Manhattan Beach Food & Wine Returns September 25 and 26 with 46 Chefs at Westdrift Manhattan Beach

Southern California's premier luxury coastal culinary festival comes back for a third year, and this time it has a new oceanfront home.

The South Bay's biggest night out is back. Manhattan Beach Food & Wine returns for its third annual edition on Friday, September 25 and Saturday, September 26, 2026, and this year the festival lands at a striking new location: Westdrift Manhattan Beach, an Autograph Collection Hotel. Two nights, two Grand Tasting Celebrations, and a planned lineup of 46 acclaimed chefs make this one of the most anticipated food and wine events on the Los Angeles calendar for some of the best food in Los Angeles, Ca.

If you have never been, picture a strolling tasting party under the coastal sky. Each evening brings together 23 of the region's best chefs and restaurants alongside wineries, premium spirits, handcrafted cocktails, craft breweries, a curated selection of non-alcoholic beverages, live entertainment, and the kind of DJ-driven energy that turns a food festival into a genuine social event. Founder and producer Shelby Russell and culinary curator and host Chef Neal Fraser have built this into what the festival calls the intersection of elite gastronomy and coastal social culture, and the description fits.

Two Nights of Grand Tastings

Manhattan Beach Food & Wine is structured as two separate evenings, each with its own chef lineup. That means Friday and Saturday are not repeats of one another. Guests who attend both nights get two distinct rosters of talent, two different sets of pours, and twice the reasons to keep the group chat busy.

Both Grand Tastings run from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM, with Delta VIP Early Entry beginning at 6:00 PM. This is a 21-and-over event. Across the two nights, the festival is bringing together nationally recognized chefs, James Beard honorees, television personalities, Michelin-starred teams, beloved local icons, and rising stars, all serving side by side in one place.

Organizers have now released the chef lineup. Thirty-nine chefs and restaurants are confirmed, drawn from Manhattan Beach and the wider South Bay, across Los Angeles, and from as far as Dallas, Denver, New Orleans and Fort Lauderdale. The festival has committed to 46 across the weekend, 23 each night, and says more names are still to come.

2026 Chef Lineup

The full roster as announced, listed alphabetically by chef surname. Chefs cooking both nights appear once.

Vartan Abgaryan, Momed, Atwater Village

Kasra Adjani, Google, Playa Vista

Yoshiyasu Aiba, Sushi Roku, Manhattan Beach

Wedchayan “Deau” Arpapornnopparat, Holy Basil, Los Angeles

Jose Baca, westdrift, Manhattan Beach

Brendan Collins, BOA Steakhouse, Manhattan Beach

Shaun Dry, Rock'N Fish, Manhattan Beach

Dean Fearing, Fearing's, Dallas

Susan Feniger, Alice B., Border Grill and Socalo

Neal Fraser, Redbird and Vibiana, Downtown Los Angeles

Marco Gagliardi, Josephine, Silver Lake

Ray Garcia, Comedor, Los Angeles

Jeffray Gardner, Marsatta Chocolate, Torrance

Anthony Greco, Porto's Bakery

Joel Hammond, Uchi, West Hollywood

Ray Hayashi, RYLA, Hermosa Beach

Imran Khan, Fitoor, Santa Monica

Ludo Lefebvre, Petit Trois, Los Angeles and Sherman Oaks

David LeFevre, Fishing with Dynamite, Manhattan Beach Post, The Arthur J, RYLA and AttaGirl

Lord Maynard Llera, Kuya Lord, Los Angeles

Christy Lucchese, Wife and the Somm, Glassell Park

Raphael Lunetta, Lunetta, Santa Monica

Alice Mai, AttaGirl, Hermosa Beach

Jayro Martinez, Top of the V, Anaheim

Chris Park, The Strand House, Manhattan Beach

Wendy Pomerantz, Bertha Mae's Brownie Co., Los Angeles

Michael Reed, Poppy + Rose and Poppy & Seed

Ben Robinson, Below Deck, Fort Lauderdale

Ligia Rossi, République, Los Angeles

Steve Samson, Rossoblu, Downtown Los Angeles

Aarón Sánchez, Johnny Sánchez, New Orleans

Alan Sanz, Mirate and Daisy Margarita Bar, Los Angeles and Sherman Oaks

Frank Ryan Saporito, Wife and the Somm, Glassell Park

Alex Seidel, Mercantile Dining & Provision, Denver

Rudy Suazo, Maple Block Meat Co., Culver City

John Sungkamee, Emporium Thai and Emporium Thai Market, Westwood

Oscar Torres, VERSE, Toluca Lake

Dustin Trani, J. Trani's, The Majestic and Trani's Dockside Station, San Pedro

Sherry Yard, Bakery by the Yard, Manhattan Beach

Plus Culinary Careers Program students from C-CAP, the festival's beneficiary, working alongside chefs at the stations. Organizers note additional names are still to come.

