Austin Food and Wine Festival Is Officially Canceled This Year

After one attempt to reschedule, the Austin Food & Wine Festival (AFWF) announced that it was canceling the 2020 event due to the ongoing global novel coronavirus pandemic and the city’s “stay at home orders” through December. The 2021 festival, which will be the 10th anniversary year, is slated for November 5 to 7.

AFWF was originally scheduled for April this year, with a roster of chefs including The Grey’s Mashama Bailey, FieldTrip’s JJ Johnson, and UK chef Simon Stallard. However, after Austin mayor Steve Adler banned, in quick succession, all public events of 2,500, then 250 people in March, followed by Governor Abbott banning events larger than 10 people on March 19, the festival rescheduled to Friday, November 13 through Sunday, November 15 of this year.

Then on August 17, Mayor Adler extended the “stay home, mask, and otherwise be safe” orders through December 15, which bans indoor and outdoor events of more than 10 people. This led the festival to cancel for this year.

Current ticketholders will have the option to get a refund, roll the ticket to the 2021 festival, or donate the value of the tickets to the Austin Food & Wine Alliance. The cancellation announcement also encouraged supporting restaurants by ordering food to-go and advocating for the CARES Act, which calls for changes to the stimulus act to benefit restaurants.