Killer Tomato Festival

Transportation Alternatives, NYC’s biggest advocate of human powered travel, has a brilliant idea they packaged into a “challenge” summoning our most inner competitor. The goal of the Five Boro Pizza Challenge is to conquer Greenwich Village through pizza slices, our favorite of all quick hit street food. Once you’ve made all your stops the challenge culminates with an after party where, just like in kindergarten, everyone is a winner. What’s more fun that eating 5 pieces of pizza with a bunch of active, pizza loving NYers? Really, what’s better? Yeah, thought so. Saturday, July 30 at 11AM in New York City.

For 7 years now, The Jamaican Jerk Festival has brought together some of the best in island music and food. In a time where music/food festivals seem to hop the bullet train to corporate run monsters, this little indie festival guarantees true local flavor. Even though the title sponsor is one of the largest producers of West Indian food products, you can’t rattle the “real” out of the 5 borough Caribbean community. This year will be the biggest, best and booyakasha of all years with Barrington Levy anchoring the vibes and a quarter mile of jerk stands to spice up the day. Appropriately hosted by our new home borough in Roy Wilkins Park, take the E train to Jamaica center and then get cozy up on the Q5 bus. We promise a Sunday adventure in sound, culinary and transit. Sunday, July 23rd from 12-8pm in Queens, NY.

The cliché “great thing” about living in a city like NYC when you’re food-obsessed like me is that you have the menu of the entire world at your fingertips, just waiting to be ordered, admired, and posted to your Insta feed by your intrepid, food-adventuring self. And don’t get me wrong, I live for the prospect of an authentic dim sum brunch, followed by a dinner of Ethiopian food, followed by an ice cream concoction with flavors more complex than my high school chemistry homework, all in one glorious, gluttonous day. But let’s be real: sometimes “at your fingertips” means a cross-borough subway ride with multiple transfers. Sometimes, the most exotic thing you can fit into your schedule is a slice of dollar-pizza from a spot with a redundant, non-Italian name. And sometimes, the options are so overwhelming that you give up, stay in, and make do with cheese and crackers you resurrected from the dark depths of a cabinet. That’s why we’re excited for Edible Escape, Edible magazine’s annual round-up of the best international bites, all presented in one jaw-droppingly beautiful venue. Delish dishes from around the globe? Check. Easy commute between cuisines? Check check. All that’s left to do is take some killer pics for your followers, but that one’s entirely on you, my friend. October 20 at the Angel Orensanz Foundation in NYC.

The organizers say it best. Donut Fest is a celebration of the love of fried sugary dough with a competition of yeast, batter-y, deep-fried treats. The best restaurants and bakeries in each city submit their best cruller, ring or long-john and compete against each other with only one walking away with the coveted title of “Best Donut.” With that bouncing around your foodie brain jump on some tickets. January 23th @ Verboten in Brooklyn. 11:30 and 2:30 entrance.