South Beach Wine and Food Festival’s Goya Grand Tasting Village is a Foodie’s Paradise

Our beliefs are finally confirmed: there’s no such thing as too much food.

Food Network & Cooking Channel’s South Beach Wine and Food Festival graces Miami with its presence on an annual basis. The five-day, star-studded event attracts more than 65,000 guests and stars alike. The event has been ongoing for 17 years, has 90+ events and has raised more than 20 million dollars for Florida International University.

This past weekend Miami hosted celebrities including Bobby Flay, Zac Posen, Alex Guarnaschelli, José Andrés, Giada De Laurentiis, Geoffrey Zakarian, Emeril Lagasse and more.

This year, I went to the Goya Grand Tasting Village on Saturday, and I can honestly say, I learned more about the food industry in one day than I have in my entire life. The excitement at the festival is contagious. Seeing people fangirl over these celebrities was awesome, and it even rubbed off on me a little.

But the one thing I learned is that there’s no such thing as too much food. The Goya Grand Tasting Village is right on South Beach and is the festival’s signature event. There were tents set up to shade guests while they walked along the rows of different restaurants and beverage companies who were giving guests samples of their wares. Samples included, but were not limited to, cocktails from Absolut Vodka, spiralized veggies from Green Giant, as many La Croixs as you could carry, and more.

Tips for next year:

1. Research your favorites and then head to their booths first. This event gets packed, so make sure you have a gameplan set and ready.
2. Pace yourself. Remember when I said “there’s no such thing as too much food?” This event is a glutton’s dream, make sure to come early and come hungry.
3. Start from the back and work your way to the front (That’s how I beat most of the lines.)

Basically, I’m walking into this week with a full stomach and unparalleled excitement. All I can say is, South Beach Wine and Food is welcome in my city any day (or week) it would like.

words_and_photo_lennse_garcia.

photos courtesy of south beach wine and food festival.