New York City is one of the preeminent dining destinations in the world and New York City Wine and Food Festival (NYCWFF) is its biggest food festival. Attendees get to try shiny new dishes prepared by national and international chefs, especially those that populate the Food Network lineup, which has its headquarters in NYC. Chefs Scott Conant and Alex Guarnaschelli, two of Food Network’s stars, will host one of the signature events on Friday night, Peroni’s Taste of Italy. This Italian food feast will be prepared by both American and Italian chefs — expect tons of pasta, desserts plus beer, wine — and Whoopi Goldberg will be a special guest. Other signature events are the Blue Moon Burger Bash, Tacos & Tequila After Dark, and Backyard BBQ, all of which include, in some way, Food Network celebrities. The real entree is the Grand Tasting: a city-block-sized convention of food and wine sampling with row after row of booths.
This all amounts to a large networking event for chefs looking for sponsorship and cookbook deals, but it also churns a lot of good food spread out over 80 individually-priced events. There are late night parties, cooking classes and private dinners cooked by chefs like Alon Shaya, Michael White and Kwame Onwuachi. Making the most of this festival takes some research (and some budgeting). Part of whatever you do spend will go towards God’s Love We Deliver which feeds New Yorkers with severe illness. According to the festival website, NYCWFF donates its net proceeds to the charity and has donated $14 million to date.
Many of the events are reserved for those 21 and older.
The Specs
- 28,000 people attended last year.
- Tickets are purchased per event. A ticket to the Grand Tasting costs 205 dollars.
- Events are listed here.
- The events are held throughout NYC but Hudson River Park’s Pier 76 and Pier 86 is a hub.