Greenville food, wine and music festival Euphoria announced a stacked lineup for its 16th anniversary.
The four-day festival, planned for Sept. 16-19, will include seven Michelin-starred chefs, the most ever at Euphoria. Tickets ranging from $45 to $400 to the more than 40 events went on sale April 22 at 11 a.m. Some were sold out by the afternoon.
“We are really proud of our Michelin-starred chef lineup this year, particularly when it comes to the diversity they bring to the table,” said Euphoria executive director Morgan Allen.
The Michelin-star chefs will collaborate with local restaurants Sushi Yama, Avenue and Soby’s for three dinners. They include:
- Chef Simon Kim of COTE, New York City’s first Korean Steakhouse;
- Chef Ryan Ratino of Bresca in Washington, D.C., who was recently awarded two stars for his new tasting menu restaurant, Jônt, making him the youngest chef to win 2 stars;
- Chef Val Cantu, of Californios in San Francisco, the first Mexican restaurant in the country to earn two Michelin stars;
- Emma Bengtsson of New York City’s Aquavit, the first female Swedish chef to win two Michelin stars, and only the second female U.S.-based chef to do so.
During an event at Camperdown Plaza on Thursday, Euphoria officials announced they would also publish a cookbook featuring recipes from more than 60 chefs. It has been in the works for over a year.
The festival will include guest chefs for lunches and dinners at area restaurants, including Restaurant 17, Fork and Plough, CAMP, Jianna, Loft at Soby’s, Topsoil Kitchen and Market, Oak Hill Cafe, Stella’s Southern Brasserie and Southern Culture Kitchen and Bar.
Opening night will include a new event, Aged to Perfection, at Larkin’s Sawmill. It will include food from a variety of restaurants and food trucks, as well as live music from Kami Ocean and The Rhythm.
The Taste of the South event at Wyche Pavilion will return for the first time since 2018, featuring food from top chefs in the Southeast and live music from Steel Toe Stiletto.
Fest by the Field is also return this year on Saturday and Sunday. It includes more than 20 chefs and pitmasters, and more than two dozen wineries, breweries and mixologists.
The festival’s Sunday Supper, a laid back Southern meal that acts as the grand finale of the long weekend, will be crafted by former South Carolina Chef Ambassadors from the Upstate using locally-sourced ingredients.
Allen said that in 2021, attendees raved about the more intimate settings for the events that began as social-distancing solutions. This year’s event will include more than a dozen small classrooms on topics like beer, biscuits, wine and chocolate.
Euphoria also announced its first grant recipient, Mill Village Farms, and presented a $15,200 check to help fund the FoodShare Greenville program, which gives boxes of produce for low-income families every other week. They will also get a recipe card with their box and the option to watch a virtual cooking show, “Fresh Out of the Box.”
COVID protocols for the event in September will be decided closer to the event, Allen said. For now, the events are mostly outside and will be as distanced as needed.
“We’ve all been through a lot this past year, and we are incredibly grateful to finally be seeing some positive signs of brighter days ahead,” Allen said. “Spring is here, restrictions are being lifted, and things seem to be heading in the right direction.”