Attending The Grand Tasting With Food Sensitivities - My Experience At The Food Network New York City Wine And Food Festival
Attending food-related events can be challenging if you have food sensitivities or intolerances. The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival was an event I have always wanted to go to, but I was concerned about whether I could partake in most of the tasting opportunities as I am lactose intolerant and have other food sensitivities. As a press invitee, I was given the fantastic opportunity to attend the event, and I can confidently say there was SO much variety and alternative options, and I did not experience any stomach issues after eating at damn near every booth.
If you tend to shy away from events like this due to food intolerances or sensitivities, you should reconsider putting this on your radar. In my experience, it was well worth the $220 they charged for one ticket.
About nycwff
Getty Images
The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival (NYCWFF), presented by Invesco QQQ, is a four-day annual Festival that showcases the talents of the world's most renowned wine and spirits producers, chefs, culinary personalities, and America's most beloved television shows across 80 events in Manhattan and Brooklyn. On average, the Festival draws approximately 48,000 fans each year.
What I love the most about this event is that it supports NYC’s only provider of life-sustaining meals and nutrition consulting for New Yorkers living with severe illness, God’s Love We Deliver. 100% of the net proceeds from the festival support God’s Love We Deliver.
The Grand Tasting - Saturday
I attended the Grand Tasting on Saturday. This event was held at the Invesco QQQ Festival campus at Brooklyn Army Terminal.
The event started at 1 p.m. for priority entry but at 1:30 p.m. for everyone else, and it ended at 6 p.m. At the event, you spend an entire afternoon walking from station to station, table to table, all while you sample some of the finest food and drinks that NYC has to offer and enjoy entertainment from your favorite chefs and culinary personalities.
Everything included with your ticket as of Oct 2024 the prices ranged from $220 for General Admission to $272 for Priority Entry
If you can swing the cost, I suggest buying the priority entry ticket because after about an hour, it was pretty packed, and the lines were long even though they went fast. Being in there with fewer people for 30 minutes will make your experience more enjoyable. This event was held on the same weekend as the New York Comic-Con (NYCC), and I attended both events. After a couple of hours at NYCWFF, I felt like I was at NYCC because of how packed it was.
The line to get in - Getty Images
In the future, they should allot more space for the event or limit the number of tickets because the event wasn’t sold out, but I can’t imagine there being more people than this.
getting there by the express Ferry
The NYCWFF Ferry powered by Invesco QQQ had direct service to and from Wall Street/Pier 11 every hour with the NYC Ferry. I have never been on a ferry before, and the only time I have ever been on a vessel was when I went on Oasis of the Seas; that ship is enormous, and I still felt the motion (and liked it, tbh), so I was terrified of getting sea sick while being on such a smaller vessel.
As the Ferry came in and I noticed how rocky it was, I got super nervous, but I ended up liking the rockiness of the Ferry. Sitting on the top deck, the breeze helped me center myself. I did feel a bit dizzy whenever I put my head down, though. But I would ride the Ferry again because it is much better than taking the subway. It’s a relaxing and scenic ride that takes about 30 minutes.
Buying tickets could be confusing if you are not used to public transportation. Many people were looking for ferry itineraries in the app with NYCWFF as a destination, but you just had to buy a standard ferry ticket as one trip was the same fare no matter which Ferry you needed.
Returning from the food festival, we did not take the express Ferry. We got on the local Ferry, which was a bit longer—almost an hour. It made three stops, one at Governors Island and two near Brooklyn Bridge Park. I was annoyed at first, but then it turned out to be a nice experience. The people on the Ferry were amicable and asked questions about the event. It was also golden hour, so the NYC skyline was gorgeous.
The Food - Vegan
Brigs ice cream
I don’t remember the name of the flavor, but it was the best vegan ice cream I have ever had. There were hints of honeycomb and bananas; ugh, it was delicious 🤤
black rican vegan
I have never been a fan of meat substitutes, so I was skeptical when I got this and saw how it looked like pork, but it was GOOD. I was shoveling it in my mouth when a worker came over and asked me if it was good. With half of it on my face, I nodded, and he gave me a free Food Network hat 😭.
pinche vegana
THIS TASTED JUST LIKE A GROUND BEEF TACO IDK HOW THEY DID IT BUT IT WAS SO DAMN GOOD I WISH I GOT MORE 10/10.
The food - NON VEGAN
I sampled so much food they had to roll me out of that place.
This had some cheese on top, and it did not bother me, probably because it was a small amount. Nevertheless, this was DELICIOUS.
La'maoli
Left: Bourbon Dessert - Sticky and Tasty
Right: Jerk Chicken Taco - I liked the salsa on this one
Raising Cane's
This was one chicken tender with sauce on the bottom. Idk why ya’ll talk trash about Raising Cane’s.
It was decent, not horrible like ya’ll say 😅.
bareburger
Getty Images
Truffle Cheesesteak. My first time having truffles, and I now understand the hype.
Brooklyn Dumpling Shop
Top: Korean Dumpling
Bottom: Wagu Dumpling - THIS DUMPLING WAS SCRUMPTIOUS 🤤
Perdue
Chicken Nuggets. I need to buy these in the store because they taste real.
Didn’t eat these just though they were pretty.
mao’s bao - pork dumplings
They ran out of the other dumplings and only had pork, which was still very good. I didn’t like the sauce because it reminded me of eel sauce, and I don’t like eel sauce, but the buns were tasty and hearty by themselves.
breads bakery - chocolate babka
The guy that was serving at this booth was nice and I never had Babka before, but it was delicious 😅
Drinks
I don’t drink, but my travel companion (mother) does. I thought the drinks were cute.
Demonstrations & Book signings
Alex Guarnaschelli
Geoffrey Zakarian
I saw two demonstrations: Geoffrey Zakarian and Alex Guarnaschelli. These demonstrations were like Q&A sessions, where you could ask them anything while they were cooking, and sometimes, you could even taste the food they were making.
Seeing the chefs in real life was weird because I have been watching them on television for years. It’s not the same as seeing an Actor in real life. I don’t know how to explain it, but a good example is when I went to the Seth Meyers show. Seeing Seth Meyers in real life was kind of weird, but seeing his guest, Adam Driver (my favorite male actor), was mind-blowing on a fangirl level.
I think I’m just yapping.
Getty Images
After each demonstration, they held book signings. You could purchase a book or bring your own, and they would sign it, but I am unsure if there was an extra charge as we didn’t do this. My mother wanted to get her cookbook signed by Kardea Brwon, but her signing and demonstration happened a bit too late.
Tips
Freebie!
Come hungry, and don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone
If you have any food sensitivities, intolerances, or allergies, ask questions and read the signs no matter how long the line is and how rushed you may feel by those in line.
Be sure to download the Ferry app on your phone, but also look up the Ferry schedule on the NYCWFF website because it is not available on the app. In 2024, the ferry departed Wall Street/ Pier 11 and the Brooklyn Army Terminal every hour, and they suggested getting there 15 minutes before departure.
Make time for the demonstrations; they are informal and fun!
final thoughts
This was the most unique event I have been to and easily one of my favorites. I would come back to this now that I know there are many different options for those who have food sensitivities or intolerances and even those who don’t drink alcohol like myself. The amount of food and drink you can eat completely justifies the price, and it was just a fun and chill atmosphere. I can only imagine how the vibes are at the events at night. We saw them setting up for the Boby Flay dance party, and it looked like a vibe.
Next year, I would return to the Grand Tasting and try to go to the Burger Bash because I am what you would call a burger connoisseur.
Hi! I’m Andrea, the creator of Cinematic Excursions.
I am a socially anxious girl who loves to travel, write about travel, attend various comic cons and events, write movie analyses, and yap about all things fandom.
I am a video editor, photographer, and travel content creator from New York City, and I have a useless film degree.
Follow Me!
RELATED POSTS
I Spent Seven Days On Oasis Of The Seas - Here Is My Experience Cruising For The First Time
First Time At Anime NYC? Here Are Some Tips From A NYC Comic-Con Pro And Anime NYC Veteran
First Time At NYCC? Here Are Tips From A New York Comic-Con Pro
My First Ren Faire - What To Know Before Going To The New York Renaissance Faire