But as more and more commercial ventures move in to the jam-packed space in the city centre, are the organisers putting profits over purpose?

The purpose of what was once a grassroots festival made up of community cultural organisations has become a festival of things that don't have much multicultural significance at all - like chips on a stick.

It has become fete-like, with general community organisations pitching their wares, crowding the space without adding anything multicultural to the mix.

There were 339 stalls registered to be involved this year.

There were Tongans selling a traditional watermelon drink called Otai, and a Lebanese food stall selling Arayes, a bread stuffed with beef mince. An Indian meal of Chole Pulao, a chickpea curry served with fried onion flavoured rice and cucumber yoghurt raita, was also on offer, as was German kransky, Peruvian street food and Korean barbecue.

These are the types of stalls Canberrans and visitors to the capital want and expect at the National Multicultural Festival.

Throw in culturally relevant beer and some locally brewed drinks and the atmosphere is ripe for a good time.

You can almost enjoy having to push your way through hordes of people and stand in long queues to have the tried and true multicultural experience.

But the festival is changing. Commercial ventures that have little (if any) cultural significance seem to be more common. Whether or not it is a revenue-raising venture, it is potentially poisoning the feel of the festival Canberrans love and desire.

So should Canberrans fight to keep their multicultural festival cultural, or is it time to recognise that it is well past a multicultural festival, and call it something else instead?

There is at least one part of the festival that has the community, cultural and commercial mix spot on: the entertainment scene.

Groups from exotic countries and dance schools teaching international styles put on a spectacular show for the community.

This year there are 150 acts on six stages across the festival weekend, including showcases from the United States, India, China, Greece, Africa, the Pacific, Celtic culture, the Latin countries and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

If you can find a space, grab a curry and a weissbier and sit down and enjoy the Chinese New Year showcase entertainment. That's a real multicultural mix.