With September comes the beginning of Fall events season and it sure is looking busy. Hallmark festivals this month include the always-impressive Mistura conference in Peru, and closer to home Feast Portland in Oregon has attracted quite the roster of chefs. In New York City, Taste Talks will bring an impressive group of chefs and food media types to ponder the future of the industry, while North will celebrate all things Nordic Cuisine. Nashville will once again be home to the celebration of food and music that is the Music City Food + Wine Festival, while in Chicago the annual Chicago Gourmet turns its attentions to the Beard Awards' arrival and remembering Charlie Trotter. Here's the full list of events:
Mistura
When: September 5 — September 14, 2014
Where: Lima, Peru
What: This is the preeminent festival dedicated to Peruvian cuisine. Stretching across an impressive 10 days, the conference will bring bakers, farmers, and big name chefs from across the world to Lima.
Yum Yum Fest
When: September 7, 2014
Where: Madison, WI
What: More than 30 local chefs are throwing a party at the new Central Park in Madison. Along with food from over 25 restaurants, there will be live music and proceeds will benefit the Madison Parks Foundation.
The Roots of American Food
When: September 7 — September 8, 2014
Where: Chicago, IL
What: Imbibe & Inspire is hosting its second annual Roots of American Food conference, bring chefs and restaurant from across the country to Chicago. Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski, Dominique Crenn, Paul Kahan, Erik Anderson, Mark Canlis, Gerard Craft, Jamie Malone, Dave Beran and plenty more will be on board to present talks on the topic of "influences," and honor the legendary Jeremiah Tower.
[Photo: Rachel Leah Blumenthal / Eater]
Harvard's Science & Cooking Lecture Series
When: September 8 — December 1, 2014
Where: Cambridge, MA
What: Once again, chefs and culinary science experts are headed to the Ivy League for a series of public Monday night lectures. This year's lineup will bring Ferran Adrià, Daniel Humm, Joan Roca, Christina Tosi, Mark Ladner, Jody Adams, and many more to Harvard's campus.
Taste Talks
When: September 12 — September 14, 2014
Where: Brooklyn, NY
What: Chef Danny Bowien is curating the second Taste Talks conference in Brooklyn, with Mario Batali serving as the event's "official presenter." Taste Talks will span three days with demos from chefs like Andy Ricker, Brooks Headley, and Christina Tosi plus panel discussions from food media types including Sam Sifton, Peter Meehan, Kate Krader, and Adam Sachs. There's also a "Future Food Expo," a "showcase and celebration of 'What's Next' in food."
FUZE.SW
When: September 12 — September 14, 2014
Where: Santa Fe, NM
What: For the second FUZE.SW, the Santa Fe food conference is offering panels and lectures investigating New Mexican foodways. Events include a green chili burger "smackdown," a buffalo feast, and a presentation from James Beard Award-winning chef Maricel Presilla.
North
When: September 12 — September 20, 2014
Where: New York City
What: This is the nine day festival dedicated to all things Nordic cuisine. There will be cooking classes, dinners, a dessert tasting, a hot dog competition, and much more from a long roster of chefs hailing from across the USA, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark.
Taste America 2013 launch party. [Photo: Facebook]
Taste America
When: September 12 — October 25, 2014
Where: Various
What: Once again the James Beard Foundation bring its culinary tour to America with stops in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC. Chefs participating in this year's series of roving events include Daniel Boulud, Barbara Lynch, Grant Achatz, Ludo Lefebvre, Paul Qui, and more.
TMBBQ Fest
When: September 14, 2014
Where: Austin, TX
What: This is your chance to eat a ton of top-notch Texas barbecue. The annual festival will feature barbecue from the magazine's top 50 list, including Pecan Lodge, Black's Barbecue, Franklin Barbecue, and La Barbecue. Also, beer.
