In New York, food trucks line the streets with exotic cuisine designed with a twist - cream cheese-filled hot dogs hand dipped in buttery batter and hollowed out pineapples packed with steaming rice and spicy shrimp.
Destiny Thomas, a Missouri native and owner of Four Sisters and a Pineapple, was inspired by the culture of her former Bronx neighborhood where people cooked Caribbean-style meals.
She moved back to Missouri a couple months ago and is traveling from festival to festival with her booth, serving pina coladas in cored pineapples and selling the fruit fried in batter. As people poured into the Holts Summit firework festival Friday, she was busy preparing the pineapples for drinks unique to anything else being sold there.
"My family lived right across the street from this festival, and last year, I was like, 'I'm going to do it. I'm going to set up a booth and raise money for a food truck.'"
Once she has $2,500 in her pocket, she wants to open a food truck of her own and fill the empty market in Jefferson City and Columbia.
Thomas has her sights set on having a hot dog truck or an ice cream truck. Every summer, the unmistakable melody of an ice cream truck could be heard rounding corners in most neighborhoods, but it has become a novelty Thomas hopes to bring back.
"No child should grow up without having an ice cream truck," she said.
The festivalgoers were also cooling off in the shade where children had their faces painted as rabbits, fairy princesses and superheroes.
Payton Glenn, 5, squirmed in his chair as the artist painted the finishing touches on his Spiderman mask.
His mom, Alyson Glenn, snapped a few photos as she watched. They've been coming to the festival for the past five years. Riding the train, the ponies and having their faces painted brings them back annually, and it has become a Fourth of July tradition.
Most of the time, they watch the fireworks from their Holts Summit home, but on occasion, they'll travel over the bridge to Jefferson City to enjoy the Salute to America display.
"I love what Fourth of July represents - freedom," she said. "Coming to this festival is a big thing we do every year."
The pony rides were one of the biggest draws. Little kids dressed in red, white and blue pulled on their parents' pant legs as they walked into the festival and begged to go ride.
Great Events LLC travels with its ponies around the state for pony rides at festivals, fairs, weddings and parties, said Jack Watring, grandson of the owner. He helps care for the 30 ponies at their 110-acre farm near Boonville and volunteers to work the festivals with his family every chance he gets.
Berkley Baker, 9, sat tall on the cream-colored pony, Ginger, as Watring lead her around the ring before returning her to her mom. The family likes coming to the festival for the kid-friendly activities and, of course, the fireworks at the end.
"I like the gold ones where it sprinkles down," Berkley said. "It's pretty."