New York City Wine and Food Festival Left Manhattan for the first time in 17 years and bringing its showcase events to the Brooklyn waterfront — thereby bolstering the borough’s growing culinary authenticity.
For the annual event, which runs from October 17-20, a giant tent will be set up at the Invesco QQ Campus at the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park, a 450,000-square-foot outdoor space that will host some of the world’s top chefs under a temporary roof.
“This is a no FU for Manhattan,” festival founder and director Lee Brian Schrager told Side Dish.
“We wanted to make it safer in rainy conditions and make it easier for everyone to be in one area.”
In previous years the event was held on Manhattan's wharves, where tents could not be pitched, and festival attendees risked getting wet while moving between venues.
Now, the ferry ships will take foodies from Wall Street to the Brooklyn pier near 59th Street, which attracted 43,000 visitors last year.
Restaurateur Matthew Glazier, who owns Tiny’s Cantina — a popular spot for celebrities and star athletes near the Barclays Center — is looking forward to participating on his home turf.
“Brooklyn’s food landscape is as diverse as its residents, making it a top culinary destination,” Glazier told Side Dish. “Post-COVID, Brooklyn’s resilience has surpassed Manhattan.”
When NYCWFF began 17 years ago, its signature Burger Bash event was held in a tobacco warehouse in Dumbo, Brooklyn. So, in a way, it's returning to its roots.
“People said we were crazy and that we couldn’t do this there, but we were well received and we watched Brooklyn grow into one of the most popular restaurant destinations in the country,” Schrager said.
The festival won't leave Manhattan entirely. It will feature intimate brunches and dinners and “medium-sized” events for 600 to 1,000 people, Schrager said.
Many of these events will take place at One World Trade and the adjacent Hall des Lumières New York.
The festival will kick off on October 17 with Brooklyn Eats & Beats, featuring Brooklyn's top chefs Esther Choi, Billy Durney, Sean Feeney, Mark Iacono, Michael Solomonov and 25 of Brooklyn's most iconic restaurants. Other events in Brooklyn will include Oyster Bash with Andrew Zimmern at Fornino Brooklyn Bridge Park And Cafe Spaghetti x Casa Mono,
Chef Bobby Flay will return to the festival for the first time in seven years. Other top chefs attending the festival include Gabriele Bertaccini, Alex Guarnaschelli, Vikas Khanna, Duff Goldman and Geoffrey Zakarian. The festival supports charity partner God's Love We Deliver.
Anticipated events include Chiao House: An Italian Taste Organized by Gabriele Bertaccini and Alex Guarnaschelli inside the Halle des Lumières in Lower Manhattan, Drag Disco Hosted by David Burtka and Neil Patrick Harris at The Cutting Room Mediterranean Mezze Brunch Presented by Genova Premium Tuna, hosted by Michel Simon at the Hall des Lumières, A Case of Caviar and Cocktails ASPIRE and Sunday at One World Observatory organized by Scott Conant and Antonia Lofaso Lunch at Le Coucou Hosted by Daniel Rose, Melissa Ben-Ishe, and Maddy DeVita.
The festival also features 30 one-night intimate dinners as part of the Bank of America Dinner Series, served with the finest wines and spirits from the festival's exclusive provider, Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits. The dinners will be curated by culinary stars such as Daniel Boulud, Marcus Samuelsson, Amanda Freitag, Aisha Nurdjaja and Martha Stewart.
This year NYCWFF will feature more celebrities than ever before – specifically those promoting their own signature booze lines. Celebrities promoting their brands will include rappers Snoop Dogg, Dre and 50 Cent, as well as Hollywood A-lister Blake Lively.
Lively, founder of Betty Booze, will host a Betty Booze Harvest Happy Hour at the Lawn Club at The Seaport.
“It's a natural next step. Chefs got into pots and pans and now celebrities are getting into wine brands,” Schrager said.
