Birmingham FOOD+Culture Festival Starts October 12
The Birmingham FOOD+Culture Festival kicks off this weekend, October 12-15, 2023, at venues around the city, primarily Pepper Place and Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark, and will feature five signature events over four days, including more than nine dinners, an amplified farmers' market experience, and over 80 featured chefs, mixologists, brewers, pitmasters and more. The mission of FOOD+Culture Fest is to celebrate Birmingham's dynamic culinary landscape with events that highlight the epicurean accomplishments of our city.
At Sloss Furnaces on October 14, the cornerstone event of the weekend, FOOD+Fire: The Great Southern Tailgate, presented by Southern Living, will encompass a walk around tasting event featuring open fire chefs and pit-masters from popular regional and local restaurants, chef demos, live music, SEC football screenings and a curated craft beer & wine garden.
"Birmingham deserves a world class food festival, and we're thrilled to be a part of this one," said Sid Evans, Editor-in-Chief of Southern Living, which is headquartered in Birmingham. "We're also excited to celebrate two things our hometown is known for? tailgate culture and live-fire cooking, both of which are core to the Southern Living brand."
Tickets are limited. Event highlights for the 2023 festival include:
- FOOD+Flair: Changing the Menu (Thursday, Oct. 12): a seated luncheon celebrating an all-star lineup of women chefs; $85 ? please note ticket sales will be cut off at 10:00 p.m. on Oct. 11 LOW TICKET ALERT
- FOOD+Frank (Thursday, Oct. 12): the presentation of the inaugural Frank Stitt Award for Industry Excellence, this year to the iconic Chef himself, and honoring other recipients in future years; $75 SOLD OUT
- FOOD+Heritage (Friday, Oct. 13): a seated dinner in the streets of Pepper Place, celebrating Black culture, cuisine and the influence the community has had on Alabama's foodways, with guest chefs and presenters from around the Southeast; $150 ? please note ticket sales will be cut off at 10:00 p.m. on Oct. 12 LOW TICKET ALERT
- FOOD+Farmers (Saturday, Oct. 14): an amplified farmer's market at Pepper Place, including a book fair featuring cookbook authors, book signings and live storytelling; FREE to the public
- FOOD+Fire: The Great Southern Tailgate (Saturday, Oct. 14): presented by Southern Living; a walk-around tasting event at Sloss Furnaces celebrating the barbecue community, live-?re cooking, and Southern tailgate culture. Highlights include live music, a Southern Living demo stage, regional and local breweries and giant screens to watch live football; $75
- FOOD+Funk Brunch (Sunday, Oct. 15): biscuits, brass and bloodies, featuring pastry chefs, bakers, mixologists and New Orlean's Grammy-Award winning Rebirth Brass Band; $75 LOW TICKET ALERT
- FOOD+Friends (October 12-15): public dinners around Birmingham, featuring surprise pop-up menus from visiting guest chefs in participating restaurants, celebrating comradery in the culinary industry; Restaurant reservations suggested
While all of the signature events feature "FOOD+" in the title, food isn't the only thing the festival's bringing in October. FOOD+Fire will feature musical guests like The Sensational Barnes Brothers, a Memphis based gospel + soul band; New Orleans' own J and The Causeways, an amazing R&B/soul ensemble featuring heavy backbeats and a soaring horn section. On Sunday at FOOD+Funk, the grammy-winning Rebirth Brass Band will bring the funk at the Sloss Furnaces Water Tower.
"Along with the amazing curated culinary elements of the festival, we found it important to recognize that music is a bridge that connects all cultures," said Keri Lane, FOOD+Culture Festival Production Director. "We're excited to create an event that not only celebrates our city's culinary talent but also offers programming and live music for everyone to enjoy at some of Birmingham's most unique, incredible venues."
In the spirit of celebrating our city's robust restaurant scene, FOOD+Friends pop-up dinners will take place leading up to and during the weekend's festivities. These dining experiences are not ticketed and rather will take place in participating restaurants around the city, featuring surprise pop-up menu items from visiting guest chefs, celebrating camaraderie in the culinary industry and allowing all of Birmingham to get a taste of FOOD+Culture festivities. Guests may attend these dinners by simply making a reservation or walking-in (depending on the restaurant) on the evening of the restaurant's participation.
We invite you to have a seat at our table. More information can be found and tickets for the events can be purchased at www.bhamfoodplus.com.
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