Game-Changing Vegan Food and Wine Fest Bringing Celebrity Chef Dinners, Burger Battle, Yoga Brunch and More to Miami

Matthew Kenney & Karolina Kurkova/Courtesy of Seed Food and Wine

In November of last year, Miami exploded with five full days of plant-based events, dinners, and celebrity appearances, all part of the first-ever Seed Food & Wine Festival. Like a shining example of the NYT’s now-famous ‘Vegans Go Glam’ concept, the lineup had everything a swanky, national food fest would offer — only all vegan.

That inaugural run redefined what a plant-based festival could look like, and now, from November 18 – 22, the Whole Foods-sponsored Seed is back for its second year. There’ll be 10 events in total, ranging from the massive festival day and tasting village, to the more intimate chef-hosted dinners, all in upscale venues across Miami Beach and the city’s Wynwood neighborhood.

“As much as people loved last year, I think they’re going to be really blown away by this year,” says Alison Burgos, Seed’s co-founder. With five full days of edible options, people are encouraged to travel to Miami and turn the festival into a conscious, plant-based getaway.

On Seed’s first night — Wednesday, November 18th, Movie & Munchies kicks off the lineup. May I Be Frank (a flick about actor and comedian Frank Ferrante’s journey to veganism) will be screened at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. Attendees can bring chairs or blankets, drink wine, eat chocolate, and nosh on vegan cheeses from Miyoko’s Creamery and Heidi Ho. Plus, there’ll be a QA with Ferrante himself.

Photo by Jorge Martinez

Thursday night marks the first-ever Annual Plant-Based Burger Battle at the iconic Eden Roc hotel. “We have 12 really amazing chefs from around the country — chefs from restaurants, and chefs representing some well-known brands,” says Seed’s other co-founder, Michelle Gaber. They’ll go head to head with their best plant-based burgers.

Participants include New York’s Jay Astafa, plus a chef from LA, a chef from the Bahamas, and several chefs from Seed’s own neighborhood like Darren Laszlo from Jugofresh and Ryan Bauhaus from Atlas Meat-Free Deli.

They even have one traditionally carnivorous entrant in the battle — Pincho Factory. The popular, meaty Miami eatery won the South Beach Food & Wine Festival’s (SOBEWFF) Burger Battle last year.

“We asked whether they could bring it plant-based, and they took the challenge,” explains Burgos. Audience members and celeb judges (including Burger Beast, South Florida’s “godfather of burgers”) will get to vote on their favorite entries.

“It’s really exciting. I love that we have this really awesome variety of great chefs from all over.”

The rest of the days at the vegan food and wine fest will include:

Food Forward
Friday, November 20
Designed for entrepreneurs and innovators, this day-long event will include six workshops on topics including Food Waste, Regenerative Agriculture, GMOs and Organics, Made In Miami Entrepreneurs feeding our community, and more.

Future of Food Dinner Experience with Matthew Kenney, Jonathan Seningen, and Aaron Adams
Friday, November 20
Adams, of Portland’s Farm Spirit, is a new addition to the lineup. He’s a “culinary horticulturist,” says Gaber. “His food is really innovative, really beautiful, and really delicious.”

An Evening with Chad Sarno
Friday, November 20
“I had the pleasure of doing a six-course tasting of his in Austin this past year and he blew me away,” says Burgos. “His food is rich and warm and playful and delicious and I think people are going to love it.”

Wynwood 5K Run, Yoga & Meditation
Saturday, November 21
Before festival day kicks off, attendees can hit the streets of Miami with ultra-endurance athlete, Rich Roll, triathlete Brendan Brazier, Frankie Ruiz of “WE RUN MIAMI”, Sexy Fit Vegan Ella Magers, and Bad Ass Vegan John Lewis. Then, a yoga class will kick off with Meghan Elizabeth and Corbin Stacy, followed by a guided meditation with Jennifer Grace.

Festival Day & Tasting Village
Saturday, November 21
By far the biggest event at Seed, last year saw more than 4,000 attendees. This year, they’ve added more exhibitors, activities, and interactive elements. “We’ll have a rock climbing wall, some cool photo booths, a beautiful yoga lounge — just some really immersive stuff,” says Burgos. Plus, tons of samples from 160 different brands and restaurants.

Made In Miami Dinner with Jamie De Rosa, Brad Kilgore, Todd Erickson and Chef Darren Laszlo
Saturday, November 21
“We’re taking local celebrity chefs who are not known for being plant-based and challenging them to make amazing plant-based entrees. Each ingredient highlighted in a dish will be sourced from a local, organic farm,” explains Gaber.

Mantra Yoga + Brunch with Dawn B
Sunday, November 22
“There’ll be local chefs doing really innovative food. For the first time we’ll have Dewey LoSasso on board, and Mark Reinfeld will be joining us again,” adds Gaber. Live DJ music will also accompany the yoga.

Sprout’s Kid’s Day
Sunday, November 22
Kids will get to dig into a gardening lab, try yoga, make their own veggie pizza, and visit the Bunnie Cakes cupcake lab to decorate organic, vegan, gluten-free cupcakes. “We are doing an adult lounge so moms and dads can sit and hang out and have mocktails and light bites while their kids engage,” says Burgos.

“We’re really educating people in a fun, sexy, delicious way about connecting to where your food comes from,” Burgos adds.

Seed Food and Wine Festival runs from November 18th through 22nd in Miami and Miami Beach. Ticket prices range from $15 (early-bird for Sprout’s Kid’s Day) to $130 (chef dinners), and can be purchased online at SeedFoodandWine.com.

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