Expect to Take More Than One Bite in 2008!
The Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association is set to offer island residents and visitors a real taste sensation during FoodFest 2008. There are restaurant vendor, food- product vendor, food-related vendor and beverage vendor spaces still available for this festival so anyone wanting to register a space should contact the Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association office at 843.686.4944 as soon as possible.
Jerry Leonard, owner of The Smokehouse Bar and House of BBQ on Hilton Head Island serves as the 2008 chairman of the festival. HHAHA Board member and FoodFest Steering Committee head Katherine Veldran of ResortQuest is working with a bevy of community volunteers to build and enhance the festival’s offerings.
The first FoodFest was held in 1997 and has continued to grow in popularity each year. More than 4,000 local residents and visitors attended the event last year, with the number expected to increase this year with the expansion of the festival’s timeframe from a five-hour one-day offering to a multi-day food focused celebration. A celebration that includes more than 13 events and activities - some free of charge and some ticketed for admission.
The FoodFest 2008 schedule includes events transpiring at individual food establishments and at the festival’s central location of Shelter Cove Community Park on Hilton Head Island.
The Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association will continue its tradition in offering the Best Bartenders Drink Making Contest and The Hospitable Waiters Race, but will expand its spectator opportunities in 2008 to include the Tailgate Gourmet Challenge where local chefs and others will showcase their talent at the festival’s outdoor tailgate kitchen. As well, the Association is partnering with several community organizations to deliver its food focused celebration. The Beaufort County Library will host a section of the festival titled “Cooking with Books.” The Coastal Discovery Museum will offer an educational offering titled “Marshside: What’s for dinner?” The South Carolina Lowcountry Projects Committee of the Junior League of Savannah will headline the youth area of the Grand Tasting Across the Park with the “Kids in the Kitchen” project. The Hilton Head Chapter of the American Institute of Wine and Food will host several wine dinners and produce the festival’s end note activity at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa called “Bubbles Beach and Brunch.”
Whether you're a culinary connoisseur, or you simply enjoy food and fun, you won’t want to miss this series of culinary activities and grand tasting event that showcases the extraordinary talent of Hilton Head Island and Bluffton, South Carolina.
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