(Photo: Meredith Mashburn PhotographyOne of the most delicious weekends of the year is coming up in Fayetteville.
Of course, we’re talking about Fayetteville Roots Festival weekend, set for Aug. 25-27 in downtown Fayetteville.
The event is a music festival primarily, but food has always been central to the event as well, and this year is no exception.
This year’s event will include food by 28 local, regional, and nationally-known chefs, including 2022 James Beard Finalists Edgar Rico and Erick Williams, New Orleans-based chef Sue Zemanick, San Antonio chef Esaul Ramos, and several others.
Most of the chefs will be putting their talents on display at the Grand Tasting event on Thursday night, but other individual culinary events are also in the works this year.
Among them will be restaurant takeovers during the weekend, with a collection of chefs including Zemanic (Zasu – New Orleans), Merlin Verrier (Street Feud, Denver), and others creating special meals at Arsaga’s at the Mill on Friday night.
On Saturday, a second takeover event will take place at Atlas on Block Avenue, with Erick Williams (Virtue – Chicago), Jason Paul (Heirloom – Rogers), and others creating the menu and cooking for guests.
Other local chefs will also be involved in this year’s event, including Darwin Beyer (Meiji), Jordan Wright (Wright’s BBQ,) Eliot Hunt (Atlas), and others. A full list is below.
In addition, the Fayetteville Public Library’s 641.DELI restaurant will be transformed during the daytime programing at the library with a “guest chef driven pop-up culinary concept.”
Tickets to the Friday dinner at Arsaga’s are $140 per person plus a $28 service fee. Tickets to the Saturday dinner at Atlas are $222 per person, plus a $44 service fee.
More info, including ticket details for the music and more, is available at fayettevilleroots.org.
Fayetteville Roots Chef Lineup
