San Diego Food + Wine Festival returns November 1–8, kicking off Grand Weekend with Friday's Icons + Legends opening night party. Then Grand Tasting and Grand Fiesta, presented by Southwest Airlines®, take over Embarcadero Marina Park North on November 7–8.
Hundreds of bites. Endless discoveries. And a waterfront full of experiences worth making room for.
This year, there's even more happening between bites and sips.
Six new culinary districts bring serious star power and fresh flavors to the festival. Longtime favorites return, wine regions from California to Italy bring their best pours, and interactive experiences pop up throughout the grounds.
Here's what you won't want to miss.
Six New Culinary Districts. So Much to Explore.
Smoke + Fire Presented by NASCAR San Diego Street Race
Follow the smoke. You'll find some of the biggest names in live-fire cooking doing what they do best.
James Beard Award winner and Food Network champion Jonathon Sawyer headlines Saturday's Smoke + Fire experience, bringing his signature open-flame cooking to the waterfront. On Sunday, Chef Oscar Lopez takes the lead. Think sizzling grills, premium cuts, and chefs working over an open flame.
Street Feast
Big flavors, creative twists, and the kind of street food you'll be thinking about long after the weekend.
Saturday: Food Network favorite Chef Chris Oh brings his Korean-inspired culinary style to a district filled with bold, inventive bites. Expect Asian-inspired flavors, familiar favorites reimagined, and plenty worth coming back for.
Sunday: Street Feast transforms into Mercado Presented by Northgate Market, bringing the energy of a bustling Mexican mercado to the bay. Traditional cooks and celebrated chefs from Mexico share regional dishes, time-honored techniques, and flavors passed down through generations. Explore street food, artisan goods, and the sights and aromas of Mexico's markets.
Sweet Street Featuring Luxardo
Save room. You're going to need it. James Beard Award semifinalist Kareem "Mr. Bake" Queeman leads this new dessert destination, where decadent pastries, creative sweets, coffee pairings, and Luxardo-inspired treats take center stage.
So San Diego Presented by iHeartRadio
A little taste of everything that makes San Diego, well, San Diego. Discover neighborhood restaurants, local makers, and the creative community shaping the city's food scene. From longtime favorites to up-and-coming names, this district celebrates the people and flavors that make San Diego's culinary culture its own.
South of the Border Presented by Baja Creativa, G Salinas, CANIRAC + La Canasta
Just across the border is one of the most exciting culinary regions in the world, and its flavors are coming to the waterfront. Explore the food, wine, and creative culture of Mexico through celebrated chefs, regional specialties, and seafood-inspired bites. The Baja Creativa Music Stage brings live music into the mix.
The Festival Favorites You Know + Love
Brandt Beef Experience
If you've been to Grand Weekend before, you know the Brandt Beef Experience is a destination in its own right. This longtime favorite brings together exceptional beef from the Brandt family's Imperial Valley ranching tradition, chef-driven bites, craft cocktails, and DJs keeping the energy going all afternoon. It's big, it's lively, and it's the kind of place where you stop in for a taste and end up staying awhile.
Cohnchella
Cohn Restaurant Group knows how to throw a party. A Grand Weekend staple, Cohnchella brings together bites from beloved San Diego restaurants, DJs, and a festival-within-the-festival atmosphere. Come for the food, stay for the music, and run into a few familiar faces along the way.
Tropic Like It's Hot
A little island time, courtesy of Grind & Prosper Hospitality. This returning favorite brings tropical cocktails, island-inspired flavors, and a vacation state of mind to the festival. And if you were lucky enough to stumble upon last year's speakeasy, you already know there's more to this experience than meets the eye.
A Wine Lover's Playground
From California wine country to Italy and Baja, Grand Weekend brings some incredible wine regions together in one place.
Southwest Airlines® Sip & Ship Speakeasy
There's a little something hidden inside the Southwest Airlines® VIP Lounge.
Find the password on your lanyard and step into the Sip & Ship Speakeasy, where sommelier-led tastings introduce you to wines from Sonoma County, Santa Barbara, and Oregon. It's an intimate tasting experience tucked inside the VIP Lounge, exclusively for VIP ticket holders.
Napa Valley Vintners VIP Pours
Tonight, it's Napa. This weekend, it's San Diego.
Napa Valley is bringing dozens of its celebrated wines to the waterfront. Meet the vintners, explore pours from Napa Valley wineries, and discover the people and places behind one of the world's most recognized wine regions.
Sonoma County Wine Experience
Take a little trip to Sonoma County without leaving San Diego.
Through wine experiences in the Grand Weekend VIP and general admission areas, Sonoma County Tourism invites guests to get acquainted with the region's wines and distinctive wine-country character. Keep an eye out for a special photo opportunity celebrating Southwest Airlines' new nonstop service between San Diego and Sonoma County.
Temecula Valley Dueling-Pianos Wine Bar
Wine tasting with a soundtrack? Temecula Valley understood the assignment.
Settle in with pours from Temecula Valley wineries, bites from local restaurants, and live dueling pianos bringing a whole new energy to this returning wine-country favorite.
Destination Baja
Presented by Baja California Tourism, Destination Baja brings together regional wineries, chef-crafted bites, and the flavors that have made Baja California a destination for food and wine lovers. Sip wines from Valle de Guadalupe, sample the region's coastal cuisine, and meet some of the people behind Baja's celebrated food and wine scene.
Vini d'Abruzzo Aperitivo
A little Italian aperitivo, right on the San Diego waterfront.
Discover the wines of Abruzzo, from crisp Trebbiano and vibrant Cerasuolo to bold Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. Paired with Prosciutto di Carpegna PDO, it's a chance to experience the region's wine and food traditions without booking a flight to Italy.
More Than a Tasting: Experiences Around Every Corner
Cabetos Pops Experience Presented by Southwest Rapid Rewards® Credit Cards
A sweet treat, a little shade, and a chance to recharge.
Create your own hand-dipped Cabetos Pops ice cream treat, watch a live muralist at work, and settle into a shaded lounge with seating and charging stations. Take a break, cool off, and grab something sweet before heading back into the festival.
And for Southwest Rapid Rewards® Credit Cardmembers, the Rapid Rewards® Priority Lane at Grand Tasting and Grand Fiesta entry helps get the day started a little faster.
Maille Maison
French flair meets everyone's favorite snack: fries. Step into Maille Maison for a tasting featuring four distinctive mayonnaise flavors—Original, Spicy, Truffle, and Dijonnaise—paired with classic fries. A little taste of France, one fry at a time.
Hit Refresh with S.Pellegrino + Acqua Panna
Discover an Italian-inspired tasting experience featuring sparkling water with real fruit juices, natural flavors, and a pinch of Sicilian salt. From Blood Orange and Cherry to Peach, Lime, and Limoncello, there's plenty to sip and explore.
Pechanga Live Grill + Mocktail Bar
Stop by for live grilling, chef-created bites, and refreshing mocktails, plus a preview of the dining and entertainment experiences waiting at Pechanga Resort Casino.
Devil's Grin Gin Bar
Bold Texas gin, cocktails, and a laid-back backyard atmosphere. Head to the Devil's Grin Gin Bar from Trinity River Distillery for gin cocktails and lawn games—a spirited stop between tastings.
Blacklane VIP Treats
Blacklane is adding a little indulgence to the VIP experience. Look for ice cream bonbons during Saturday's Grand Tasting and chocolate horchata during Sunday's Grand Fiesta, available in the festival's VIP area.
Take a Detour with San Diego Buick GMC Dealers
Take a break from the tasting trail to explore GMC's premium trucks and SUVs, bringing professional-grade design and capability to the festival grounds.
A Few More Reasons to Come Hungry
The Culinary Competitions: You Taste. You Vote.
The chefs bring their best. You help decide who takes home the bragging rights.
Saturday's Grand Tasting features Chef of the Fest, where chefs compete for the coveted People's Choice title. Taste your way through the contenders, find your favorites, and cast your vote.
Sunday's Grand Fiesta turns up the heat with Taco TKO and Anything But Taco TKO. From incredible tacos to inventive dishes that go beyond the tortilla, chefs put their creativity on the line while guests sample and vote for the winners.
Live Music, All Weekend Long
On Saturday, DJs keep things going at the Brandt Beef Experience and Cohnchella, a live band takes the stage in So San Diego, and VIP guests have a little surprise waiting: a secret DJ who also happens to be a local chef.
Across the weekend, the Baja Creativa Music Stage and Temecula Valley's live dueling pianos add to the lineup. On Sunday, San Diego–Tijuana's Bulevar Descarga brings its signature blend of Latin rhythms, horns, and cross-border musical influences to Grand Fiesta.
Two Days. Two Distinct Experiences. One Grand Weekend.
Saturday's Grand Tasting Presented by Southwest Airlines® brings together incredible chefs, wines, spirits, and new culinary districts for one of San Diego's most anticipated tasting experiences.
On Sunday, Grand Fiesta Presented by Southwest Airlines® celebrates the flavors, culinary traditions, and creative energy connecting San Diego and Mexico, with more than 80 chefs and traditional cooks, regional wines and spirits, and the festival's beloved culinary competitions.
Can't choose? You don't have to.
The 2-Day Grand Weekend Package brings both waterfront experiences together, with built-in savings compared with purchasing individual tickets.
Come for the chefs, stay for the wine, follow the music, and make a few unexpected discoveries along the way.
