Atlanta Food & Wine Festival: Wine and dine with world-class chefs

By Carmen Lehtimaki, contributor

The Atlanta Food & Wine Festival is coming back for its fifth year. It will be hosted at the Loews Atlanta Hotel on May 28–31 and some tastings and cooking classes will be at other specified locations. The festival was originally started by business partners Elizabeth Feichter and Dominique Love. They were featured in “Food and Wine” magazine which led to their famous Food and Wine Classic in Aspen.

This event will be kicked off with the Connoisseur Dinner: Ring of Fire and Pig Out: Market Style. Both of these events will be held on Thursday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. There are three-day passes, one-day passes and tickets for individual events.

The Ring of Fire event will be held at the home of Bill Peace, an award-winning connoisseur lounge designer, which means he designs spaces for festival-goers to enjoy their wine and food in. Guests will be able to enjoy an array of spicy cuisines from around the globe. There will also be cocktails and wine following dinner. Due to privacy the location of Peace’s home will not be revealed to paid participants as of yet. There will be complimentary valet and this will only be available to three-day pass holders.

Participants were previously able to experience the Pig Out event with foods from Texas to coastal-style dishes. This year’s Pig Out event will focus on market-style food. It will be located at Ponce City Market. Hosts and chefs include Linton Hopkins from Restaurant Eugene, Bill Smith from Crook’s Corner and many others including various vendors and mixologists. There will be food and drink stations, live music and lounge areas.

Each part of the festival will have a different vibe and slight variations on how casually patrons should dress, although these are not strictly enforced. Prices vary, but day passes start at $185 while there are single events that are as low as $55. Be sure to check the website for information on each event you plan on attending.

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