Taste of Atlanta started 14 years ago as a simple showcase for local restaurants. It has become an epicurean colossus featuring food samples from 90 restaurants, VIP tasting experiences and cooking demonstrations from celebrity chefs on four stages.
It’s paradise for food nerds.
Thousands of them will fill the blocks around Tech Square in Midtown this weekend (Friday-Sunday) for what can best be described as the Super Bowl of Atlanta food festivals.
Besides hobnobbing and tasting treats from such local celebrity chefs as Ron “the Angry Chef” Eyester of Southern Bistro, Drew Van Leuvan of Seven Lamps, Doug Turbush of Seed and Drift, Kevin Maxey of Superica and Phillipe Haddad of Cape Dutch, patrons can get up close to a number of diverse and interactive opportunities.
Want tips from world-class grill masters? Stop by the Big Green Egg Grilling Stage, where Kevin “Fatman” Jenkins and executive chef Erik Holdo — the “dynamic duo of delicious” — host chefs who share secrets to killer cooking on the iconic ceramic smoker.
Want to concoct fancy craft cocktails? Watch some of the city’s top bartenders vie for Taste’s Best Bartender title as they shake, stir, muddle and mix libations to meet judges’ approval.
The Family Food Zone stage gathers local and nationally celebrated chefs of all ages. In the Future Chef Food Fight, three kid chefs compete to create a dish with that day’s special ingredient.
The main attraction, however, is the collection of restaurant kiosks that serve wildly diverse bites. Participants this year include 5 Church, Barcelona Wine Bar, Bartaco, The Big Catch, Cape Dutch, Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse, St. Cecilia, Smoke Ring and Sprinkles, among, oh, about 80 others.
Noshes include a Portobello taco with queso fresco, poblano peppers , shrimp and grits, coconut shrimp with pineapple habanero salsa and red velvet cupcakes.
Single-day general admission tickets are $25; the VIP Grand Tasting Experience is $75. Tickets to the all-inclusive Friday-night kickoff party are $65 general admission and $80 VIP. Get them HERE.
Advance wristbands can be purchased online and picked up during office hours through Friday, Oct. 21, at Ticket Alternative, 1206 Spring St. NW. Wristbands let you bypass ticketing tents on-site to enter the event. Taste Points can be added online before the event or at Taste Point pop-up tents throughout the fest grounds.
For up-to-the-minute information go HERE. Follow updates on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
