Las Olas Wine & Food Festival 2025!

South Florida’s biggest Culinary Street Festival is APRIL 25 along Las Olas Blvd!

By Kenny Spahn

Get ready fellow Foodies, fine wine & craft beer aficionados, and partygoers of all sorts – the BIG one is almost here!  That’s right, The American Lung Association’s Las Olas Wine & Food Festival takes place Friday, April 25^th.  Now celebrating its 29^th consecutive year, the “Las Olas” is the areas’ biggest, best, and most favorite culinary festival – and is recognized as one of the very best all-inclusive culinary street festival in the country! 

For one iconic evening, Ft. Lauderdale’s famed Las Olas Boulevard closes to vehicular traffic and morphs into the ultimate street food festival and party. Here’s where fellow foodies and party-goers (like you!) hit the street to experience unlimited free samplings from dozens and dozens of the area’s top restaurants and chefs, plus an endless stream of fine wines, spirits, craft beers, and cocktails  — all while partying to live music, entertainment, vendor exhibits, interactive games, intriguing displays, socializing & schmoozing, and general frivolity among a few thousand of their new best friends.

 And the best part, it all goes to benefit a worthy cause – the American Lung Association, and its valiant efforts to combat lung disease (the third leading cause of death in the U.S.!), with all proceeds going directly to ALA South Florida.  

Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to sip, savor, and sample nearly 50 of Broward County’s finest restaurants, hotels, caterers, and chefs.

The Las Olas always draws some major culinary players, and this year’s lineup looks better than ever!  Just check out the roster of all-stars, including: 15th Street Fisheries, Abiaka Wood Fire Grill, Bae Korean Grill, Bombay Darbar, Catch & Cut, Charleston Coffee Roasters, Chef Rose Jamaican Cuisine, The Den Sports Lounge, Desiignbyfood Catering, Dick’s Last Resort, Dreams Come True Hospitality, El Vez, Even Keel Fish & Oyster, Fogo de Chao, Hatch Brunch, Hollywood Donut Factory, Hugh’s Catering, il Mulino, Jarana, Jerk Machine, La Macha Miami, La Mexicana Taco Bar, Livia Bar & Grill, Mac Bynum Concepts, Mitch’s Downtown Bagel Café, Naked Farmer, New River Café & Bakery, Oceanic at the Pompano Beach Pier, Old World Polish Deli, Petit en Bouche, Pho Bar Vietnamese Kitchen, Phuse Cream,  S3, Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood,  Shake Shack,  Sixty Vines, Southern Eats Kitchen, Steak 954, Steelpan Kitchen & Bar, Sonesta Fort Lauderdale, Tabañero Hot Sauce & Condiments, Tamarindo Harbor Italian Bar & Grill, The Federal, The Private Sushi Chef, The Restaurant People, The Wilder.  Timpano Las Olas, Treats & Eatz, Truluck’s Ocean’s Finest Seafood & Crab, Wild Sea, YOLO, and more!

To accompany all this fine fare, you also get to sip and sample your way through hundreds of  different wine, craft beer, high-end spirits, and specialty cocktail offerings, along with non-alcoholic re-hydrators, energy drinks, and purified water alike – all thanks to the generous sponsor Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Florida. Dozens of tasting booths will be set up along the street, along with specially themed  tasting villages featuring select spirits,  including Aperol, Biltmore Winery, Espolón Tequila, Hampton Water Rose, Jim Beam Pineapple, La Marielita 18-year Rum, Liquore Strega, Stella Artois Beer, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Truman Vodka, LaCroix Sparkling Waters, and many, many more!

And the best part, it’s all to benefit a very worthy cause — the American Lung Association in Florida, and its never-ending battle for lung health. “Each year, the Las Olas Wine & Food Festival brings our vibrant community together for one unforgettable night filled with fantastic food, best-in-class wines and spirits and dancing under the stars. It’s become a Fort Lauderdale institution with good cause,” notes Andrea Eastaugh of the ALA South Florida Leadership Board.. “This event supports the American Lung Association’s lifesaving work—and we get to have a great time while doing good. Let’s toast to that!”  The Las Olas Wine & Food Festival helps fuel the ALA’s research, community-based support programs for the 2.7 million Floridians living with lung disease and much-needed advocacy efforts to ensure clean air for all.  

Back by popular demand, the Las Olas is again offering  an enhanced  VIP package, offering VIP ticket holders exclusive access to the VIP Kick Off Party (5:30 – 7:00) at the Riverside Hotel, early access to the Festival (starting at 7:00, instead of 7:30), plus exclusive access to premier tastings at the Southern Glazer’s new elevated Wine Garden lounge. 

Also on tap for the festival: Onsite entertainment will include live music, DJs, dancing and interactive experiences, including:

• Elevated Wine Garden – a premium wine experience perfect for wine aficionados and those curious to try premium brands curated by Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits and sponsored by Ombelle Fort Lauderdale.  The Wine Garden will include VIP premium tastings from 7 to 9 p.m., with general admission afterwards from 9 to 10:30 p.m.
• Live music and Entertainment and interactive displays throughout .
• Demesmin & Dover Block Party – the crowd-favorite is back with great music and dancing under the stars.
• Guests can hydrate between tasty sips and savory bites with a refreshing sparkling water from the festival’s official sparkling water.

Sounds like a Party to me!  So mark your calendars, save room in your bellies, and purchase your tickets now, before they sell out!

P.S. Attention smokers: Yes, this is an outdoor event, but it’s for the American Lung Association – so NO SMOKING for a few hours – OK?

The Las Olas Wine and Food Festival happens Friday, April 25 from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Las Olas Boulevard between SE 6th Ave and SE 11th Ave. in downtown Fort Lauderdale.

To purchase tickets or for more information, visit: https://LasOlasWFF.com;   or call (954) 727-0907.

NOTE: The event usually sells out, so order your tickets now!

Stay up to date with festival announcements, specials and giveaways on Facebook and Instagram @LasOlasWFF. Facebook: https://www.instagram.com/lasolaswff/

Instagram: https://www.facebook.com/lasolaswff/

All proceeds fund the American Lung Association’s work serving the nearly 3.3 million Floridians living with lung disease, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer—the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. From researching new treatment and cures to tackling the youth vaping epidemic to protecting the air we all breathe, the Lung Association is helping people live healthier lives. Support for the Las Olas Wine and Food Festival deepens the organization’s impact. To join our local efforts, visit Lung.org/FL.

About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to champion clean air for all; to improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and to create a tobacco-free future. For more information about the American Lung Association, which has a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and is a Platinum-Level GuideStar Member, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.  To support the work of the American Lung Association, find a local event at Lung.org/events.

About the Author:  Kenny Spahn is a renowned food critic, culinary columnist, and restaurant authority, and has published over 1,000 culinary articles. Mr. Spahn is President of Restaurant Placement Group Restaurant Recruiters, the exclusive recruiting, placement, and consulting firm for the Restaurant and Hospitality industry. Visit:  https://www.RestaurantPlacement.com.

TAGS: Las Olas Wine & Food Festival, Las Olas, Ft. Lauderdale, Events, Food & Wine, @LasOlasWFF American Lung Association, ALA South Florida, Restaurant Placement Group, Kenny Spahn,  www.RestaurantPlacement.com , Events, Restaurants, Wine, Beer, #LOWFF, Lung Cancer, Lung Disease