POC Food & Wine Festival kicks off on May 2nd
There’s a new food festival coming to The Bay: the POC Food & Wine Festival kicks off on May 2nd and goes for an entire weekend. Imagine this: amazing grub paired with top-notch wine, awesome beats, and extra special events that make this food and wine festival deliciously interactive. Not just about eating and drinking, POC Food & Wine is about coming together, celebrating talent from every corner of The Bay Area and beyond – an experience that’s all about connecting with a larger community through cross-cultural collaborations.
What’s cool about this festival is that they aren’t following the same format we’ve seen again and again at wood festivals. You won’t see separate booths just featuring business after business. Instead, you’ll see chef’s pairing directly with wine makers to create a tasty pairing + get the chance to meet them, too! It’s a festival all about community and the celebration of great food, wine, music and culture that connects that community together. You’ll get to learn about POC Food and Wine businesses and find a new favorite – or maybe even re-discover an old favorite while learning something new about their businesses or learning more about wine and how it can pair with some of your favorite foods.
What to expect at The POC Food & Wine Festival
Throughout the weekend, you’ll see some unique events where you can dip in and engage in a new way which includes a few non-traditional events like a sound bath featuring CBD drinks. Blending relaxing sound healing with relaxing beverages sounds like a great time to me!
We’re so lucky to live in in The Bay Area with such incredible talent all around us. I had the chance to meet some of these small businesses a week or so ago and taste some of their amazing food and I’m telling you the menu is amazing. I tried a small appetizer by Cafe Colucci @cafecolucci and while they have been in The East Bay for decades and are well known for their amazing Ethiopian food, I learned for the first time that their family makes all of their own spices overseas.
Festival line up in a nutshell
What am I most excited about? Opening night on May 2nd, there will be an amazing Family Meal led by Chef Reem Assil of Reems California in San Francisco. If you’re not familiar with what a family dinner is – typically a family meal is served to the entire staff at once before service, with all staff being treated equally, like a “family”. The dinner will feature a spread of Mezzes, Bread, Main Dishes, and Desserts served family-style – that means big shared plates of amazing good! Plus, sip on perfectly paired wines and spirits from Terah Wine Co and Terra Sancta Imports, both proudly women-owned Palestinian businesses. Reems California food is just delightful. Her food is homey, comforting and delicious.
Reems California – classic flatbread and hummus – photo from @reemscalifornia
Reems California used to be over by Fruitvale Bart and then moved over into The Mission a few years ago. So now, when I’m over in the heart of The Mission, I’ll definitely stop in for her flatbread and hummus t0-go and nosh on it while in traffic back to The East Bay. While I long for the days that Reems was closer to home, I’m happy they found actually a couple spots in The City (The Mission and The Ferry Building). And… as a complete side note, but worth the mention…Reems’ old spot by Fruitvale Bart is now Wahpenpah’s Kitchen and OMG also super delicious Native food you need to check out.
I’m also excited to see what Chef Christina Alexis @pleasureprinciplediningevents presents. While I’m not sure which beverage company she’ll be working with, I’ve been a fan of hers since I met her at Indie Chefs a couple years ago. She recently had a pop-up at Red Bay Coffee in Oakland and I was completely blown away by her food. She made these absolutely incredible corn johnny cakes that I still think about to this day. She’s also known for making her signature curry Caribbean patties which are just so addictively savory and buttery and… and and… just amazing.
Yummy Caribbean patties by Chef Christina Alexis – photo from @pleasureprinciplediningevents
Back to the POC Food & Wine Festival…
You can meet some of the chef’s and wine makers on the POC Food & Wine Instagram (like this interview with @rizeupbakery) but a short list of some of the chef’s is below.
View this post on Instagram
Here is a short list of just SOME of the chefs, wine makers and musical acts you’ll enjoy at The POC Food and Wine Festival:
Chefs
@reemscalifornia
@cheftudavidphu
@bigbadwolfsf
@sobremesaoak
@cheftianagee
@davidcyoshimura
@rizeupbakery
@cafecolucci
@pleasureprinciplediningevents
Wine & Spirits
@dussecognac
@kacetea
@blackgirlmagicwines
@terahwinecompany
@drinkmadmarvlus
@bacardi
They have a really great line up of music also – here are just some of the folks you’ll be listening to throughout the event.
@shortkut
@djumami
@djladyryan
@rjkoolraul
@kingmost
@cuffinallthangsrnbparty
Music featured at POC Food & Wine
Who is behind The POC Food & Wine Festival?
Make it Mariko, the group behind Undiscovered SF, created the POC Food & Wine. “Our ethos is to CREATE a community-minded, welcome space for everyone to learn about, explore, and enjoy fine wine, foods, and hospitality; CELEBRATE people of color in the food, wine, arts & entertainment industry and the innovation and diversity that already exists; CONNECT leaders, creatives, entrepreneurs, and artists with multicultural communities to inspire new, innovative, and creative collaborations,” says The Make It Mariko team.
What’s next for Make it Mariko after the POC Food & Wine Festival? Well, they’ve nailed it with their inclusive, super fun events, but they’re not stopping there. Brace yourself for some major expansion! They’re gearing up to take POC Food and Wine to even bigger levels – think owning their own spot where they can throw epic retreats and massive events, just like the upcoming one in May. Personally, I can’t wait to see what they’ve got simmering for us next!
Learn More About The POC Food & Wine Festival?
IG: @pocfoodandwine
Web: POC Food & Wine Festival
Tickets available here:
https://www.pocfoodandwine.com/tickets/
Howdy! My name is Katy Atchison and I'm an Associate Editor for Broke-Ass Stuart.
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