Michelle Metter (Courtesy photo)
Festival, Embarcadero, Downtown

Michelle Metter Chats About Bringing Her 19th Annual Wine and Food Festival to San Diego and Downtown’s Embarcadero

By Frank Sabatini Jr.

What started out on a hope of becoming San Diego’s most notable merging of winemakers and chefs has far exceeded that goal. Now a year shy of turning 20, the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival is considered the Cadillac of locally grown culinary extravaganzas.

Co-founder and co-producer Michelle Metter couldn’t be happier. The event, held this year on Nov. 6-12, was recently named by USA Today the “Number One” wine festival in America. In addition, BizBash Magazine ranked it one of the top 100 events in Southern California.

In the festival’s hectic lead-up, Metter took precious time to talk to us about its roots, new offerings and its future—and what she does for a breather each year when it’s all over.

Downtown Condo Guys: How did the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival get started?

Metter: My business partner, Ken Loyst, is a wine collector and he’d go to all these incredible events across the country and bring back a lot of phenomenal wines. We would talk about what was happening in San Diego and the fact that there wasn’t an event here that put a spotlight on our culinary scene. It was a light bulb moment for us to take our passion for bringing something world class to San Diego. We did a lot of research and spent time in California wine regions to see if San Diego was a market that winemakers wanted to focus their resources on. We received really great reception and saw we had enough support to create this event in San Diego. We were also reaching out to chefs because that was always part of our culinary objective.

Downtown Condo Guys: What were you doing before launching the first festival?

Metter: I was working for a national public relations agency that had offices here and in New York and Los Angeles. I worked for the agency for about six years.

Downtown Condo Guys: How many wine and food vendors did the event start out with?

Metter: It began modestly with around 60 wineries and maybe 30 restaurants. We had about 2,000 attendees. And we started with only a three-day pattern of events on Friday, Saturday and Sunday that included the Grand Tasting at the Embarcadero.

Downtown Condo Guys: How do those numbers compare to recent years?

Metter: The festival has since exploded into six full days with about 30 different events offered throughout San Diego County and into Baja. At the Grand Tasting (Nov. 11), we feature roughly 200 wineries, breweries, and spirit brands, and approximately 70 restaurants, gourmet artisans and farmers. In 2019, pre-Covid, we had 14,000 attendees. This year we’re anticipating 11,000.

We also now have this beautiful partnership with the consulate of Mexico, so the event has evolved to celebrate chefs, farmers, and fisherman from throughout our entire bio region – from Orange County down through Mexico. That will all be showcased on the last day (Nov. 12) of the festival at Liberty Station during our Grand Fiesta, which we started last year.

Downtown Condo Guys: What attractions or events are new this year?

Metter: We have lots of new events. At the Grand Tasting, for example, guests can experience an expanded Brandt Beef pavilion, which is included with general admission. Also included is ‘CohnChella’, which is a big experience that the Cohn Restaurant Group created. It’s a zone inside of the Grand Tasting that spotlights all of their restaurants plus lots of surprises. 

Also, VIP guests this year will get a real sense of local cuisine with gourmet farmstead creations by Jack Ford of Taj Farms in North County and The Ecology Center in Orange County.

Downtown Condo Guys: How long does it take to produce the festival each year? And how many people are involved?

Metter: We work year-round and we’re already laying the groundwork for next year’s 20th anniversary, which will have surprises that I can’t reveal yet.

We have about 10 people on staff plus advisors and culinary counsels who look at the way people experience our event. We also have chefs and winemakers and event pros all coming together to make sure this is a world-class experience.

Downtown Condo Guys: What are the biggest challenges and rewards of producing the festival?

Metter: Making sure that we’re really in tune to the needs of our chefs and the wineries that participate. It’s a big commitment they make when joining us given that the hospitality industry has had its challenges with Covid and labor shortages. We are not just holding an event, but we’re trying to be a staple of the story that’s told when it comes to food and wine in our city. Maintaining that integrity is critically important.

For the rewards, oh my gosh. It’s when I’m onsite at the event and see everything come together and people enjoying themselves. It’s also watching people introduce products to the market and then later seeing them get those products onto store shelves, and seeing people discover new restaurants and wines when speaking directly to chefs and winemakers. We are always trying to find new ways to be a source of entertainment while still educating attendees on where their food comes from and what role they play in this culinary ecosystem we have.

Downtown Condo Guys: Who are some of the big-name chefs taking part in events this year?

Metter: Our focus is to put a national spotlight on chefs here in San Diego. All of them are celebrities, and we treat them equally. But from almost 80 regional chefs participating, we have Travis Swikard from Callie; Michelin-star chef Roberto Alcocer of Valle; Eric Bost of Campfire; Kelston Moore of Bad Boyz of Culinary; Ky Phan with Kingfisher; and Brian Redzikowski of Kettner Exchange. Also included are 20 award-winning, highly-decorated chefs from Mexico joining us.

Downtown Condo Guys: Tell us about the festival’s scholarship program:

Metter: We started the program from the first year and have given out more than $600,000 from ticket and booth sales. There are 10 recipients this year. They are culinarians either currently working in restaurants and hospitality or those continuing their education. The idea behind our scholarships is to help restaurants and the hospitality industry create a skilled, vibrant workforce. The recipients are always local or have a connection to San Diego.

Downtown Condo Guys: Where do you see the festival going in the future?

Metter: Over the course of the next 5 to 10 years we want to continue to deepen our relationships with chefs over our shared value system. We have exciting things in the works for future festivals that will set the stage for how the festival will be in the coming years.

Downtown Condo Guys: From a culinary standpoint, what have you learned while working on this event for the past 19 years?

Metter: I’ve learned to appreciate the artistry behind wine and food, and I’ve learned to be curious about ingredients and what is happening in the vineyards. I now want to know about the grapes and techniques, and sauces, and where micro greens come from.

Downtown Condo Guys: Favorite wine?

Metter: Whatever is in my glass.

Downtown Condo Guys: Favorite style of food?

Metter: Something with soul.

Downtown Condo Guys: Each year after it’s all over with, what do you do to unwind?

Metter: I snuggle with my babies. I’m a mom of two beautiful daughters.