SunFest Pairings

We can’t wait for the porking tasty (see what we did there?) good time we’re gonna have at Pig Island, NYC’s definitive pork fest, where the hogs come from small local farms, the chefs are top-notch. The eats are crazy, as in, crazy good and plain old crazy. Especially if you’re not in the habit of consuming obscure cuts of pork on the regs. Where else is it possible to eat locally sourced pig head tacos and crispy pig ear lettuce wraps in the same meal? But if that’s not exactly your jam, don’t worry, there will be lots of tamer fare to pig out on, too. Although we wouldn’t exactly call last year’s bacon banana bread with caramelized bacon “tame.” If you’re still not convinced, maybe the all-inclusive ticket with unlimited pork and free-flowing beer, wine, and cider will push your to snap up a ticket. So go ahead — go completely hog wild. Saturday, September 10th from 11:30am to 4pm in Brooklyn.

This weekend The World’s Fare comes back to its Citifield home for year two. We loved it last year. It continues to be a heartthrob now with 100+ food vendors representing what we think is almost as many countries. For years we’ve toyed with the idea of a world tour without leaving the five NYC Boros and The World’s Fare brings that vision closer to reality each year. In addition to the culturally focused food, there’s a World Market Bazaar hawking wares from around the globe, international music and dance performances and an international craft brew pavilion boasting 60+ selections. Some of the big hits we’re looking forward to are Balkin Bites, Mangalista and, of course, The Arepa Lady. She’s been a Queens staples for over 2 decades now, or at least it feels that way. Our favorite part of all this is that it sits adjacent to the old world 19xx world’s fairgrounds. A mostly abandoned set of structures often seen from you LIE jitney ride out to Long Island or of Men in Black fame. On the contrary, those willing to explore will find much more than ruins. The Queens Museum has lots of awesome things to see. My favorite is the miniature Manhattan on display. I can stare at it for hours picking out my old apartment buildings and hangouts. We recommend, load up on some snacks and then take a walk over, by the time you get back to the Fare you’ll be hungry enough for your round two. May 18th + 19th from 12pm-9pm at Citi Field in Queens.

We love a good Taste Festival. Next week is Sydney. Some of Australia’s greatest chefs are cooking up some of their most creative and favorite bites for you to snack on while sipping that lil’ something you best have in your other hand. By that we mean BOOZE. This event is jammed with options and, from what we can tell, really well organized. Their list of attractions hits every possible machination from tastings to lounges to learning. Wish we could get down under but hope some of you already are. March 10-13 at Centennial Park.

As part of the Food Book Fair, Foodieodicals has become one of the most popular events of the weekend. Given the increased influx of Food Zines this past year, we’re sure this is going to be bigger and better and tastier than all previous years combined. With shot outs like “Coachella of writing about eating,” or “a voracious reader’s dream,” and “food geek heaven”, it’s now wonder where you’ll find us in early May. Let’s not fight over the last copy of Life&Thyme…OK?…Please?…See you in the BK. May 1 from 2-6PM @ Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn.