Edible Events: May 2016

There are all manner of fun, food events taking place in New York on a daily basis — from lavish, charity-driven galas to crowded, walk-around tastings and an endless array of pop-ups.  But unless you have the time and money to party seven days a week, you’ll have to be somewhat discerning about what goes onto your calendar.  So here are just a few worthy food celebrations we recommend getting tickets (or making reservations) for now!

The Village Voice’s Brunch Eats (5/11): Inspired by the continued success of their restaurant tasting event, Choice Eats, the Village Voice has branched out with a fun festival on The Intrepid, entirely devoted to brunch.  For $60, patrons will get to sample innovative, early morning-inspired bites from 20+ participants, such as Edi & The Wolf, Tom’s Restaurant, Le Fond and Underwest Donuts; located just across the street, at the entrance of a family-owned car wash.

STREETS Eats (5/11): Benefiting STREETS — a hospitality school and restaurant in Hoi An, Vietnam, where disadvantaged youth are offered a training program designed to give them the tools and skills for financial independence — this nine-year-strong tasting event invites in 14 top chefs, cooking up their unique version of “street” food.  And the current lineup sounds better than ever; look for Eamon Rockey of Betony, Aaron Bludorn of Café Boulud, and even Wylie Dufresne!

MOFAD Annual Spring Benefit (5/12) What sounds better than a museum entirely devoted to food and drink?  Enough said. So snatch up a ticket to this Thursday’s annual benefit at Carnegie Hall, starting at 6 pm where chefs like Alex Guarnaschelli, Andrew Carmellini, and Bryce Shuman will be cooking themed dinners in honor of award-winning author Harold McGee.  Click here for tickets!

The Harlem EatUp Festival (5/19-22): Back for its second year, this four day long festival celebrates the renewed spirit of Harlem while paying homage to its roots, with events like “Dine In Harlem” — where restaurants like Sylvia’s, Minton’s and Melba’s welcome in nationally acclaimed chefs for collaborative dinners — as well as “The Stroll,” an ultimate grand tasting featuring over 35 local eateries, and live culinary demos, with neighborhood superstars like Marcus Samuelsson and JJ Johnson.

CookOut NYC Food Party on the Pier (5/28 and 29): Help usher in the summer season with this Memorial Day Weekend cookout on the waterfront, boasting live music, festival programming, plenty of cider, beer, rose and prosecco, and multiple grilling stations, churning out all-American fare, like BBQ, burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, salads, biscuits and grilled cheese sandwiches.