Cocktail Robotics Grand Challenge
When: September 14, 2014
Where: San Francisco, CA
What: This is the event for robotics nerds with cocktail skills. DNA Lounge is on the hunt for the Best Robot Bartender, and so far entries include a "cosmo-serving rocket ship" and a "Predator-class intoxicant drone."
Feastival 2013. [Photo: Facebook]
Feastival
When: September 18, 2014
Where: Philadelphia, PA
What: This is the food-forward part of Philadelphia's Fringe Arts festival. This year's Feastival — prominently sponsored by Audi — will be hosted by Michael Solomonov, Stephen Starr, and Audrey Claire Taichman, and will bring several of the city's top restaurants under the same roof as performance artists for one exciting evening.
Feast Portland
When: September 18 — September 21, 2014
Where: Portland, OR
What: The third annual Feast Portland promises to be an exciting one with an impressive roster of chefs participating, like Hugh Acheson, Matthew Accarrino, Jamie Bissonnette, Mike Solomonov, Matt McCallister, Marco Canora, Dominique Crenn, Ari Taymor, Edward Lee, Aaron Franklin, Anita Lo, Paul Kahan, and many, many more. As in years past, there will be a Sandwich Invitational and an Asian Night Market.
Eat Real Fest
When: September 19 — September 21, 2014
Where: Oakland, CA
What: Eat Real Fest lives at the intersection of "state fair, a street-food festival, and a block party." The focus here is on street foods, and the event is totally free to attend.
Newport Mansion Wine & Food Festival. [Photo: Facebook]
Newport Mansions Wine & Food Festival
When: September 19 — September 21, 2014
Where: Newport, RI
What: It's only fitting that an event in classy Newport, RI would be headlined by two classy ladies, Martha Stewart and Sara Moulton. This year's wine and food festival has a decided wine bent to it, with seminars covering topics from "Wine 101" to "New Zealand's red wine revolution."
Epcot International Food & Wine Festival
When: September 19 — November 10, 2014
Where: Orlando, FL
What: The annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival will bring nearly two months worth of food events to Orlando, with 25 global marketplaces, pairings, demos, dinners, an after-hours lounge, and a "sparkling dessert party."
Food Network in Concert at Ravinia
When: September 20, 2014
Where: Highland Park, IL
What: For the Food Network first-ever outdoor music festival, the lineup is all about the channel's celebrity chefs like Alex Guarnaschelli and Jose Garces, as well as Chicago area chefs like Tony Mantuano, Mindy Segal, Paul Virant, Erling Wu-Bower, and Andrew Zimmerman. It is a concert, so musicians like John Mayer, Phillip Phillips, and others will be playing.
L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade Stand
When: September 20, 2014
Where: Los Angeles, CA
What: One of the major fundraisers of the LA culinary scene, this event for Alex's Lemonade Stand will bring top chefs from around the country for one day of food, cocktails, and beer. Hosted by Suzanne Goin, Caroline Styne, and David Lentz, participating chefs include Michael Anthony, Roy Choi, Hedy Goldsmith, Marc Vetri, Michael Voltaggio, Zoe Nathan, and Donald Link.
Music City Food + Wine Festival
When: September 20 — September 21, 2014
Where: Nashville, TN
What: The festival formerly known as Music City Eats is back at it with as impressive a lineup as ever. Chefs like Sean Brock, Tim Love, Masaharu Morimoto, Mike Lata, Andrew Zimmern, Jonathan Waxman, and Amanda Freitag will all be there. On the music side, the Kings of Leon are curating Harvest Night which will feature dishes from renowned chefs and live music and country star/cooking show host Trisha Yearwood is going to school the crowd on skillet apple pie.
Greenwich Wine & Food Festival
When: September 25 — September 27, 2014
Where: Greenwich, CT
What: This year's Greenwich Wine & Food Festival is bringing three days of cooking demos and tasting from chefs like Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Geoffrey Zakarian, Anne Burrell, and Aaron Sanchez. Also on the schedule is musical performances from the Marshall Tucker Band, the Bacon Brothers (as in Kevin Bacon and his brother) and Alabama.
