Greenwich Wine + Food Festival celebrated its 9th year on Saturday, September 21, 2019. The annual event combines food with philanthropy as a portion of all proceeds go to charitable causes. This year, the main beneficiary is Connecticut based, Food Rescue US. Founded by lifelong friends Jeff Schacher and Kevin Mullins, Food Rescue has become a leader in reducing food waste and hunger in the U.S. Food Rescue’s app makes giving back easier, by connecting volunteers with sources of surplus food and organizations that feed the hungry. With participation in over 10 states and the latest technology Food Rescue has delivered over 6.8 million meals. In addition to the Food Rescue, the Town of Greenwich Parks and Recreation Foundation is also a beneficiary for this year’s event.
This year’s Greenwich Wine + Food Festival began on September 20th with an Opening night master chef Wine gala. The gala featured cuisine from this year’s class of Innovative chefs as well as performances by Rebirth Brass Band and Kermit Ruffins & The Barbecue Swingers. Our favorite day of the two-day celebration took place Saturday the 21st, The Culinary Village, a full day of tastings, games, and contests. We spent the first part of the day enjoying the Grand Tasting tent which provided bite-sized samples from some of the top local eateries as well as special products from local merchants. While out in Greenwich we ran into a few New York favorites. Our first bite of the day was candied bacon on a stick courtesy of American Cut, a popular steakhouse in midtown Manhattan. We also enjoyed a generous helping of pickles thanks to Jacob’s Pickles. Jacob’s is an NYC based restaurant that prides itself on its pickling. We highly recommend their Hot and Sour pickles. To help wash down all the delicious bites several brands were on hand including Stella Artois who offered ice-cold beer straight from the tap and Lillet who prepared a refreshing duo of red and white sangria. Outside of the Grand Tasting tent we took advantage of a major tailgate party with several barbecue vendors including Kow Cattle Company, who served up some of the best beef we’ve ever had. Their meat was one of the most decadent served straight from the grill with a helping of shaved black truffles.
In addition to being the 9th year of the festival 2019 also marks the 8th year for the Burger Battle and the 6th year for the Bartender’s showdown. The Burger battle featured beefy sliders ranging from high-quality Angus beef to Beyond Meat’s plant-based patties. This year’s competition was hosted by Chef David Burtka and featured a panel of judges including Marc Murphy, Jessica Tom, David Rose, Christian Petroni, Matt Storch, Robin Selden, and Bill Taibe. The big winners were the Fire and Police Departments with the Fire department earning the people’s choice and the judges choosing the Police Department. Having been pitted head to head with some of the best burgers in the state, this was no easy feat. Our hands-down favorite from the burger battle was The Rye Roadhouse, from Rye NY. Their burger was juicy and well seasoned, served on a sweet buttered bun topped with Swiss Cheese. For the Bartender’s Showdown, Ketel one presented and was the spirit of choice for each contender. All of the cocktails were judged on presentation, taste, and backstory. The contest was hosted by Gary Dell’Abate and featured a panel of six judges including Ted Koppy, Matt Scott, Suzie Hunter, Erik Ofgang, Tina Redwine and Taylor Kinzler. The big winner was the Cask Republic, their cocktail won in both Judges Choice and People’s Choice categories.
The day ended with a concert by Grammy Award winners “Little Big Town”, a country music band that has appeared on The Voice and Sesame Street. Greenwich Wine + Food remains one of our favorite events of the year. Through the event we are able to network with other foodies and celebrate a shared moment in time while in the serene natural beauty of Roger Sherman Park. We left full of good food and cocktails, excitedly looking forward to next year as Greenwich Wine + Food Festival celebrates 10 years.