The Georgia Food + Wine Festival is rolling into Jim R. Miller Park in Marietta this weekend, running March 27 to 29, and it is not exactly a light snack. Over three days, the park turns into a playground of live-fire pitmasters, chef demos and tasting tents, with whole-hog barbecue smoking for hours, local celebrity chefs holding court on cooking stages, and a Georgia Grown artisan village stocked with jams, sauces and small-batch goodies to haul home. With hundreds of tastes on offer, a bit of planning can mean more bites and less time staring at the back of a line.
How the weekend breaks down
The festival is split into three main events: Friday’s all-inclusive Fired Up barbecue party, Saturday’s Savor tasting and demo day, and a Sunday Funday geared toward families and shoppers. According to the AJC, Friday and Saturday are 21-and-over sessions, while Sunday opens the gates to all ages, and parking at Jim R. Miller Park is free. The AJC preview also suggests arriving with a loose game plan so you can home in on the biggest draws without getting overwhelmed by the options.
Friday: Fired Up and whole-hog worship
Friday night’s Fired Up event, scheduled from 7:30 to 9 p.m., is all about smoke, coals and serious barbecue. The Georgia Food + Wine Festival website notes that the evening will feature two whole hogs from Rodney Scott's Whole Hog BBQ, along with a "Meat & Greet" bourbon-and-grilling pairing. Tickets are listed at $85, with organizers billing it as an all-inclusive, rain-or-shine affair. If whole-hog is your mission, it pays to get there early; those long-tended pigs are sliced up fast, and the freshest plates vanish first.
Saturday Savor: pace your tasting
Saturday is the big one, with the Savor session offering hundreds of wines, beers and spirits, chef-driven bites and two demo stages. The AJC’s Monti Carlo recommends taking one full lap around the festival before you spend a single culinary credit so you can spot the standout booths and avoid burning tokens on the first thing you see. As reported by the AJC, Savor ticket holders receive a souvenir tasting glass and about 10 culinary credits for plates, with the paper calling out demos from Jernard Wells and a stage appearance by Nick Liberato. A dedicated Bubbles & Brews alley keeps local craft beer flowing for anyone who needs a palate reset between heavier bites.
Sunday Funday: family day and cocktail drama
Sunday’s Funday runs from noon to 5 p.m. and shifts into a more relaxed, family-friendly pace, with an artisan market, a free kids’ zone and the Georgia's Best Cocktail Challenge from 2 to 4 p.m., according to the festival's Georgia Food + Wine Festival page. The festival lists adult tickets at $25, with children 10 and under admitted free. The cocktail competition raises the stakes with a $1,500 top prize, a Golden Ticket to the World Food Championship and travel support for the winner. If you are more into shopping than nonstop sampling, Sunday is the easiest day to stroll the Georgia Grown booths and actually see what you are buying without the Saturday crush.
Plan like a pro
To get the most out of the weekend, arrive early so you can clear security, grab your wristband and map out your route before the crowds thicken. Walk the site once, then spend your tokens on the dishes that really look worth the wait. Take a minute by one of the pits to watch a pitmaster at work; those quick, informal demonstrations often reveal the small techniques that make a big difference in flavor. Use the beer and bubbles tents as palate cleansers between rich plates, and come prepared with comfortable shoes, a refillable water bottle and a bit of extra cash or a card for additional tokens and take-home treats. The Georgia Grown village may be one of the only parts of the festival you do not just taste, you can actually carry it back to your own kitchen.
