12th Annual Food & Wine Festival starts on Maui, then moves to Big Island and Oʻahu

An all-star lineup of scores of the nation’s top chefs paired with dozens of winemakers and master mixologists will be participants at the Twelfth Annual Hawai’i Food & Wine Festival in Hawaiʻi.

The festival of cuisines and wine begins at three respective locations in Kāʻanapali, Maui starting Oct. 21, continues at two resort locations on Hawaiʻi Island on Oct. 28-29, then moves to six locations Oʻahu from Nov. 3 through Nov. 6.

Since its launch, the festival has raised over $3.1 million to support local agricultural and culinary programs.

Additional events will be announced in the coming months, as the Hawaiʻi hospitality’s industry recovers from the COVID pandemic.

“The past two years has impacted the food industry especially hard,” said the festival’s chief executive officer, Denise Yamaguchi.

“This year, the Festival is dedicated to the resiliency of our collective industries—from farmers and fishermen, to chefs, restaurant owners, winemakers and more—and celebrates the spirit of innovation and adaptation in light of extraordinary circumstances.”

Co-founded by two of Hawai‘i’s James Beard award-winning chefs, Yamaguchi and Alan Wong, the 2022 festival will feature the talents of some of the nation’s top chefs and emerging culinary professionals, including Peter Armellino, Rick Bayless, Michelle Bernstein, Peter Cho, Chris Cosentino, Beverly Gannon, Tiffani Faison, Amanda Freitag, Robynne Maii, Masaharu Morimoto, Shota Nakajima, Charles Phan, Caroline Schiff, Sheldon Simeon, Philip Tessier, Wade Ueoka, Crystal Wahpepah.

The 2022 lineup also includes fan favorites like the 25th Annual Roy Yamaguchi Golf Classic, as well as the return of the festival’s signature grand tasting event pairing 20 chefs and 20 winemakers at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center – Hawaiian Airlines’ “On Cloud Wine.”

Last year, the festival partnered with nine nonprofit and ʻāina-based organizations to coordinate a hands-on Mālama ʻĀina volunteer experiences that encouraged residents and visitors alike to care for Hawaiʻi – both the culture and natural environment. Hundreds of volunteers, comprised of participating chefs and festival attendees, built a stronger connection and appreciation for the ocean, land and local communities as they worked the land as their hoʻokupu or gift back to the islands.

Organizers said the festival plans to continue this initiative, committed to maintaining sustainability as a guiding force for the Festival for years to come.

Some pre-sale tickets are on sale through May 25, exclusively available to First Hawaiian Bank Private Banking customers.

Tickets are open to the general public for purchase on May 26. Visit hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com. Follow HFWF on Twitter/Instagram @HIFoodWineFest and Facebook at @HawaiiFoodandWineFestival.