The Complete Guide to Del Mar Wine + Food Festival
Wolf in the Woods, one of San Diego’s top restaurants.
TWO DAY GRAND TASTING EVENT OCT 3RD AND 4TH, 2026
A week long celebration of the SoCal lifestyle capped with a two-day Grand Tasting featuring top chefs, gourmet samples from San Diego’s most beloved restaurants along with wines some of the world’s best winemakers.
And the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival also gives back, partnering with Feeding San Diego, a group that rescues perfectly good food that would otherwise be tossed and helps get it to San Diegans in need.
Here’s everything you need to know before arriving, including top tips to ensure you get the biggest bang for your buck at San Diego’s top food and wine festival.
What is the Del Mar Wine + Food Festival?
BOOTH AFTER BOOTH OF DELICIOUSNESS
Once a year the Del Mar Surf Sports Park, aka the polo fields, is transformed into the most delicious place on Earth. It is here that SoCal’s top chefs, San Diego’s best restaurants, and winemakers from around the world all unite with one goal in mind - to serve you samples of their very best they have to offer.
That’s not hyperbole. Georges at the Cove is serving handmade tater tots with caviar. Rows and rows of shucked oysters. Brandt Beef is well represented - can you smell the smokers - with pastrami sandwiches, smash burgers and short ribs. And the wines are world class, representing the very best winemakers in the world.
It’s main competitor is the San Diego Wine + Food Festival, held in November. That’s a first class event as well but what sets Del Mar apart are the more manageable lines and the space between the booths. You won’t feel cramped, you won’t be pushed or bumped into, it’s a very relaxing and fun event where you can sip and eat anything an everything you desire.
A TASTING EVENT SO BIG IT TAKES TWO DAYS
The Grand Tasting event is held over two days. First timers might opt for one day but the pro move is to book both days which allows you to really enjoy the event.
With a two day ticket you don’t feel like you have to race around and try everything. You can take your time, indulge in a glass of champagne paired with a perfect piece of fried chicken, visit the wine booths and truly enjoy each sip, hang out in the VIP tent to take in the vibe. Each day has it’s own delights and some vendors swap out so you’re not doing a groundhog day.
Of course the one day ticket is fun too and the short lines means you try it all - well, try as much as you can hold. I seriously was turning down lobster rolls one year as I was so full.
The Big Question: Is the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival WORTH IT?
In today’s times it seems like every where you go, every thing you do is so expensive. So is spending $185 for a single day or $275 for two days at the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival WORTH IT?
Before I answer that let me tell you a bit about me. While I love good food and wine I’m also just a normal guy living on a budget. I’m the sort of guy who never gets avocado (“is it extra?”) and picks which burrito to get based on price. I’m also the guy who splurged at The French Laundry and picks my vacation destinations based on where to find the best food. To sum it up, I guess I am cheap but I also will spurge as long as it’s worth it. And for me, the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival is worth it, definitely worth it.
Some food festivals hand out Costco sized samples but not the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival. The samples are huge and abundant with every vendor trying to outdo the others. So unlike other food events where most of the samples are underwhelming, at the Del Mar event every booth is a delight, some with full sized offerings. In fact there is so much food that my wife and I have taken to sharing plates just so we can save enough space to sample it all.
DON’T TRUST ME, TRUST A.I.
Why trust a local guy who has been part of the San Diego food scene and making solid recommendations for over 30 years when you can ask AI? That’s exactly what I did and here’s what the smartest computer in the world had to say:
If your goal is maximum food and wine value per dollar, the festival wins because you can easily consume more than $185 worth of high-end food and alcohol.
Financially, a single-day General Admission ticket to the festival's flagship Grand Tasting at Surf Sports Park costs $185. This price sits directly in the middle of what you would pay for a high-end dinner in San Diego ($160 to $220 per person.
If you want to try bites from dozens of San Diego’s top-tier neighborhood restaurants and Michelin-starred chefs all in one afternoon, the Del Mar Wine & Food event is unmatched.
Wow, AI is smart. But what AI doesn’t mention is how much fun the event is, something that’s hard to put a price tag on. Like my dinner at The French Laundry, it’s more about the bites. Come with some friends and it’s sure to become an annual event, something everyone looks forward to. Trust me on this, this is a great event!
Local Wally’s Tips for the Del Mar Wine & Food Festival
RIDE SHARE AND PARKING: While there’s plenty of parking at the event the smart move is to ride share so you can really enjoy all the wines and beverages without worrying about driving.
However, unless it’s fixed this year for the past events the UBER drivers will try to drop you off outside the event at the locked gate, forcing you to walk along a long dusty road to get to the real entrance. Be insistent that they drive into the main parking lot where the real entrance is. They won’t like it. They might balk. But unless you see the entrance don’t get out of the car and tell them to keep driving. And give yourself time so you don’t miss a minute of the event.
When it’s time to leave it’s easiest to exit the event on foot and walk across the street to The Market Restaurant and have them pick you up there so they don’t have to fight to get back into the lot to pick you up.
THE VIP TENT: At other food festivals the “good stuff” can only be found inside the VIP tent but I haven’t found that to be the case at Del Mar. There’s plenty of great food all over this event so if you can’t spend the cash don’t worry about it - the GA ticket will be just fine.
EARLY ADMISSION OR STANDARD?: At other food events the early admission ticket is nearly mandatory because it can get so crowded that it’s hard to get to the food once the crowds show up. Not so at the Del Mar event where the lines are much shorter, much more manageable, and the event is so spread out it never feels cramped. So for me the standard ticket works just fine and honestly three hours to wine and dine is just about right. Of course I’m not going to discourage anyone who wants to splurge. I’m just saying you don’t have to.
BRANDT BEEF STRATEGY: Brandt Beef has a pavilion of incredible meats with everything from smoked BBQ to incredible smash burgers. Located near the entrance most people instantly line up for the first booth but the pro move is to bypass this line and hit up any other booth inside the pavilion. And if it’s all too crowded just keep going and swing back when the initial crowds slow down - just don’t miss it!
