As we all start coming out of Covid hibernation, there is a thirst for normalcy again. To revisit the old haunts, habits, and happenings from a better time. What better way to get a taste of those happier days than with a food and wine festival? Dive into these tasty dozen culinary celebrations across the Sunbelt.
Charleston Wine + Food Festival – Charleston, South Carolina; March 2-6, 2022
Celebrating culinary togetherness again, the Charleston Wine + Food Festival brings together culinary artists, visionaries, craftsman, purveyors, farmers, brewers, vintners, and restaurateurs for Lowcountry excursions, brunches, lunches, dinners, how-to classes, street eats, nightcaps and a three-day reimagined Culinary Village on the lawn at Riverfront Park, complete with foodie neighborhoods, demos, live music, bites + sips, food trucks, and more.
EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival – Lake Buena Vista, Florida; July-November 2022
Walt Disney World’s Epcot International Food & Wine Festival offers up a full fall (during the 18-month “World’s Most Magical Celebration” honoring Disney World’s 50th) of global culinary creations, with highlights including: more than 20 global and specialty food kiosks and cafés throughout the park, focusing on the many countries of Epcot, dozens of beer and spirits offerings, and complimentary live music concerts.
New Orleans Wine & Food Experience – New Orleans, Louisiana; June 8-12, 2022
Celebrating its 30th year as one of the hottest festivals east of the Mississippi, NOWFE continues the tasty tradition with the Royal Street Stroll led by the Krewe of Cork, a two-day Grand Tasting, wine labs and tasting events featuring over 1,000 wines, amped up wine dinners showcasing top local and national chefs, and piquant special experiences that give new meaning to the Big Easy.
Palm Desert Food & Wine – Palm Desert, California; March 25-27, 2022
Located in the breathtaking El Paseo shopping district, Palm Desert Food & Wine is a gastronomic oasis featuring some of the nation’s top chefs, vintners, brew masters, and cheese mongers, as well as culinary celebrities, including Carla Hall, Fabio Viviani, and Curtis Stone. From a James Beard gourmet luncheon to grand tastings, cooking classes, and demos, the desert is delicious in March.
Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival presented by Capital One – Miami, Florida; February 24-27, 2022
Celebrating its 21st year, the Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival presented by Capital One is the grand poohbah of celebrity chef events, loaded with specialty dinners hosted by famed television chefs and personalities and walk-around tastings like Diners, Drive-ins and Dives LIVE with Guy Fieri, Asian Night Market, Art of Tiki Cocktail Showdown, and the two-day beachside Goya Foods Grand Tasting Village.
euphoria – Greenville, South Carolina; September 15-18, 2022
Celebrating all things food, wine, and music, euphoria is a four-day fête de foodie in South Carolina’s sizzling hot Upcountry. Featuring a half-dozen Michelin-starred chefs (Greenville is the North American home to Michelin, after all), local and regional gastronomic gods, viticulture virtuosos and cocktail connoisseurs at chef and winemaker dinners, over-the-top tastings, Chef’s Table demos, how-to classes, concerts, and the ultimate Sunday Supper, euphoria is, well, euphoric.
Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta – Santa Fe, New Mexico; September 21-25, 2022
A celebration of modern Southwestern cuisine for over 25 years, the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta showcases the region’s top tastes (including lots of chiles!) and sips with guest chef brunches, lunches and dinners; wine seminars, tastings and live auctions featuring local, national and international wineries; golfing; and a Grand Tasting with over 90 participating wineries and 60 of Santa Fe’s best restaurants.
San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival – San Diego, California; November 2022
One of the country’s most talked about festivals, the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival is filled with some of the country’s most celebrated chefs and the city’s hottest tastemakers hosting illustrious dinners; legendary winemakers and Master Sommeliers pouring at Grand Decants; festive taco showdowns; and a gastronomic Grand Tasting on the Embarcadero with stunning views of the San Diego Bay and skyline.
Las Vegas Food & Wine Festival – Las Vegas, Nevada; October 5-9, 2022
The Las Vegas Food & Wine Festival is a sensory celebration of the culinary arts, featuring a who’s who of locally renowned celebrity chefs, including Todd English, Katsuya Uechi, Francois Payard, and others. Feast on intimate chef dinners, an array of flavorful foods, sensational spirits and other luscious libations at the Grand Tasting at Tivoli Village, and only-in-Vegas surprise events.
Austin Food + Wine Festival – Austin, Texas; November 2022
Everything is bigger in Texas, including the Austin Food + Wine Festival, where top chefs, pit masters, brewers, vintners, and mixologists from throughout Austin, Central Texas, and further afield converge for a tasty weekend. Whether you are grillin’ and chillin’ at a hands-on demo, rockin’ your taco, or getting advice from BBQ pros, it’s a delicious party, Texas-style.
Highlands Food & WineHighlands, North Carolina; November 10-13, 2022
With a stunning mountain backdrop, Highlands Food & Wine welcomes guests with four full days of mouthwatering morsels, luscious libations and smooth sounds at 4,118 feet. The intimacy and access to chefs, winemakers, brewers, food artisans, and world-class musicians at the Grand Tasting, Truckin’, Main Event and Sunday Shindig, along with sophisticated wine dinners, make this burgeoning culinary celebration a can’t-miss.
Atlanta Food & Wine Festival – Atlanta, Georgia; September 15-18, 2022
With a focus on the South, over 150 chefs, pit masters, sommeliers and beverage innovators from Washington, D.C., to Texas, descend on the ATL for the four-day Atlanta Food & Wine Festival. With an emphasis on tasting, tempting, and teaching, AFWF features two days of all-you-can-indulge tasting tents filled with edibles, libations, and entertainment; intimate brunches and dinners; and delicious demos.
