South Beach Wine & Food Festival: Celebrating 24 Years, Returns to Miami February 20-23, 2025

Helping to EAT. DRINK. EDUCATE. | The Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival presented by Capital One (SOBEWFF®) is a national, star-studded, four-day destination event showcasing the talents of the world’s most renowned wine and spirits producers, chefs and culinary personalities. The Festival takes place February 20 – 23, 2025.

100% of net proceeds benefit the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management at Florida International University.

How we are making a difference!

Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university and home to the world-renowned Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management. Each year, more than 1,500 students gain invaluable real-world experience with the Festival – which serves as an interactive educational platform for the future leaders of the hospitality industry. To date, the Festival has raised more than $40+ million for the School.about festival fiu 2

  • 1997
    For five years, from 1997-2001, the Florida Extravaganza showcased wines from national and international wineries paired with food from local restaurants and chefs working with students of FIU’s School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.
  • 2002
    In 2002, Lee Brian Schrager, then director of special events & media relations at Southern Wine & Spirits of America, took the reins of the one-day festival and brought his vision for it to life by relocating it to South Beach. The renamed South Beach Wine & Food Festival® was held March 15-17, 2002 and attracted nearly 7,000 attendees to a series of dinners, seminars, the signature Grand Tasting Village, debut of the BubbleQ®, and a live auction in its first year.
  • 2005
    The first Wine Spectator’s Best of the Best event took place at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach during the 2005 Festival.
  • 2006
    In 2006, the South Beach Wine & Food Festival® celebrated its fifth anniversary and became one of the largest and most recognized food and wine festivals in the country.
  • 2007
    The Festival entered into the beginning of its partnership with Food Network in 2006, during the planning stages of the 2007 Festival. The resulting Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival took place February 22-25, 2007, attracted 30,000 guests. The newly renamed Festival also featured the first ever Burger Bash® hosted by Rachael Ray.
  • 2008
    The Festival debuted its large-scale, family-friendly program – Fun and Fit as a Family, which still takes place each year for two days during the Festival weekend. Attendance at the Festival surpassed 50,000 this year.
  • 2009
    The Festival welcomed King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia of Spain to Miami for a special tribute to the wines and food of Spain.
  • 2011
    In 2011, the Festival celebrated 10 years and released the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival Cookbook: Recipes and Behind-the-Scenes Stories from America’s Hottest Chefs (Clarkson Potter, November 2010), written by Lee Brian Schrager with Julie Mautner, featuring a foreword by Anthony Bourdain.
  • 2014
    The Festival celebrated the opening of the newly constructed Wine Spectator Restaurant Management Laboratory, a state-of-the-art teaching facility built as a result of funds raised by SOBEWFF® at FIU’s Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.
  • 2016
    The Festival celebrated its 15th anniversary with an expansion of its physical footprint into Broward County with the launch of the Taste Fort Lauderdale Series.
  • 2018
    The Festival collaborated with the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau’s Research Division to report that the 2018 Festival had an estimated economic impact of more than $34 million on Miami-Dade County.
  • 2020
    The 19th annual edition of the Festival attracted more than 65,000 guests to its 100+ events throughout the five-day weekend, which took place at various locations throughout South Florida. To date, the Festival has raised more than $34 million for the Florida International University Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.
  • 2021
    The Festival took place May 20-23, 2021 becoming the first major food and wine event to take place in the country since the pandemic unfolded in March 2020. It implemented leading industry standards for health and safety and saw a culmination of 20 amazing years on the sand featuring a diverse roster of talent, with a special focus on spotlighting the local restaurants and chefs that are the backbone of the South Florida hospitality community.
  • 2022
    Pop the bubbly! SOBEWFF® celebrated 21 years in style February 24-27, 2022, alongside 60K+ attendees. Celebrities like Kate Hudson, Adam Levine, Dwyane Wade, Eva Longoria and more joined chefs, restaurants, and wine and spirit brands on the sands of Miami Beach to celebrate all things delicious.
  • 2023
    The Festival took over the Magic City February 23-26 with its largest edition ever welcoming nearly 65K fans and hosting 110+ events. This year the Festival hired Clean Vibes, a company formed and dedicated to responsible on-site waste management to implement a three-stream waste collection system to divert as much waste as possible from the landfill through recycling and composting. Between recycling, the Festival’s Green Team diverted over 43 tons (86,127 lbs.) of waste from the Goya Foods’ Grand Tasting and North Venue events.
  • 2024
    The 2024 Festival was a resounding success, showcasing the best of the culinary world against the stunning backdrop of Miami Beach. Attendees enjoyed a wide array of flavors, from local delights to international cuisines, all while supporting the Festival’s mission to raise funds for the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management at Florida International University.
  • Looking forward to 2025!

    SOBEWFF® will return for its 24th edition on February 20-23, 2025. Stay up to date all year long by following @SOBEWFFF on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook.

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