TRAVERSE CITY — The region’s new food and wine festival is about to serve its much-anticipated second course.
Building on a successful 80-event inaugural run in 2025, this year’s Traverse City Food & Wine is “more expansive,” organizers said. The festival, organized by Traverse City Tourism, runs Aug. 19-23 in the Open Space park — and in vineyards, barrel rooms, coffee shops, theaters and boats — across the area.
Two more days were added to the original three-day festival, as well as new events, tastings and celebrity chefs like Andrew Zimmern, Afrim Pristine, Martin Sorge, Debbie Gold and Anna Ansari; several new “showdowns” between Old World, New World wines (Aug. 22) and and beer versus wine (Aug. 21); even a kid-friendly Scavenger Hunt at French Valley Vineyards (Aug. 20-21).
Local culinary celebrities that put the region on the foodie map figure prominently in this year’s James Beard Foundation Dinner on Wednesday when nine chefs prepare an al fresco dining experience to benefit the foundation, said Amanda Danielson, sommelier and co-owner of Trattoria Stella and curator of the evening’s wine program.
“Traverse City Tourism reached out after last year’s event with a real interest in increasing the engagement of the culinary professionals who have helped establish this region as one of the country’s most exciting food destinations,” Danielson said. Danielson is also co-organizing the Dirt-to-Glass conference happening Aug. 20-21 for Michigan growers, winemakers and industry professionals with a public walk-around event.
Returning collaborations also include National Writers Series Conversations with food writer and critic Ruth Reichl and Chef Martin Sorge, and anchoring events like the James Beard Dinner, Bubbles by the Bay (Aug. 20) and The Grand Tasting (Aug. 22).
Last year’s festival also spurred several spin-offs, including the Forest to Fork: A Springtime Gathering that happened mid-May and an inaugural silent auction partnership with the Michigan Hospitality Foundation to raise funds for hospitality education programs through Aug. 22.
Like the first year, the second year of Traverse City Food and Wine has many sold-out events, from “A Regenerative Farm Tour with Ducks!” at Dune Bird Winery to “A Ligurian Lunch with Chef Mario Batali” at Bonobo.
Tickets are still available for many other events. See the full lineup at traversecity.com