DEL MAR — The first-ever Del Mar Wine & Food Festival, billed as a star-studded event highlighting the best San Diego food and wine, will also feature a celebrity pickleball tournament to help raise money for Feeding San Diego.
The Del Mar Wine & Food Festival, taking place from Sept. 6-11 at Surf Sports Park, will feature appearances by former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Encinitas surfer Rob Machado, San Diego Wave soccer star Alex Morgan, Rancho Santa Fe tennis pro CoCo Vandeweghe and actors Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, who starred together in the TV classic “Breaking Bad.”
Festival co-founder Troy Johnson, the host of “Crave” on Food Network, said the event’s proceeds will benefit Feeding San Diego, a nonprofit helping food-insecure individuals and families throughout San Diego County.
Johnson said one of the event’s main goals is to showcase San Diego’s food scene and culture.
“The whole reason we did this whole festival is to raise up San Diego’s food scene,” Johnson said. “You really create a culture around a plate of food. We invited some of my Food Network friends and some really well-known chefs to bring their spotlight on San Diego.”
As part of the event, Brees, a former San Diego Chargers quarterback, is hosting the Whispering Angel Pickleball Tournament, a celebrity pickleball tournament from noon to 4 p.m. on Sept. 8 at Bobby Riggs Racquet and Paddle Club in Encinitas.
Scheduled to play are Vandeweghe and former NFL wide receiver Golden Tate.
Johnson said incorporating pickleball into the festival was a no-brainer, “the biggest thing since Jesus,” and another way to promote the festival.
“The massive meteoric rise of the sport is something of note and a big part of our culture,” Johnson said. “It made way too much sense.”
Carissa Casares, senior communications manager at Feeding San Diego, said the festival’s help with fundraising and spreading awareness is important as more people struggle with food insecurity.
Casares said over the past two years, inflation has hurt the organization’s purchasing power, which has decreased as the cost of food and other goods has risen.
“They love that we are a food rescue,” Casares said of the festival’s organizers. “We distribute surplus edible food to people facing hunger. We have relationships with grocery stores, distributors, and restaurants. Hunger relief is something most people can get behind.”
Tickets for the festival can be found www.delmar.wine.
