The center Strip is gearing up for a new excuse to eat and drink its way through four straight days this fall, as Drink Las Vegas gets ready to debut with a heavy pour of celebrity talent and splashy resort venues.
The inaugural festival, described as a four-day culinary and cocktail takeover, will roll out tastings, seminars, chef dinners and an opening-night party across multiple MGM Resorts properties. Organizers say a portion of proceeds will support Keep Memory Alive and the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.
According to a press release via PR Newswire, MGM Resorts will host Drink Las Vegas from Sept. 24–27, 2026. The festival will span Bellagio, ARIA, The Cosmopolitan and Park MGM, activating more than 30 bars, restaurants and event spaces tucked inside those properties.
Who's cooking and mixing
The initial lineup reads like a Strip marquee of food-world headliners paired with elite bartenders. Announced chefs include Roy Choi, Michael Mina, Wolfgang Puck, Tom Colicchio, Masaharu Morimoto and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, while the cocktail side features names such as Christine Kim and Lynnette Marrero.
Organizers say this is only the first wave, with the full roster and event-by-event schedule posted on the festival's official site.
What to expect
Programming is set to range from intimate chef dinners and hands-on cocktail masterclasses to big-tent tastings, industry panels and branded activations that lean into Vegas-level spectacle.
Early highlights include an opening-night party at the ARIA Yucca Pool, a 24K caviar experience at The Pinky Ring by Bruno Mars at Bellagio and a James Beard Foundation evening at ARIA. Organizers also said the festival will benefit Keep Memory Alive, supporting research and care at Cleveland Clinic Nevada, per a press release via PR Newswire.
Tickets and travel
Tickets and VIP passes are available through drinklasvegas.com, and all ticketholders must be 21 or older. The festival site also lays out travel and hotel options at the participating resorts and suggests following @drinklasvegas for lineup additions and on-the-fly updates.
Local coverage has framed Drink Las Vegas as a major Strip play to bundle MGM's star-powered restaurant and bar offerings into one concentrated weekend, a move some outlets say could help lure dining-focused travelers during the shoulder season. As first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the festival joins a growing slate of Strip events that treat hospitality itself as the headline attraction.
