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The Louisiana Food & Wine Festival | September 14–17, 2023, in Lake Charles
by Taylor Trahan Henry
The inaugural Louisiana Food & Wine Festival is a showcase of Louisiana’s unique culture and heritage, with some of the most talented chefs and best restaurants from around the entire state and throughout the south. Live music, artisans, celebrity guest chefs and renowned varieties of beverages – all in Lake Charles for four-days!
Guest celebrity chefs participating in the festival include: John Currence, City Grocery Restaurant Group, Oxford, MS; Edgar “Dook” Chase, Chapter IV, New Orleans, LA; Meg Bickford, Commander’s Palace, New Orleans, LA; Ryan Hacker, Brennan’s New Orleans, LA; Amanda Cusey, The Terrace, Lake Charles, LA, David Rose, TV Personality, Chef & Author, Atlanta, GA.
Chef Benchawan Jabthong Painter, recently named 2023 James Beard Foundation Best Chef Texas will be joining the festival’s Grand Tasting line-up on Saturday, September 16, 2023 at Bord du Lac Park, in Lake Charles, LA. Chef Painter, also known as “Chef G” at her restaurant, Street to Kitchen in Houston, TX will also be appearing on the Rouses Markets Cooking Demo Stage at the festival on Saturday.
Guests will get to sample over 300 varieties of wines, beers & spirit tastings with a souvenir crystal wine glass and delicious Louisiana cuisine from over 40+ restaurants – all included with ticket! The festival offers a wide variety of events for all tastebuds and budgets, from wine dinners and tasting events, to intimate master classes. Here’s a sample of some of the events:
Thursday, September 14
“Louisiana’s Celebrity Chefs Wine Dinner”, presented by Explore Louisiana, Louisiana Seafood, Performance Food Group and Taste of the South magazine.
6:00 pm Reception, 7:00 pm Dinner, SOWELA Technical Community College.
A gourmet food lover’s experience with a lavish reception by the chefs and students of SOWELA and a six-course dinner, featuring a host of Louisiana’s most celebrated chef John Currence, Edgar “Dook” Chase, Meg Bickford, Ryan Hacker, Amanda Cusey and Rebekah Hoffpauir – each course expertly paired with the perfect wine from Jackson Family Wines.
Friday, September 15
“Louisiana Inspired Master Classes”
10:30 am – 2:30 pm at SOWELA Technical Community College; 3:30 – 5:00 pm, Bayou Rum Distillery
A series of interactive and intimate sessions with guest celebrity chefs, cookbook authors, beverage experts, tastemakers, artisans and more.
Friday, September 15
“Fire on the Lake”
6:30 pm – 8:30 pm, Bord du Lac Park, Lake Charles, LA
Enjoy unlimited tastings from some of the south’s most celebrated Pitmasters, chefs and grill masters – wine, beer, and spirits tastings with a souvenir glass, along with live music from Horace Trahan and the Ossun Express Cajun & Zydeco Band, along the shoreline of beautiful Lake Charles.
Saturday, September 16
“Louisiana Food + Wine Festival, Grand Tasting”
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm, Bord du Lac Park, Lake Charles, LA
A fun afternoon of culinary and beverage tastings, with live music and artisans in the beautiful surroundings of the Bord du Lac Park. Tickets are all-inclusive for food and beverage tastings, including a souvenir glass for unlimited tastings from hundreds of wines, beer and spirits and 40+ restaurants. Experience the “Taste of Louisiana Alley” with the Louisiana Cookin’ Demo Stage, the Louisiana Craft Brewers Guild Craft Brews Alley, live music from the Flamethrowers, Rouses Markets Cooking Demo Stage and more!
Sunday, September 17
“Sunday Jazz Brunch”
11 am – 1 pm; 1 pm – 3:00 pm, Coffee:30/Southlake Theater
A lively Louisiana Jazz Brunch will be one like none other before – with an all-inclusive priced ticket featuring unlimited beverage tastings with a souvenir glass, live music, a lavish brunch with a Louisiana Seafood Raw Bar, sumptuous Cajun and Creole cuisine, carving stations and more. A variety of the festival’s official beverage partners will participate with an impressive Bloody Mary Bar, Mimosas, sparkling wines, sprits, wine and beer and more. A fantastic festival finale event!
If you want to attend several events and you’re looking to save even more, check out the festival’s great bundled ticket packages with savings of over $100+ per person. Several hotel and casino accommodations options are also available from the festival’s host partners, including the newly renovated Horseshoe Lake Charles Hotel & Casino.
The most up to date festival information is available on the festival website and the festival’s social media channels Facebook and lnstagram. Official festival charity partners are the United Way of Southwest Louisiana and SOWELA Technical Community College.
Make your plans to attend now!
