Food, wine and civic pride

I’ve marked my calendar for two decades now for downtown’s best party of the year: The San Diego Food + Wine Festival.

The nationally acclaimed feast of food, wine and civic pride, including lead-up events, takes place Nov. 2-9.

On the festival itinerary: Pop-up dinners cooked by celebrity chefs, a Culinary Expedition to Mexico, an educational Food Summit and then…the Grand Weekend.

You know what happens at a food and wine festival with 300 F&B brands and more than 800 wines, spirits and beers in the mix. In preparation for the Grand Decant (Nov. 7), Grand Tasting (Nov. 8) and Grand Fiesta (Nov. 9), I aim to shed 5-10 pounds and get 10-12 hours of sleep per night. To date, I’ve never succeeded in that. But hope springs eternal just before the Brandt Beef starts smoking on the barbecue.

The San Diego Sun is not alone in naming it a “Best Annual Event.” Nationally, it’s been No. 1 and in the Top 10 since 2022 in the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice travel award contest. It was picked as the 2024 “Festival of the Year” by FestForums, a national conference series that rates events like Coachella and SXSW. The festival has also received kudos from the Travel Channel, Wine Enthusiast and Forbes. This year, Southwest Airlines is a major sponsor.

It’s a national treasure in downtown’s backyard. I’ll be at the Grand Tasting on the bay-kissed Embarcadero Marina Park North with 6,000 other overindulging souls. You’ll also see me the next day at Liberty Station for the Grand Fiesta. Thousands of us will keep saying, “Just one more taco…”

I’ll start my diet on Monday.

For festival ticket information, go to: SDFWF.