Celebrating 21 years of continuous dedication, the South Beach Wine and Food Festival concluded this past weekend. Sponsored by Food Network and the Cooking Channel, the four-day event hosted a variety of events from brunches, to lunches to intimate dinners, wine seminars, walk-around tastings and late-night parties.
It was an opportunity for the community to eat, drink and learn about the culinary industry.
“We come here every year,” said George Marakas, an FIU employee. “This is a big event to support FIU first of all, and for local restaurants. We have learned about good restaurants that we didn’t know about before by coming to the South Beach Food Festival. And I think that’s what it’s all about.”
Distinguished chefs such as Anne Burrell and Alex Guarnaschelli hosted live cooking presentations during the Goya Food’s Grand Tasting Village. Meanwhile, a tribute dinner honoring the iconic Guy Fieri was hosted by Master of Ceremonies José Andrés.
During the celebration, all guests, talent and working personnel were required to complete a digital health screening and to show a negative COVID-19 test or a completed proof of vaccination.
The celebration closed on Feb. 27 with the Bacardi Carnival and will be back next year. To date, it has raised more than $30 million in support of the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Florida International University.
