Top 4 North American Food Festivals For Hungry Travelers

For foodies, food festivals offer an interactive menu of exciting culinary experiences served à la carte. Typically spanning over several days, food festivals serve a multi-course offering to the senses. Interact with world-class chefs, dine on new and classic cuisine from famed regional restaurants, and learn innovative cooking techniques from gastronomical innovators. In addition, festival-goers can also take advantage of the charms and activities of the host city while indulging their palate.

Taste MTL Heats Up In Canada 

Before eastern Canada battens down the hatches for winter, Montreal turns up the heat up on its acclaimed food scene. Featuring over 5,600 eateries, Montreal hosts an 11-day city-wide food festival for visitors to experience delectable international and regional cuisine. From November 1 to 11, around 125 Montreal restaurants plan three-course pre-fixed menus for your culinary exploration.

For simplicity and to accommodate varying budgets, each restaurant's menu cost one of three prices: $19, $29, or $39. Festival-goers can appeal to their Parisian palate at Montreal's Brasserie Le PoisPenché, serving authentic French specialties, or experience fresh local produce at Le Local. For Canadian food seekers, locally tapped maple syrup and poutine are on select menus.

Since the festival is city-wide, consider renting a car to experience Taste MTL fully. Use a reliable car rental resource, such as Carrentals.com, to navigate through your Canadian culinary excursion.

The Spice of South Beach Wine and Food Festival

For snow birds and foodies, the South Beach Wine and Food Festival provides a much-needed reprieve from the winter blandness. From February 20th to the 23rd, the festival dashes extra spice on America's most famous shoreline with Latin and Caribbean flavors. Featuring over 200 world-class chefs, the festival is hosted by The Food Network, and festival-goers can rub shoulders with their favorite Food Network stars.

Over three spice-filled days, the festival boasts over 50 dinners, a series of celebrity chef cooking seminars, and a Grand Tasting Village. An event for all the senses, the South Beach Wine and Food Festival also features musical events, such as BBQ and Blues. In between festival events, festival-goers can digest while relaxing on the white sands of South Beach, or dance off extra calories at one of South Beach's world-famous nightclubs. 

Livin' is (Big) Easy at the New Orléans Wine & Food Experience

The Big Easy is world-famous for their regional cuisine and epicurean attitude. Known as a feaster's paradise, the New Orléans Wine & Food Experience combines a street party atmosphere with tastings from the city's most esteemed food institutions. Indulge in escargots bordelaise from Brennan's, New Orléans' most famous brunch destination, or experience authentic gumbo from Arnaud's, a creole institution that has delighted tastebuds since 1918. 

Running for five days over Memorial Day Weekend, the festival is a full sensory experience. Outside of the restaurant walls, food trucks, live music, and art galleries line the streets of New Orleans's famed French Quarter, reflecting the culture and charm of The Big Easy.

International Fusion at The Taste: Los Angeles

Hosted by The Los Angeles Times and Food and Wine Magazine, The Taste is an annual foodie haven, especially for those interested in innovative cooking techniques and the latest nuances in culinary fusion; Los Angeles has always been a hotbed for cooking innovation and fusion dining. Over four days, the hottest gastronomy experts of Los Angeles host a series of tastings, demonstrations, and seminars.

The Taste takes place at Paramount Picture Back Studio Lot over Labor Day weekend, giving festival-goers the chance to dine with kitchen pioneers and big screen stars. 

In recent years, gastro-tourism has become a deliciously popular way to travel, and North America's food festivals offer the most diverse menus on the planet. From international fusion influences of Los Angeles to the regional delicacies of New Orléans, foodies can delight their taste buds when they visit these top four acclaimed North American food festivals. If you have an appetite that doesn't settle for the ordinary, visit these food festivals which always have something special on the menu.