Source / Tanger Inc & Michele Ursi via Shutterstock
Deer Park spent most of its history as a quiet farming hamlet known for growing dahlias and fruit, the kind of place with one general store and a couple dozen houses well into the 1870s.
These days, it’s known for something a little different.
The Tanger Outlets Deer Park, an 84-acre, 805,000-square-foot outlet village dropped right into the middle of Suffolk County, has grown into New York’s most-visited outlet shopping destination, according to Tanger’s own property data, pulling in millions of shoppers from across Long Island and the city every year.
This September, that same sprawling lot is shutting down retail duty for a weekend and turning into an all-out tasting festival instead.
Long Island Summer Beer, Wine & Spirits Fest
Here’s what to know about the Long Island Summer Beer, Wine & Spirits Fest before it takes over Deer Park.
From dahlia farms to Long Island’s biggest outlet mall
Long before anyone was carrying shopping bags through Deer Park, the hamlet was farmland, and specifically dahlia farmland, a detail that earned it a reputation as one of the “fruit basket” regions of New York State, according to Wikipedia.
Farming stayed the local economy’s backbone all the way up until the post-World War II boom finally caught up with it.
The town has picked up its share of local legend along the way too. For decades, residents believed President John Quincy Adams spent his summers vacationing in Deer Park, a myth that turned out to trace back to a local Baptist minister who happened to share the president’s name.
Deer Park’s identity shifted for good in October 2008, when the $300 million Tanger Outlets at the Arches opened on an 84-acre plot.
Built in a European-inspired, open-air courtyard style across 17 buildings, the center now holds more than 100 retail tenants, a 16-screen movie theater, fountains, and landscaped walkways.
It’s also LEED Silver certified, one of only a handful of retail centers in the country to earn that distinction at the time, according to Tanger’s own announcement of the certification.
That combination of scale and location, roughly 40 miles east of Manhattan, is exactly why Tanger now calls it New York’s most-visited outlet shopping destination, a title backed by the millions of annual visitors it draws from the more than 18 million people living within a 60-mile radius of the property.
What to expect at the tasting fest
This fall, the same parking lot that usually holds shoppers’ cars is getting cleared out for something considerably more fun.
The Long Island Summer Beer, Wine & Spirits Fest takes over the Tanger Outlets Deer Park south lot on September 26, 2026, running from 1 pm to 4:30 pm, according to the event’s official site.
Tickets grant unlimited tastings for the full session, and the lineup of pours reads like a cross-country tour: Cigar City, Oskar Blues, and Round Table Brewery for beer, plus tequila from Suerte and Green Card, sangria from Manor, and even a peanut butter tequila from Chica Chida, with dozens more vendors still being added.
Here’s what’s included:
Unlimited tastings of beer, wine, and spirits from local and global makers
A souvenir sample glass to take home
Live music and entertainment running the full session
Interactive games scattered throughout the lot
Food available for purchase from on-site vendors
Designated driver tickets for anyone skipping the pours
Guests need to be 21 or older with valid ID, and this is a rain-or-shine event, so dress for whatever September throws at Long Island that weekend.
Getting there from NYC
Tanger Outlets Deer Park sits about 40 miles from Manhattan, which usually means an hour or so in the car depending on traffic on the Long Island Expressway.
Skipping the drive is easy too. The LIRR’s Ronkonkoma Line runs directly to the Deer Park station, and Tanger offers a shuttle package that bundles the train fare with a short ride straight to the outlets.
So if you’re looking for day of combining retail therapy, delicious drinks, and maybe even a screening of “The Odyssey” you’ve found the right place.
🎟️ Grab tickets to the Long Island Summer Beer, Wine & Spirits Fest here before the session sells out.