Chicago Gourmet 2013. [Photo: Facebook]
Chicago Gourmet
When: September 26 — September 28, 2014
Where: Chicago, IL
What: Focusing on the James Beard Foundation in preparation for the city's upcoming hosting duties, this year's Chicago Gourmet boasts a lineup of big names like Stephanie Izard, Andrew Zimmerman, and Rick Bayless, plus chefs from around the country like Jeni Britton Bauer and Masaharu Morimoto. On the 27th, chefs Rick Bayless, Matthias Merges, and several others will be cooking a dinner tribute dinner to honor the late Charlie Trotter.
San Sebastian Gastronomika
When: October 5 — October 8, 2014
Where: San Sebastian, Spain
What: The theme for this year's Gastronomika is Italy, and the list of participating chefs is as star-studded as ever. Massimo Bottura, Moreno Cedroni, Carlo Cracco, Juan Mari Arzak, Elena Arzak, Joan Roca, Jordi Roca, and Andoni Luis Aduriz are all on the docket.
Identità New York
When: October 9 — October 12
, 2014
Where: New York City
What: This is the annual event that pairs star American chefs with top-notch Italian chefs for demos and discussion at Eataly. The US-based chefs this year are Daniel Humm, April Bloomfield, Michael Anthony, Lidia Bastianich, Daniel Burns, Mario Batali, and Michael Anthony, and the Italy-based chefs are Rosanna Marziale, Davide Scabin, Carlo Cracco, Massimo Bottura, Vitantonio Lombardo, Luciano Monosilio, and Lorenzo Cogo.
New York City Wine & Food Festival. [Photo: Facebook]
New York City Wine & Food Festival
When: October 16 — October 19
, 2014
Where: New York City
What: This event always draws a host of famous chefs and TV types, and this year the roster includes Ted Allen, Bobby Flay, Rachael Ray, Mario Batali, Dan Barber, John Besh, and Michelle Bernstein. There will be a Hot Dog Happy Hour and the annual burger competition, Burger Bash. As in years previous, the program also includes a slew of small dinners, panels, talks, and tastings. Also presenting at this year's NYCWFF: Paula Deen.
Southern Foodways Symposium
When: October 23 — October 26, 2014
Where: Oxford, Mississippi
What: This year's Southern Foodways Symposium sold out in a record three minutes. The theme for the 17th annual conference is "Who is Welcome at the Welcome Table?" which will be explored in panels, talks, films, and an oratorio.
Life Is Beautiful Festival
When: October 24 — October 26, 2014
Where: Las Vegas, NV
What: This event "brings amazing music, world class food, iconic public speakers and phenomenal art together." Expect big name chefs like Scott Conant, Rick Moonen, Marc Forgione, Nancy Silverton, Spike Mendelsohn, José Andrés, and more. Life Is Beautiful also boasts a stellar list of live performances from musicians including Kanye West, Outkast, The Roots, Arctic Monkeys, Skrillex, Lionel Richie, and The Flaming Lips.
Semana Mesa SP
When: November 3 — November 5, 2014
Where: Sao Paulo, Brazil
What: For its eleventh year, Semana Mesa SP will explore the connections between the family, the farmer, and the kitchen. The international lineup of international chefs includes Alex Atala, Claude Troisgros, Rodrigo Oliveira, and many more.
Music to Your Mouth
When: November 18 — November 23, 2014
Where: Palmetto Bluff, South Carolina
What: This years celebration of all things Lowcountry will have an oyster roast, a 5K (that ends with a Bloody Mary), and a wine and cheese tasting on an antique yacht. There will also be dinner cooked by five James Beard award-winning chefs, cooking classes with writer John T. Edge, and a heavy-hitting chef lineup including John Currence, Ashley Christensen, Jeremiah Bacon, Anne Quatrano, and Chris Hastings.
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