Passionate local chefs, brewers and creative types have teamed up to guide the Raleigh area through a foodie resurgence in recent years, bringing you delicious, unique and approachable culinary experiences. Save these dates (and come hungry!).
April 25-26
The state's largest craft beer festival—featuring 110 breweries, 40 food trucks and drawing 50,000 people—Brewgaloo takes over downtown Raleigh for two days each April. The festival, which has free admission on Saturday (so bring plenty of friends!), allows you to purchase either beer samples or full pints from breweries located across the state. The Friday night block party is a ticketed event that allows you unlimited three-ounce samples of limited release brews.
May 2
Back for a fourth year, visitors are invited to taste, learn and unite at the Holly Springs International Food Festival, celebrating a variety of food, beverages and entertainment representing more than a dozen countries. Bring blankets and chairs for lawn seating outside the Holly Springs Cultural Center to enjoy live entertainment—polka, jazz, Bollywood dancing and more! This event is free to attend, with about a dozen local food and beverage vendors on hand.
May 3-4
Who says you can't play with your food? Expected to be one of the biggest kid-friendly events of the year in the Raleigh area, this new two-day event will feature hands-on cooking demonstrations and give kids the chance to meet real chefs and taste ingredients from around the world.
May 16-18
Putting the best of N.C. food and beverage on display, the Got to Be NC Festival offers tons of eating opportunities, live music, a huge collection of antique tractors, a carnival for children and more activities (plus free parking and admission) at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds.
May 17
Comedian Tim Shrop brings Shrop Fest—a wings and rib competition where attendees will get a taste of it all—to Phillips Farms of Cary, a massive venue that features a family fun park with games, rides, slides and more (extra ticket may be required for fun park admission).
May 18
A collaboration hosted by Trophy Brewing Company and Lawrence Barbecue—taking place at Maywood Hall & Garden in Raleigh—this event will feature an all-star crew of heavy-hitting barbecue pitmasters slinging 'cue and brews for a good cause.
May 25
One of the sweetest events of the year, NC Sugar Rush is an all-dessert food truck rodeo held in downtown Raleigh's City Plaza. More than 20 vendors—offering a range of goodies from cotton candy to cupcakes to cherry pies—will be on hand, along with face painters, balloon artists and more to keep the kids entertained (pets are welcome, too!).
May 31
If "barbecue...but make it fancy" sounds like a good time to you, you'll want to sip, savor and celebrate at this first annual event taking place at live-work-play district Fenton in Cary. Featuring food from local pitmasters paired with beer, wine, cocktails, mocktails and more.
June 7
Celebrate Raleigh's diverse community and welcoming spirit by trying food, beer and wine (plus listen to live music and see more entertainment) from around the world. Nearly 20,000 attendees are expected in downtown Raleigh's City Plaza for the event.
June 7
This fifth annual event, presented by the NC F&B Podcast, is a collaboration of chefs, pitmasters, winemakers and brewers pairing sparkling bubbles with a variety of cooking techniques and side dishes that feature everyone's favorite—brisket—from 10 Tar Heel State 'cue masters.
June 14
Sip, shop, dine and groove at the N.C. Hops Festival at Midtown Park in North Hills. More than 100 local beers, ciders and seltzers will be on hand to sample, and live music, local makers and food trucks will help round out an event worthy of raising a glass to.
June 28
Food trucks as far as you can see (literally!). The Downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo brings more than 50 food trucks to the city center, spanning a half-mile and 11 city blocks and drawing thousands of hungry visitors to taste the best of the best from local trucks. It's one of the biggest rodeos in the country!
Aug. 1-2
Beer sipping, bourbon tasting, music listening and barbecue eating—what's not to love? Don't miss the two-day Beer, Bourbon and BBQ Festival at Cary's Koka Booth Amphitheatre. Admission buys you a souvenir sampling glass, so you can enjoy an all-you-care-to-taste sampling of beer and bourbon, plus chow down on some pulled pork, ribs, biscuit and more, all while enjoying all-day live music.
Sept. 13
This elegant foodie celebration will feature whiskey, wine and cocktails, as well as great music, tented food stations, food trucks and restaurants with bonfires intermingled throughout the venue. A cozy night of whiskey drinking under the stars at Koka Booth Amphitheatre? Sign us up!
Date To Be Announced
The Raleigh area's biggest Oktoberfest celebration, Triangle Oktoberfest at Koka Booth Amphitheatre provides plenty of family-friendly activities including live music, storytelling, dancing and traditional Bavarian food and fare (plus local and authentic German beers on hand). Expected to take place in early October.
Oct. 16-26
The largest annual event in the state, the N.C. State Fair draws one million visitors through the gates each October, marking what many consider to be the unofficial beginning of the fall season. Eleven days of deep-fried foods, high-flying rides, live music, stunt shows and other entertainment (including nightly fireworks) has been a can't-miss event for generations of families—the 2024 version of the N.C. State Fair marks the 156th year of the event!
Oct. 18
For more than 20 years the N.C. Wine Festival has delivered local wineries, artisans, music, food and fun. This year's ticketed event—held at Koka Booth Amphitheatre—will provide more than 30 Tar Heel State wineries to sample from, plus will have live music on hand for a day of dancing under the pines.
Header photo of Brewgaloo by Garrett Poulos
