ICYMI, the third annual Columbia Food and Wine Festival – originally scheduled for late April – was rescheduled to Aug. 20-23, 2020 due to COVID-19. Now, the festival’s organizers have reimagined the event for it to safely take place in a new, exciting format.

Here’s everything you need to know about #CFWF2020: How plans have changed, what safety measures are in place, and how festival-goers can feel like they’re on an episode of Top Chef – right here in Cola.

What it looked like before:

7 small, intimate “satellite events” across the region across 3 days (originally Aug. 20-22)
Main outdoor tasting event at Historic Columbia’s Hampton Preston Mansion on Aug. 23
Festival organizers determined that holding these events would not allow for adequate social distancing. So they did what #SodaCitizens do best: Got creative + made a plan.

What it looks like now:

2 outdoor, seated dining experiences: Dinner on Sat., August 22 at 7:30 p.m. + brunch on Sunday, August 23 at 11:00 a.m.
The outdoor meals will be held at the Hampton-Preston Mansion and its sister property the Robert Mills House, both managed by Historic Columbia.
Each outdoor meal will have four zoned seating areas, with two zones on each historic property.
Each zone will allow for up to 100 attendees, with total attendance per experience capped at 400.
At each event, attendees will enjoy a four-course meal prepared by a team of 3-4 chefs, with a different team preparing the menu for each respective zone. Kind of like an episode of Top Chef. 😍
Chefs include Kristian Niemi of Black Rooster + Bourbon, Nelson De Hoyos of Hall's Chophouse, Jessica Shillato of Spotted Salamander Cafe & Catering + more.

Safety measures in place:

Expanded registration/check-in process with physical space to allow for social distancing + crowd control
Utilizing digital thermometers to document all attendees’ temps prior to check-in
Disposable masks + individual hand sanitizer bottles available to all attendees, with masks required at any point a guest is not sitting at their table
Tables of no more than six seats, with each table 6+ feet apart
Established directions for each zone’s attendees to enter/exit
All courses will be individually plated and served.

Ticketing info:

Brunch experience tickets are $65/person, with dinner tickets going for $95/person.
Pricing includes all food + beverages – gratuity is not included.
Festival-goers get to choose their zone knowing the featured chefs + menu theme.
Already had tickets to the original festival events for 2020? They can be exchanged for tickets to the new dining experiences or shifted to use in 2021.

Quiz:

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