![\"S3](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/tfl-l-ftl-grand-tasting-0119-01_217977736.jpg\")
<\/p>\nAt the Visit Lauderdale Food & Wine Festival in 2024, chefs Alex Kuk and Diego Ng didn\u2019t expect much foot traffic for Wok \u2018n Roll, their inaugural Asian street food and music bash. Especially when it started pouring.<\/p>\n
Then rain-soaked patrons in ponchos came streaming into the venue, lured by steamed dumplings, chili sauce and rock music. So did local chefs, including Rino Cerbone, owner of Flagler Village Italian sit-down Heritage. By night\u2019s end, one rapturous diner shook Kuk\u2019s hand, saying, \u201cOh my God, this felt like Woodstock all over again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were missing the peace pipe, but sure, yeah, Asian Woodstock was a hit,\u201d Kuk, Wok \u2018n Roll\u2019s co-organizer and the chef-owner of Wan\u2019s in Fort Lauderdale, recalls with a laugh. \u201cOur little mom-and-pop event filled a need, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAsian Woodstock\u201d isn\u2019t so little anymore. When the seventh annual Visit Lauderdale Food & Wine Festival returns Jan. 19-25, Wok \u2018n Roll will double its capacity to 750, gain even more vendors, and upgrade to a breezy, dramatic new venue: the waterfront Las Olas Intracoastal Promenade Park. Already, Wok \u2018n Roll is 95% sold out, organizers confirm.<\/p>\n
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Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n
S3 omakase chef Ped Phommavong filets a tuna during The Grand Tasting in 2025. The 2026 edition will return on Jan. 24. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n
The entire Broward County smorgasbord is no slouch either: With more than a week to go, the festival is on the verge of selling out completely, a sign of its ever-growing popularity, if you ask Stacy Ritter, president and CEO of Visit Lauderdale, the county\u2019s tourism arm.<\/p>\n
The bash is now the biggest it\u2019s ever been, she says, helped in no small part by millions of tourist development dollars spent in recent years<\/a> to lure new faces<\/a> and well-known tastemakers like the Michelin Guide<\/a> to our shores.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve grown exponentially over the past handful of years, faster than any of us expected it,\u201d Ritter tells the South Florida Sun Sentinel. \u201cThe fact we now have five restaurants awarded by Michelin is a huge selling factor. We\u2019re our own destination, but we don\u2019t want it to grow too fast.\u201d<\/p>\n Here are a few\u00a0ways that the Visit Lauderdale Food & Wine Festival has grown up:<\/p>\n Its Grand Tasting now features 70 participating restaurants, which festival co-organizer Kate Reed calls \u201cthe largest grouping of Grand Tasting restaurants of any food and wine festival in the nation.\u201d This year\u2019s headlining celebrity chefs include Richard Blais (Bravo\u2019s \u201cTop Chef: All Stars\u201d, Fox\u2019s \u201cNext Level Chef\u201d) Eddie Jackson (\u201cFood Network Star\u201d) and \u201cCaptain\u201d Ron Dimpflmaier, alongside Nancy Fuller (Food Network\u2019s \u201cFarmhouse Rules\u201d) and James Beard semifinalist and author Clarice Lam.<\/p>\n Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n People gather at The Grand Tasting during last year’s Visit Lauderdale Food and Wine Festival at Las Olas Oceanside Park. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n And, yes, there are many decorated locals in the mix, including chefs Ryan Ratino (Michelin one-star MAASS), Fergus Conneely (26 Degree Brewing Co.), Christie Tenaud and Roberto Colombi (Union Kitchen & Bar), Pushkar Marathe (Michelin-recommended Stage Kitchen & Bar) and Daniel Ganem (Michelin-recommended Daniel\u2019s, A Florida Steakhouse).<\/p>\n The weeklong event culminates with the chef-studded Grand Tasting on Jan. 24, featuring cooking demonstrations, 100+ food and drink tastings and live DJs spinning under shaded beachfront tents.<\/p>\n Phillip Marro, who\u2019s co-hosted the festival since its launch in\u00a02019 with Reed,\u00a0says The Grand Tasting doesn\u2019t aspire to pack its bill with Bobby Flays, Guy Fieris or Robert Irvines. Instead, the mandate is growing the festival gradually, sticking to local chefs instead of headline-grabbing celebrities.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not trying to challenge [South Beach Wine & Food Festival],\u201d Marro says. \u201cWhen we first started, it was hard convincing people to travel to Fort Lauderdale for a food festival. Now, Broward\u2019s culinary scene is maturing enough on its own. Now chefs all over the country are looking at us as a place to put their next restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, given the event\u2019s\u00a0rapid growth spurt, Reed says she\u2019s cautious about overselling tickets to popular events just to satisfy customer demand.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t want this to be so large that it\u2019s not a comfortable experience for everyone,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n Lola Malyska gets truffles shaved into her mouth during The 2025 Grand Tasting event. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n Ritter, whose tourism bureau Visit Lauderdale has sponsored the festival since 2023, agrees.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not in competition with anyone,\u201d she says. \u201cWe\u2019re a board shorts and flip-flops festival. Don\u2019t want to wear stilettos or makeup? Don\u2019t put them on. That being said, we\u2019re all about economic development, so if we can also convince a chef to open a restaurant in Greater Fort Lauderdale, I mean, come on over, you won\u2019t be sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n Diego Ng, owner of Fort Lauderdale dumpling and noodle bar Temple Street Eatery, will host a bao bun-making class, \u201cBreaking Bao,\u201d alongside pastry chef Clarice Lam (Kaya in Orlando). It will feature an Asian-Latin mashup of flavors (Ng is Venezuelan-Chinese) including a carnita-filled bao bun and a frita Cubana shumai topped with chili crisp. He says the class and cuisine reflect Broward\u2019s diverse palate, which is evolving even as the food and wine festival\u00a0grows larger.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is how we show off our diversity,\u201d Ng says. \u201cBy carving out our own niche, by bringing in our own Michelin clout, there\u2019s not so much Miami envy anymore. We\u2019ve got the hidden gems right here.\u201d<\/p>\n For more information, go to vlfoodwine.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Below, find a list of five marquee events that have limited tickets remaining as of Jan. 8, along with a few classes and seminars. Listed prices include taxes and fees.<\/p>\n Coastal Click Photography for Visit Lauderdale Food and Wine Festival \/ Courtesy<\/p>\n Chefs Alex Kuk, far left, and Diego Ng, second from right, are the organizers behind the Asian street food and music bash known as Wok ‘n Roll. The event will move to Las Olas Intracoastal Promenade Park when it returns Jan. 22. (Coastal Click Photography for Visit Lauderdale Food and Wine Festival\/Courtesy) Wok \u2018n Roll<\/p>\n 7 p.m. Jan. 22; $102.68 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n Now 95% sold out, according to Phillip Marro, the street food and music shindig affectionately nicknamed \u201cAsian Woodstock\u201d will upgrade to the Las Olas Intracoastal Promenade Park this year. With a lineup of 15 vendors, it will be hosted by celebrity chef-author Clarice Lam (Kaya in Orlando) and chefs Diego Ng (Temple Street Eatery) and Alex Kuk (Wan\u2019s).<\/p>\n BBQ at the Beach<\/p>\n 7 p.m. Jan. 23; $108.29 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n Who can stop Apocalypse BBQ\u2019s three-peat? The \u2018cue slingers from Kendall, who scored back-to-back \u201cBest Bite\u201d wins in 2024 and 2025 (both People\u2019s Choice awards), is in dominant form as it returns to Las Olas Intracoastal Promenade Park to clash tongs with a flank of local barbecue competitors in Fat Boyz Barbecue, Hate Mondays Tavern, NEVS Barbecue, Southern Barbecue Boys, Battle Rig BBQ and Captain\u2019s BBQ. The action kicks off, as the name implies, at the beach, which is where all grilled-meat competitions should happen.<\/p>\n The Grand Tasting<\/p>\n Noon Jan. 24; $136.35 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n Also now 95% sold out, this is the festival\u2019s crown jewel,\u00a0with the action taking place under beachfront white tents at Las Olas Oceanside Park. Headlining chefs Richard Blais, Eddie Jackson and \u201cCaptain\u201d Ron Dimpflmaier will lead cooking demonstrations, while 70 participating restaurants \u2014 a festival record \u2014 will dish 100 unlimited food, wine and liquor samples.<\/p>\n Picnic in the Park<\/p>\n Noon Jan. 25; free via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n The first 500 kids will receive a free cookbook at this gathering, which is also at Las Olas Oceanside Park, and\u00a0features food trucks, cooking demonstrations with celebrity chefs, hands-on classes, vendors, live music and a Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital Teddy Bear Clinic.<\/p>\n Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n Select bites served during The 2025 Grand Tasting at the Visit Lauderdale Food and Wine Festival. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n Beachside Brunch<\/p>\n 1 p.m. Jan. 25; $102.68 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n Savory and sweet brunch bites are on the menu at this beachfront gathering hosted by celebrity chef Nancy Fuller (Food Network\u2019s \u201cHoliday Baking Championship,\u201d \u201cSpring Baking Championship\u201d) on Las Olas Oceanside Park\u2019s lawn.<\/p>\n CLASSES & SEMINARS<\/p>\n Flow & Feast<\/p>\n 6 p.m. Jan. 21 at MAD Arts, 481 S. Federal Highway, Dania Beach; $141.36 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n There will be plant-based bites from 2TheRootss chefs Erica Marie Denis and Gabriel Lopez (both formerly of Coconut Grove\u2019s Planta Queen), paired with organic wines from Frey Vineyards, yoga from Michelle Rassner Cash and music.<\/p>\n Libations Exotica<\/p>\n 6:30 p.m. Jan. 22 at Cocktail Uncultured, 1109 NE 34th Court, Oakland Park; $74.62 via Eventbrite.com<\/a><\/p>\n Oakland Park bartending school Cocktail Uncultured will teach the subtle elixir art of the Mai Tai, Fog Cutter and the Zombie during this tiki history-flavored cocktail class.<\/p>\n Breaking Bao<\/p>\n
\nFor the first time in fest history, every dinner and special gathering will include a Michelin or James Beard-honored chef or restaurant, as well as multiple Michelin-blessed eateries from Fort Lauderdale.
\nAll but five of its signature events and intimate dinners have sold out, a festival record.<\/p>\n![\"People](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/tfl-l-ftl-grand-tasting-0118-013.jpg\")
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\nSIGNATURE EVENTS<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/tfl-l-ftl-grand-tasting-0118-05.jpg\")
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