parking lot, between Sears and Macy's.
Halal food includes meat that is blessed and prepared in a way considered pure and lawful for Muslims to consume, said Wasi Imam, one of the festival's organizers.