The eighth annual New York City Wine & Food Festival, held October 15 to 18, once again featured chef-hosted dinners, walk-around tastings, late-night parties, and seminars at venues across the city, with the larger events taking place at the main culinary campus located at Piers 92 and 94 in Midtown. The four-day festival, with the Food Network and Cooking Channel as its title sponsors, included returning fan favorites like Jets & Chefs: the Ultimate Tailgate hosted by Mario Batali and the Grand Tasting presented by ShopRite.
New in 2015, Mexico joined the festivities as the culinary destination of the year, a new designation created this year. The country's cuisine was showcased at three events including a special pavilion at the Grand Tasting, which featured Mexican and American chefs teaming up to offer a collaborative interpretation of Mexican flavors; a dinner with chefs Enrique Olvera and Jordi Roca; and Tacos & Tequila hosted this year by Aarón Sánchez.
Other new offerings added to this year’s program included the Sweet Masquerade hosted by Dominique Ansel and Pecko Zantilaveevan, Veg Out With Hungryroot hosted by Haylie Duff, and the Art of Tiki: a Cocktail Showdown presented by Cocktail Kingdom hosted by Emeril Lagasse.
In addition to the eating and cooking, brands, sponsors, and partners, such as Delta, Samsung, Coca-Cola, and Ronzoni, presented customized activations and integrations that catered to each event's crowd and theme.
All proceeds from the festival benefit Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign and the Food Bank for New York City.
Attendees and staff posed with culinary props inside an oversize pasta box at the Ronzoni activation.
Chefs including Food Network star Alex Guarnaschelli greeted fans and signed books at the Twitter Food-branded station during the Grand Tasting at Pier 94.
The liquor brand debuted its new flavored bourbon—Jim Beam Apple—with an impressive tree display featuring dangling fruit and samples at the Grand Tasting.
Festival attendees were able to print and mail a sharable postcard by using the hashtag #CocaColaNYC at the beverage brand's activation. Mini Coca-Cola-flavored cupcakes with buttercream frosting were up for grabs as well. The company also created mocktails at the Grand Tasting and handed out Coca-Cola Life samples during Pier 92 rooftop events.
Fans posed for a photo at the beverage brand's activation during the Jets & Chefs event.
At the media company's sixth annual Barbecue & the Blues event, which was hosted by the Travel Channel's Adam Richman and held at Good Units, guests enjoyed barbecue fare and played branded backyard games like cornhole.
In addition to samples of its popular coconut water, Vita Coco's activation also featured popcorn made with the brand's coconut oil.
The centerpiece of the brand’s activation at the festival was the Samsung Lounge, an immersive space located at Pier 92. There, attendees enjoyed snacks and one-on-one chef demos, as well as learned about Samsung's new products. The brand's appliances were also used during the culinary demonstrations at the Grand Tasting.
During the Pier 92 events, the online deals site turned things upside-down with two different photo booth vignettes, a topsy-turvy pizza parlor and a concert venue. The company was promoting its mission to help users discover new eats, events, and more.
A new vendor at this year's festival, the meal delivery service's activation consisted of an Airstream trailer with cooking demos and a “guess the spices” giveaway during the Grand Tasting.
For the Grand Tasting, the pasta brand parked its custom trailer—a renovated shipping container with a high-tech kitchen that debuted at last year's festival—on the Pier. Throughout the two-day event, Barilla chefs prepared recipes to promote the brand's products.
At the Grand Tasting, the wine company offered attendees tastings from its truck, which was decorated to resemble a quaint home on the side of the road.
Delta staff handed out branded wine lanyards to the crowd, while also serving up glasses of vino. A lush background of colorful autumnal leaves covered the Grand Tasting booth.
As the culinary destination of the year, Mexico hosted a special pavilion at the Grand Tasting. Mexican and American chefs teamed up to offer a collaborative menu of Mexican flavors.
Mohegan Sun, which sponsored all of the festival's late-night parties, handed out screen-printed tote bags at the Tacos & Tequila event, which was held at Urbo in Times Square.
Staff handed out dishes featuring the brand's pasta from the Pier 92 kitchen setup. The large build out served attendees during all of the rooftop events.
The liquor brand served cocktails in front of a vibrant greenery backdrop with its hashtag #LiveItalian made of blooms.
Guests were able to sit and relax at the company's tented lounge area, which was open during the Pier 92 rooftop events.
