The biggest change for this year's Food & Wine Experience? It's moving out of the city to the Omni Lakes Hotel in Eagan.
After years at Target Field, Minnesota Monthly's three-day event, March 3-5, will take over the hotel's event and patio spaces with exhibits that feature 30 vineyards from across the country and several local restaurants. There also will be bonfires, patio heaters, ice sculptures and music — and free parking. Here are the details for the 28th annual event:
New digs: Omni Lakes Hotel, part of the Minnesota Vikings training campus, is at 2611 Nordic Way, Eagan. The events are on one level and parking is free.
Grand Vine Tasting: This special event, a high-end wine tasting with gourmet bites and music, is March 3 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. in the hotel's Norse Hall. Tickets are $100 and are going fast.
General admission: This will get you into the main event, March 4-5 from 1 to 5 p.m. Tickets are $90 in advance, $100 at the door. VIP tickets, which get you in an hour early, are sold out.
Eat locally: Look for some familiar restaurants at the event, including Butcher's Tale, Café Latte, Earl Giles, Farmer and the Fishmonger, Kyndred Hearth, Lucky 13, Mill Valley Kitchen, Mr. Paul's Supper Club, Mucci's, Pajarito and more.
Don't miss the wine wall: There's a daily raffle for chances to win 50 bottles of wine. Tickets are $10 each; 100% of the proceeds benefit the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital.
Learn a little: At noon on March 5, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines will discuss the unique grape varietals grown in the Paso Robles region. Tickets are $10 and includes tastings showcasing the region's diversity. (Saturday's "We Love Our Dirt" session with Willamette Valley Wines is sold out.)
All attending must be 21 or older. For more information and tickets, go to foodwineexperience.com.
BIPOC Foodways Alliance sets debut event
Chef and longtime Twin Cities food writer Mecca Bos has partnered with James Beard Award-winning chef Sean Sherman to launch BIPOC Foodways Alliance, a new nonprofit that will host a kickoff fundraising event Feb. 28 from 6 to 10 p.m. at Glass House, 145 N. Holden St., Mpls.
While the organization's ultimate goal is massive — to dismantle white supremacy through food — it plans to begin on a smaller scale with a focus on home kitchens. The stories of women of color, elders and immigrants, often passed orally within families and communities, will be shared with wider audiences to better understand our collective histories and the way these tables have shaped the way we eat today. (Bos' first story of the project is now online; footage will be shown at the event.)
The evening includes a cash bar, food by Sherman and Bos and entertainment from Cornbread Harris and DJ Tricky Miki. Tickets are $75, with lower (and higher) options, and are available through Eventbrite. For more information, go to bipocfoodways.org.
Celebrate all things wine up north
Grand View Lodge in Nisswa is holding its annual de'Vine Wine and Culinary Weekend March 3-5, with wine dinners, classes, and tastings filled with samples from bottles that are easy to find to those that are seldom poured. One of the weekend's highlights will be a conversation with Tommy Begnaud, chef/owner of Mr. Paul's Supper Club in Edina, and Star Tribune Taste reporter Joy Summers. All-inclusive packages begin at $312; contact Grandview Lodge for tickets to individual events and more information.