A Look Back at the Talent

To understand what this festival attracts, it helps to look at who has cooked here before. Recent editions of Manhattan Beach Food & Wine have featured Chef Chris Cosentino of KOAST in Maui, host Chef Neal Fraser of Redbird and Vibiana in Los Angeles, acclaimed chef and restaurateur Mary Sue Milliken, and Chef Michael Reed, among a deep bench of culinary talent working the tasting stations late into the night. Photos from those nights show packed chef tents, surf and turf plates going out by the tray, and the signature moment when the chefs are called out to a cheering crowd at the close of the evening.

That energy is the point. This is not a quiet, seated tasting. It is a celebration.

The New Home: Westdrift Manhattan Beach

The move to westdrift Manhattan Beach is a meaningful upgrade. The 393-room luxury resort sits on 26 expansive acres just three miles from LAX, blending East Coast sophistication with laid-back California cool. The property features a nine-hole golf course, a resort-style pool, a fitness center, and the acclaimed JUTE Coastal Bar + Kitchen.

For the festival, westdrift becomes the social hub. It is a stay-and-play setting where guests, chefs, and winemakers cross paths and the festival energy flows across the entire property, all just steps from your room. Exclusive hotel packages are available for guests who want to stay, sip, and savor the whole weekend without worrying about the drive home.

The venue address is 1400 Parkview Avenue, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266.

Tickets and Pricing

Early Bird pricing is live now, with preferred rates on all ticket tiers through August 6, 2026. The festival notes there are no added ticketing fees, which is a welcome change of pace. Here is how the tiers break down.

Festival Admission Pass gives you unlimited tastings from chefs, wineries, spirits, and breweries, with entry at 7:00 PM. Early Bird pricing is $195 per night, regularly $245.

Delta VIP Early Entry Pass gets you in one hour early at 6:00 PM for first access to chef stations and premium pours. Early Bird pricing is $225 per night, regularly $275.

Reserved Table for Four includes a reserved table with dedicated seating, premium service touches, and a prime location, with entry at 6:00 PM. Early Bird pricing is $325 per guest, and the table requires a party of four at $1,300 total. Regular pricing is $395 per guest.

All three tiers can be purchased for Friday, Saturday, or both nights at www.ManhattanBeachFoodandWine.com.

For guests who want the full weekend, discounted festival hotel rates at westdrift are available while supplies last, with a booking cutoff of August 18, 2026. Given that this event has a habit of selling out, planning early is the smart move.

Cooking for a Cause

There is real purpose behind the party. Manhattan Beach Food & Wine's event beneficiary is the Culinary Careers Program, known as C-CAP. Long co-chaired by Chef Marcus Samuelsson, C-CAP is a workforce development nonprofit that provides underserved teens with pathways to careers in the restaurant and hospitality industry. The organization delivers culinary, job, and life skills training in 186 schools across the country, including the entire state of Arizona and cities from Los Angeles and Miami to New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Newark, Baltimore, Camden, and Washington DC.

Past festival menus have even highlighted the C-CAP students paired with each chef station, a nice reminder that every tasting supports the next generation of talent.

This Year's Partners

The 2026 festival is backed by a strong roster of partners: INFINITI as the official vehicle, Delta Air Lines as the official airline, westdrift Manhattan Beach as the official host hotel, San Pellegrino as the official water, Chef Works as the official hospitality apparel, Sub-Zero, Wolf, and Cove as the official kitchen appliance partner, and Southern California Restaurant Design Group as the official commercial kitchen designer.

Getting There

Because the event serves alcoholic beverages, guests are encouraged to use car services. Walking to the event is also encouraged, and valet parking, self-parking, and street parking are all available at westdrift Manhattan Beach.

The Bottom Line

Manhattan Beach Food & Wine has quickly earned its reputation as the South Bay's signature culinary weekend, and the move to westdrift only raises the stakes. Two nights, 46 chefs, more than 50 beverage partners, live entertainment, a beautiful coastal resort, and a cause worth supporting. This is the festival your friends text about and the one the group chat plans weeks in advance.

Early Bird tickets are on sale now through August 6 at www.ManhattanBeachFoodandWine.com. This party sells out, so get in before prices go up.

I hope you're hungry.

- Matthew Tropp | FJM

Follow Manhattan Beach Food & Wine on Instagram @mbfoodandwine, Facebook @ManhattanBeachFood&Wine, and TikTok @mbfoodandwine for lineup announcements and updates.