Food + Wine Festival puts Colorado cuisine on display one small plate at a time

Colorado Restaurant Foundation provides education, skills training, and financial aid to hospitality workers across Colorado. It develops young talent through the Colorado ProStart program for high school students and apprenticeship opportunities for young workers. It also maintains the Angel Relief Fund which provides small grants to foodservice workers who are facing an unanticipated hardship. 

"Colorado restaurant industry is 10-percent of our state's workforce. We do training programs, and then, we help people remove barriers to advancement. We do a lot of holistic support, health and wellness, hardship funds so this Festival is really for a good cause," said Laura Shunk, President of the Colorado Restaurant Foundation. 

Colorado Restaurant Foundation hosts the Food + Wine Festival to raise money for its programs. The four-day festival puts Colorado foods and beverages front and center. 

"This is really a chance to try Colorado in one fell swoop. We've got 50 restaurants, some of the best restaurants coming in across the state. We've got Rootstalk from Breckenridge, Bin 707 from Grand Junction, Craftsman from Edwards, but also favorites from Denver and the Front Range," Shunk explained. 

Denver Food + Wine Festival kicks off with the Riedel Wine Symposium which allows ticket holders to taste wine in the glass that it's meant to be poured in. For those who can't make that, there is another wine symposium as part of the VIP experience at the Grand Tasting on Saturday. 

 The Shake + Brake Showdown is on Thursday. It features 10 food trucks and 11 bartenders, and there are a lot of new competitors in the mix this year. 

"This is always a competition. The audience gets to vote on the best bite and the best cocktail so come check out who's new," Shunk said. 

LINK: For Tickets & Information for Denver Food + Wine Festival

Denver Food + Wine Festival runs August 26 - 29, 2026 at the Tivoli Quad on the Auraria Campus.